Leaving Things Till The Last Minute

Quote of the day: 

Tomorrow is promised to no one. Prioritize today accordingly.  -Gina Greenlee

Why do we put things off till the very last minute?  The idea that we can prolong doing something only buys us time up until when it's convenient for us. But in the end the very benefit leaves a sour taste when we are swamped and hard pressed for time. We rush, make last minute attempts at survival, clawing at straws in a whirlpool which we could have avoided. But is procrastination such a terrible thing? It can be if it becomes a way of life. Late to get up, late for meetings, late to pick up things, late to pay bills, and so on can make you look untrustworthy, and people will be forced to look at you dubiously.

Something always seems more interesting than doing the right thing at the right time. You perception of time is distorted and we imagine that we put something off till the last minute -and use that last minute to complete. According to Nishan Panwar: 'Running away from a problem only increases the distance from the solution. But time comes soon enough, the chicks come home to roost so to speak and your underlying misconception becomes exposed. There are times when procrastination is good as it helps you prioritize things, and apparently can make you more creative. American Professor Adam Grant who is a psychologist and author argues that creative people tend to procrastinate more and he believes we should make more time to procrastinate as a way to fuel creativity.

On the other hand what if you prefer getting things done quicker than necessary? Research from Pennsylvania University documents a phenomenon referred to as 'precrastination' which is as a tendency to hastily get tasks done in order to get them over with. This makes sense as who wouldn't want a reduction in their workloads? You can say precrastination is like breathing in air, while procrastination is like gasping for air. But precrastination does have its downside just like procrastination. It's the constant gratification and release it offers, the satisfaction, the feeling of achievement and being able to tick off things from your to-do list -and not have to worry later on. Doing trivial tasks as soon as they appear may leave little room to think things through.

With procrastination you put off or delay doing something either due to habit or circumstance, and the opposite is precrastination where you find completing tasks much earlier to greatly beneficial. Each has its points but to be content I believe finding a middle ground between the two will suffice.


Peace. Love. Light* 


Current Listen: Kenny Dorham - Alone Together