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Longjumping_Copy_695 t1_j88qxo7 wrote

Absolutely.

Primary reason for not doing something I know needs to be done, is because my brain wants to escape some imaginary pain.

Its almost like waking up on a monday morning to go do a job you dont like. Your brain is trying to protect you from the pain of being at that workplace you dont like, by suggesting you go back to sleep.

The duality ofcourse is that your brain also knows you have no option but to wake up.

Its however overwhelmed with fear and wants to escape the obvious consequence.

But once you do jump into that bad consequence, you realize it wasnt that bad.

Its a lesson that disciplined kids learn in childhood through repeated conditioning from tough parents - "Dont give a dime about your feelings; do things you need to do. Show up".

Procrastination is not about feeling lazy. Its your brain escaping massive monstors of fear and anxiety by stopping you on your tracks.

The moment you push ahead with discipline, you see the pain and anxiety were illusions for the most part...

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ray_zhor t1_j89sjb8 wrote

fear of failure is a big issue in procrastination. most of decisions where one option is superior to another can be made with minimal determination. people get stuck between choices that offer little advantages over other options.

when we spend less time agonizing over failure of making the wrong decision, and more time doing the work to make our decision succeed.

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Zealousideal_Self628 t1_j8al9u8 wrote

But this is the essence of discipline. Discipline is the art of moving forward even when your emotions, energy level, or schedule make it difficult or unpleasant in some way. Discipline is self-control. Only doing what you find immediately or obviously rewarding is not discipline.

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mgslee t1_j8a1xvk wrote

Could spend hours talking about ADHD which in this case is about how it creates executive dysfunction. A better term would be to call it Intention Deficit Disorder.

From personal experience, I know what I should do and the benefits of doing it, but I can't seem to actually 'motivate' myself to do it. I think in this day of smart phones and other distractions, it's so much easier to say 'this other thing I rather do' and it's not a matter of 'will power' it's the brains dopamine system literally telling you that.

Of course existential thoughts of 'why bother now' would also lead to procrastination and demotivation to the point of only doing things last minute, which actually might be too late.

My opinion, find the root causes of why and see if you can personally resolve them, if not talk to a Dr.

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guydebyl t1_j8ctnlu wrote

you've hit the nail on the head. So how do you overcome an emotional rejection of a task?

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DrMelbourne t1_j8ctt8t wrote

Busy at the moment, hit me up tomorrow and I will give a thorough answer. The best I got at the moment.

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deborah-southgate t1_j8cwwo3 wrote

I think that sometimes procrastination is a way of managing stress. When there's too much on your plate already you don't feel up to coping with something else, so you procrastinate in order to buy yourself time to calm your nervous system down.

On a good day you may be up for 'procrastination' but when you're at (or over!) the limit of what you feel like you can really cope with, then you procrastinate as a self-nurturing or maybe self-preserving mechanism.

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JokeFit5094 t1_j8d6o4u wrote

it has to do if w the situation. sometimes i rlly do procrastinate simply bc of laziness. i dont wanna get up and walk to get my laptop and do my hw, using my phone in bed for a few more hrs is much easier. but sometimes, procrastination is fueled by emotions. like when i dont wanna do my hw bc im afraid its just not gonna be good enough and so its not worth even trying

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llama_sammich t1_j8a3qi1 wrote

Even if it’s something I’m excited about, I procrastinate out of fear. Usually, that I’m gonna do a shit job, so I just don’t… I also have ADHD..

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headphonz t1_j8fxrxx wrote

Hadn't heard presented that way before. Makes a lot of sense when I evaluate my own tendencies

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darksparx23 t1_j8ixg6h wrote

98% of the time I procrastinate it’s when Im very anxious so would have to agree.

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Peri1952 t1_j8rmhhb wrote

What do the people on Quora with severe depression say about procrastination? From my personal experience, if I could postpone something, even potentially enjoyable, I will do it every time and find excuses for not doing it.

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