Being a bit more strategic with our procrastination

• Published date: 24 April 2024
• Publication title: Otago Daily Times: Web Edition Articles (New Zealand)

Which coincidentally has become the subject of my article — procrastination

Why was I procrastinating? Because I hadn't decided what to write about yet. This time I was starting from a blank page. I even daydreamed about calling in sick!

Why is it that when we really know we should get something done, we sabotage ourselves by doing everything else around the thing but the thing? Or do we?

Ever noticed that when you walk away and take a break from something that it percolates in the back of your mind anyway and suddenly becomes clearer? There is wisdom in the phrase "sleep on it".

Maybe we just need to be more strategic and deliberate with our procrastination. An "active procrastination" perhaps. Instead of "sleeping on it", we "run on it", "tidy on it", "garden on it", "yoga on it", "bake on it". Whatever I do I'll try not to "snack on it", which is a bit of a favourite.

I'm going to experiment on myself for the next month and see if I can hack myself into "active procrastination".

Step 1. Put my sneakers on.

A podcast I listened to said that the hardest part of taking up running is just putting your sneakers on and walking out the front door. That if you get out the driveway and still don't want to be there, give up if you really want to — hardly anyone ever does, because once we're rolling along we don't regret it.

It's a bit like my 8-year-old. If you asked him what he wanted to do he'd never actually want to do anything but play the PlayStation and watch telly. Drag him out and get him started — he's away! So what are the "sneakers" of writing that story, email, document or plan?

Some self-reflection on when I "get stuff done". When I have an idea for an article or business case the notes tumble out before a deadline and I jot them down into the notes app on my phone.

Once I'm ready to start typing it up the music is on and I move around the dining table, board table, couch and usually some power typing at a cafe or on a plane. Each change in context getting me back into flow lost in thought.

My sneakers therefore are a change of environment — music on and shift position.

Step 2. Rest my brain.

I think focus is my biggest issue. My attention span has shrunk to the size of a pea, as the volume and variety of my workload has increased. Change of season doesn't help either. It mucks up my routine and nothing is enticing when it's cold and dark.

I know I'm not alone in this. Our brains are overstimulated by our work, media and constant availability. Ever...