5 reasons and 3 solutions for procrastination

Doing things with passion is great. But sometimes, it’s just plain work, nothing exciting, something that just has to be done. Passion is more like an afterburner, the glorious moment after finishing the job.

So I put the task aside. I leave it on the desk. I work on something else. Until it’s almost a deadline, five minutes till midnight. Almost like Douglas Adams.

“I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.”

― Douglas Adams

So why do I procrastinate?

1. It a boring task. It’s a stale routine. I hate these kind of tasks. No creative work. No stretch. I’m brain dead when doing it. No passion for the task. It happens when a task doesn’t need my skills. There’s no challenge. A monkey could do it. Probably better.
2. Something I don’t believe in. My values don’t match the values of a company I work for, or project is something I don’t believe in. Something like that doesn't even interest me. Even money doesn't help to get the job done faster.
3. Lack of sleep. Really. When I’m sleep deprived, it is harder for me to concentrate on the task, harder to take steps, required to finish it. It takes me longer, it makes me crankier, even coffee doesn't help. Well, lots of coffee does the trick eventually, but then I’m too pumped up to do any serious work after that.
4. Creative block. My mind is empty. In Zen that’s great, but at work not so much. When I just can’t make up things, or combine them. I’m supposed to write a technical blog, I know the theme, but words and thoughts just don’t get together to form sentences and something whole.
5. Laziness. Too much sleep. It happens sometimes. Rarely, but it does. During weekends. Or after a week of illness. When I already recover, my body is fine, but I really got used to sleep more than usual. Again, coffee.

The solutions?

1. Check your values. If you think the project is not for you, or you disagree, don’t do it. Say No. I know I’m writing this more from a freelancer point of view, but if and when you can, keep your values in order.
2. Right amount of sleep. Ask Arianna Huffington, a sleep evangelist.
3. Coffee. There really is not much to say on this subject anymore. White, green or black tea also does the trick. Try to stick with the natural ingredients, not energy drinks or stuff like that. Or sugar. Put away the sugar!

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This is story number 19 of my 100 Days of Writing Challenge.