Life Coaching :
Procrastination Versus Precrastination
- What will you lose in both?
Photo By Andrik Langfield On Unsplash
I had a recent experience whereby a planned event did not take place as it should. Suddenly, a thought came gripping my mind on this buzzword which I learned during my teenage days, i.e ‘Procrastination’.
Procrastination is defined by the Cambridge dictionary as “the act of delaying something that MUST be done, often because it is unpleasant or boring”
We ought to differentiate procrastinate (verb) and schedule (noun/verb) in this context. The difference between them is that when we use procrastinate, it often follows an event or a series of events or the desired goal which is mandatory to take place whereas we can schedule an event or goal that is either mandatory or non-mandatory.
As many of us often have the habit of procrastinating and we did not realize the impact until something is lost physically, financially, or emotionally.
A Hard Lesson
In my recent experience, I had a planned action in a week or two. However, I did not grab the opportunity to communicate my desire, thinking that the communication can be done in the week during my planned action. As the Chinese idiom goes “计划赶不上变化” i.e. “The plan can’t keep up with the changes". Indeed, the consequence was a lost opportunity for me which would be hard to recoup.
Well, though strictly speaking as there is no commitment to this planned action, it may not necessarily be considered as procrastination.
The procrastination was not on the planned action since it was an intent that the action be done in the period but the delay laid in the communication.
Hereupon, I became more cognizant of the urgency that a planned action should be put across to the party involved at the utmost earliest appropriate time in any form of communication.
Realistic Examples Of Procrastination
Example 1
Truly, I believed many of you had similar encounters such as mine above especially in work. Through these, what has your opportunity cost? If you happen to be clinching a business deal that involves millions of dollars, it’s a great loss.
e.g. as your client could be off with the flight without knowing your additional intent for the business that was not in the itinerary and he or she would be tied up for the period without having a chance to be contacted.
- Cost of Procrastination: Money
Example 2
Vividly, the current Covid-19 pandemic portraits result that a small portion of the nation has not been vaccinated. The reasons for the delay in going for the vaccines vary. Some were afraid of the side effects, others might be due to underlying medical conditions.
- Cost of Procrastination: Health
Example 3
Another ripple effect of the pandemic is the decline in the number of marriages and birth rate. This is an expected consequence as many couples would delay in forming a family nucleus and raising kids due to the economic downturn and the relative increase in the price index.
However, as life is always full of unexpected events, there could be a loss in the relationship due to the prolonged uncertainty and there’s a need to strike the balance between a likely risk with a non-likely risk.
- Cost of Procrastination: Lifetime Happiness
In essence, when you procrastinate, you will lose dimensions in the following sequence;
- Time
- Motivation
- Control
- Goal
- Result
Hence, how should we tackle procrastination? Here’s a quote by ~ Charles Dickens
Photo By Kjartan Einarsson On Unsplash
Ways To Curb Your Procrastination
- Get Organized With A Planner
- Eliminate Distraction
- Set Priorities
- Set Goals and Deadlines
- Set Reminders
- Set Momentum and Habits
- Self Reflection On Result
Precrastination: A Contrast To Procrastination
By the word, you would have guessed correctly, precastination seemingly to be the healthier opposite is the “urgency to get the task done as quickly as possible.” probably, fuelled by the desire to get things off one’s to-do-list.
Precrastination: ‘The tendency to tackle subgoals at the earliest opportunity — even at the expense of extra effort.,” ~ cited by David Rosenbaum, a professor of psychology at the University of California,
This phenomenon is not uncommon among city dwellers. This frenziness which is accompanied by a sense of satisfaction could be the urge of driving productivity, a part of anxiety or egoism.
Realistic Examples Of Precrastination
Example 1
This group of precrastinating people also exhibits traits during this pandemic period.
Not long ago, we were surprised that the shelves at the supermarket stores were almost empty and stacks of toilet rolls were found at checkout counters.
These people rushed to get their groceries list cleared for fear of the lockdown which in fact, there are still lots of unused items and supplies in the households.
However, in reality, the lockdown just created inconvenience for shopping and did not disrupt the supply of living necessities and other goods.
- Cost of Precrastination: Money, Food Wastage.
Example 2
Due to many WFH, work-from-home instances, many parents are getting anxious to complete tasks as soon as possible for probably some simple reason: “I need time for my family, to coach my little toddler and pacify him to bed".
The distractions which existed for this group of parents are inevitable, however, there isn’t a time to rethink the working model.
- Cost of Precrastination : Quality Of Work, Life, and Creativity.
The loss for precrastination can vary, in the aspect of quality, control, goal, and result as well since the overwhelmed energy is channeled into trivial matters.
Ways To Overcome The Dark Side - Precrastination
- Be Assertive Of The Tasks
- Set Priorities
- Stop Multi-Tasking
- Track Your Time
- Spend Quality Time In Cultivating Your Interest Or Personal Grooming
And my last quote goes,
“Health is a state of complete harmony of the body, mind, and spirit. When one is free from physical disabilities and mental distractions, the gates of the soul open.” – B.K.S. Iyengar ”
Both procrastination and precrastination are seemingly the largest mental distractions.
