Procrastination: causes, consequences and how to overcome it
PROCRASTINATION
AN IMPEDIMENT TO SUCCESS_
One of the greatest - and possibly the most common - hindrance to success in life is this 15 letter words "procrastination". As long as the word is, so also its effects and implications on one's progress in life.
Procrastination, according to the Oxford English learners dictionary, is defined as The act of postponing, delaying or putting off, especially out of habitual carelessness or laziness.
Going by this definition, procrastination can be unequivocally said to be an act of irresponsibility. It is, from my own perspective, the careless and deliberate act of unnecessarily postponing what should be done at the moment to another time. It makes one to foolishly believe that what should be done now can be done any other time. Procrastination... Hmm... A killer disease. Did I just mention killer ? Yes! It is a killer disease in the sense that it not only steals time but also kills opportunities and impedes progress.
This has, in no doubt affected and hindered people from progressing and making success in their various endeavours. There is no doubt about the fact that many, today - especially students - are suffering from the frustrating effects of procrastination. It is indeed a key factor in the causes of failure and stagnation in all areas of life. It is one of the major reasons for ineffectiveness and unproductivity. A procrastinating fellow can never achieve anything meaningful in whatever he/she engages in.
Procrastination brings nothing but frustration
Procrastination is not only a thief of time, as it is being said, but also a waster of opportunities and privileges. The false relief from pressure and responsibilities that it brings is nothing but a mere deception. It neither reduce the intensity of the responsibility nor reduce the time of its execution. What needs to be done will still be done and the time it will consume will, of course, still be spent. So why shift it till "tomorrow" ?
Procrastination blindfolds one's eyes to the opportunities of the "Now". When you procrastinate, you will feel relieved but do you know what? You have just killed some amount of opportunities which you could have greatly maximized in doing the task now and preparing for another one tomorrow. In hindsight, it is very easy to recognize the implications of procrastination.
Beloved, one thing I like you to understand is this: don't be deceived by the silent whispering of procrastination that says, "Don't worry, you are gonna do it later ". Listen, if you can't do it now, there is no probability that you will do it later, because what thwarted you from doing it now, still has the tendency to do the same to you "later". Procrastination will always give you multifarious reasons why it can't be done now. Reasons like: "I'm a bit stressed up, let me do it tomorrow ", don't think I can do it again ", "why can't I finish it up tomorrow ", "leaving this assignment till tomorrow is not bad, after all, are not submitting it tomorrow ". These are some of the flimsy excuses one gives for not doing the needful at the appropriate time.
If you think "tomorrow" or "later" will be more convenient, you are merely living in illusion. There will never be anytime convenient enough for what you are supposed to do. You will be the one to create convenience out of the inconveniences so that you can attend to those things that need to be done. The only and the most convenient place in this life is the grave. So, if you are waiting for a convenient time, I'm sorry, you may die waiting, for there is no convenient time anywhere. We are social beings and so we tend to be much occupied by so many things. But wisdom demands that you plan your schedule and make your priorities in order of their importance.
Whatever you have set your mind to carry out, the best time to start it is NOW! No other better time than now. No matter how herculean the task may seem, if you can successfully overcome the force of starting; and you get started, nothing else can stop you from making success in it. Many at times, what makes a task look big and extremely big - that you will be like... Wao! When did it become like this - is that we leave the easy ones to accumulate. John Maxwell remarked, " the hardest work is often the accumulation of many easy things that should have been done yesterday, last week, last month or last year ". That's just the truth.
The fact is that: everyday is, in one way or the other, filled with various tasks waiting to be given attention. So, when you postpone that of today till tomorrow, it does eliminate the responsibilities you are to undertake tomorrow. Rather, it increases it, making the task look impossible. " all problems becomes smaller if you don't dodge them but confront them", said William hasley. You don't need to get everything perfect before you commence what you are supposed to be do. Forget about having no one to encourage or motivate you. You are in the best position to do that. Again, John Maxwell has this to say, " the biggest lie we tell ourselves when it comes to action is, "I will do it later". Yes! It's just a lie because a greater percentage of us will never do it again. In fact some might not even be aware that something is yet to be done.
"It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities", remarked sir Josiah stamp.
Beloved, the effects of procrastination need not to be too much overemphasized. You can hardly succeed if you are too much given to procrastination. If you are a type that do evade responsibility..hmm.. Life is never like that my bro/sis.
Procrastination Is a great impediment to success in life, avoid it! it constitutes a clog in the wheel of one's progress in life, run from it! It steals away you most treasured commodity - time - and robs of you of various opportunities.
Always remember this common saying that says "If it worth doing at all it's worth doing now! Never give in to procrastination, because it is very costly!
CONSEQUENCES OF PROCRASTINATION
1. It kills time : there is no doubt that the greatest consequence of procrastination is the fact that it steals away time. It reduces the value and preciousness of time. Time, as we all know, is constant, and it waits for no one. We are the variables. Whatever we do with time is what becomes of us. But procrastination will keep you from making the best use of your time. It will rather waste it and let it pass you by without gaining anything meaningful from it. The same 24 hrs that a successful person has is the same with a failure. It is the use of their time that makes the difference.
As a matter of fact, the use of your time determines the outcome of your life. Never allow procrastination to waste it for you.
2. It kills opportunities: Like I said, "procrastination is not only a thief of time but a killer of opportunities" there are so many opportunities embedded in every seconds of our life, but procrastination blinds one's eyes to these opportunities. What you could have gained in doing the task at the set time will definitely be lost if you postpone it. When you discover that each day comes with various opportunities and privileges, you will never waste any of it on the alter of procrastination. Ask yourself if what you intend doing that makes you shift that task is worth it at all ? Or of it is, in any way, beneficial ? Never allow opportunities to evade you on the alter of procrastination!
3. It makes the work harder. As John Maxwell remarks, "the hardest work is often the accumulation of many easy things.. " when you procrastinate, little tasks that could have been completed will be accumulating, and before you know anything, it becomes an herculean task.
4. It delays success: Procrastination does not only delay time, it also delays success. The more you procrastinate, the farther you realize success. Ask any procrastinating fellow if he/she has ever done anything successfully. They will tell you no! This is because, procrastination will never allow you to get anything done. It will keep giving you reasons why it shouldn't be done now. Be wise!!
5. It leads to the failure of a vision. Most of the things we procrastinate, we don't even remember to go back to them again. The problem is not really about the postponement of the task but the fact that we are likely not to return to it again. We are human beings, and we tend to live our lives momentarily. What happens at the moment is what primarily occupies our minds and commands our attention. We hardly attend to the things we failed to do in the past. When you have a vision that demands immediate execution, if you don't act on it, there is a probability that that you will never act on it again. Consequently the vision dies. And you never know how beneficial the execution of vision can be to you. Shun procrastination!!
CAUSES OF PROCRASTINATION
1. Lack of determination. One of the major reasons why people procrastinate is that they are not really determined to do what they have initially planned to do. When you are vehemently determined that come what may, you are gonna get it done, then you will discover that procrastination will have no place in you. Whatever you want to venture into, first take time to have a strong determination towards it for that's what will help you to get it done.
2. Lack of preparations. This can also cause one to give in to procrastination. If you are not adequately prepared towards what you have planned to do, you are very likely to lay it off on the alter of unpreparedness. Preparations is very vital, as it helps you to shun every form of procrastination. Whatever you are prepared for will definitely get done.
3. Indefiniteness of purpose. When the purpose of a thing is not known abuse, they say, is inevitable. Before you lay your hands on anything worthwhile, first get to understand the purpose for which you want to get yourself involved. If there's a clarity of purpose, then you will able to decide if the task is worth doing at a or not . And if it's worth doing, then, no need to procrastinate, because you understand the reason why you venture into it in the first place. People procrastinate, most times, because their purposes are not defined. When a purpose is not defined, procrastination is inevitable.
4. Lack of discipline. The significance of discipline in getting anything done cannot be overemphasized. Whatever action you want to take in life, discipline is indispensably needed. This is because there will be many things competing for one's attention but it takes discipline to remain focused and committed to the necessary and important ones. If you are not disciplined, you are liable to procrastinate. It takes discipline to sacrifice your time, sleep, money, resources and energy on getting something done. It takes discipline not to count the cost. Rather than counting the cost, you will be concerned about the loss if it is not done.
5. Not knowing the value of time. Time might look very insignificant but it is priceless. If you don't know the value of time given to you, you will definitely give in to the enticements of procrastination. But if you really know the value of your time, and you understand how disastrous and consequential it can be if you waste it, procrastination will be far from you. Time is indeed a valuable commodity, make wise use of it. The time you have today, will never come to you again tomorrow.
HOW TO OVERCOME PROCRASTINATION
In order to overcome procrastination, here are some things that can help you.
1. Be passionately determined towards whatever you want to do.
2. Get yourself adequately prepared so that you won't lack any thing needed to get it done, and, so you won't procrastinate.
3. Get your purpose clearly defined before getting yourself involved in any action.
4. Clothe yourself with the garment of discipline. Be ready to pay the price.
5. Learn to be proactive. Nothing will ever get done unless you take steps towards getting it done. Don't be too passive, expecting things to take care of themselves. No! Be very much proactive.
These and some other things are what can enable you to overcome procrastination.
Procrastination is deadly, avoid it!
GOD BLESS YOU
©OLAKUNLE PAUL
AN IMPEDIMENT TO SUCCESS_
One of the greatest - and possibly the most common - hindrance to success in life is this 15 letter words "procrastination". As long as the word is, so also its effects and implications on one's progress in life.
Procrastination, according to the Oxford English learners dictionary, is defined as The act of postponing, delaying or putting off, especially out of habitual carelessness or laziness.
Going by this definition, procrastination can be unequivocally said to be an act of irresponsibility. It is, from my own perspective, the careless and deliberate act of unnecessarily postponing what should be done at the moment to another time. It makes one to foolishly believe that what should be done now can be done any other time. Procrastination... Hmm... A killer disease. Did I just mention killer ? Yes! It is a killer disease in the sense that it not only steals time but also kills opportunities and impedes progress.
This has, in no doubt affected and hindered people from progressing and making success in their various endeavours. There is no doubt about the fact that many, today - especially students - are suffering from the frustrating effects of procrastination. It is indeed a key factor in the causes of failure and stagnation in all areas of life. It is one of the major reasons for ineffectiveness and unproductivity. A procrastinating fellow can never achieve anything meaningful in whatever he/she engages in.
Procrastination brings nothing but frustration
Procrastination is not only a thief of time, as it is being said, but also a waster of opportunities and privileges. The false relief from pressure and responsibilities that it brings is nothing but a mere deception. It neither reduce the intensity of the responsibility nor reduce the time of its execution. What needs to be done will still be done and the time it will consume will, of course, still be spent. So why shift it till "tomorrow" ?
Procrastination blindfolds one's eyes to the opportunities of the "Now". When you procrastinate, you will feel relieved but do you know what? You have just killed some amount of opportunities which you could have greatly maximized in doing the task now and preparing for another one tomorrow. In hindsight, it is very easy to recognize the implications of procrastination.
Beloved, one thing I like you to understand is this: don't be deceived by the silent whispering of procrastination that says, "Don't worry, you are gonna do it later ". Listen, if you can't do it now, there is no probability that you will do it later, because what thwarted you from doing it now, still has the tendency to do the same to you "later". Procrastination will always give you multifarious reasons why it can't be done now. Reasons like: "I'm a bit stressed up, let me do it tomorrow ", don't think I can do it again ", "why can't I finish it up tomorrow ", "leaving this assignment till tomorrow is not bad, after all, are not submitting it tomorrow ". These are some of the flimsy excuses one gives for not doing the needful at the appropriate time.
If you think "tomorrow" or "later" will be more convenient, you are merely living in illusion. There will never be anytime convenient enough for what you are supposed to do. You will be the one to create convenience out of the inconveniences so that you can attend to those things that need to be done. The only and the most convenient place in this life is the grave. So, if you are waiting for a convenient time, I'm sorry, you may die waiting, for there is no convenient time anywhere. We are social beings and so we tend to be much occupied by so many things. But wisdom demands that you plan your schedule and make your priorities in order of their importance.
Whatever you have set your mind to carry out, the best time to start it is NOW! No other better time than now. No matter how herculean the task may seem, if you can successfully overcome the force of starting; and you get started, nothing else can stop you from making success in it. Many at times, what makes a task look big and extremely big - that you will be like... Wao! When did it become like this - is that we leave the easy ones to accumulate. John Maxwell remarked, " the hardest work is often the accumulation of many easy things that should have been done yesterday, last week, last month or last year ". That's just the truth.
The fact is that: everyday is, in one way or the other, filled with various tasks waiting to be given attention. So, when you postpone that of today till tomorrow, it does eliminate the responsibilities you are to undertake tomorrow. Rather, it increases it, making the task look impossible. " all problems becomes smaller if you don't dodge them but confront them", said William hasley. You don't need to get everything perfect before you commence what you are supposed to be do. Forget about having no one to encourage or motivate you. You are in the best position to do that. Again, John Maxwell has this to say, " the biggest lie we tell ourselves when it comes to action is, "I will do it later". Yes! It's just a lie because a greater percentage of us will never do it again. In fact some might not even be aware that something is yet to be done.
"It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities", remarked sir Josiah stamp.
Beloved, the effects of procrastination need not to be too much overemphasized. You can hardly succeed if you are too much given to procrastination. If you are a type that do evade responsibility..hmm.. Life is never like that my bro/sis.
Procrastination Is a great impediment to success in life, avoid it! it constitutes a clog in the wheel of one's progress in life, run from it! It steals away you most treasured commodity - time - and robs of you of various opportunities.
Always remember this common saying that says "If it worth doing at all it's worth doing now! Never give in to procrastination, because it is very costly!
CONSEQUENCES OF PROCRASTINATION
1. It kills time : there is no doubt that the greatest consequence of procrastination is the fact that it steals away time. It reduces the value and preciousness of time. Time, as we all know, is constant, and it waits for no one. We are the variables. Whatever we do with time is what becomes of us. But procrastination will keep you from making the best use of your time. It will rather waste it and let it pass you by without gaining anything meaningful from it. The same 24 hrs that a successful person has is the same with a failure. It is the use of their time that makes the difference.
As a matter of fact, the use of your time determines the outcome of your life. Never allow procrastination to waste it for you.
2. It kills opportunities: Like I said, "procrastination is not only a thief of time but a killer of opportunities" there are so many opportunities embedded in every seconds of our life, but procrastination blinds one's eyes to these opportunities. What you could have gained in doing the task at the set time will definitely be lost if you postpone it. When you discover that each day comes with various opportunities and privileges, you will never waste any of it on the alter of procrastination. Ask yourself if what you intend doing that makes you shift that task is worth it at all ? Or of it is, in any way, beneficial ? Never allow opportunities to evade you on the alter of procrastination!
3. It makes the work harder. As John Maxwell remarks, "the hardest work is often the accumulation of many easy things.. " when you procrastinate, little tasks that could have been completed will be accumulating, and before you know anything, it becomes an herculean task.
4. It delays success: Procrastination does not only delay time, it also delays success. The more you procrastinate, the farther you realize success. Ask any procrastinating fellow if he/she has ever done anything successfully. They will tell you no! This is because, procrastination will never allow you to get anything done. It will keep giving you reasons why it shouldn't be done now. Be wise!!
5. It leads to the failure of a vision. Most of the things we procrastinate, we don't even remember to go back to them again. The problem is not really about the postponement of the task but the fact that we are likely not to return to it again. We are human beings, and we tend to live our lives momentarily. What happens at the moment is what primarily occupies our minds and commands our attention. We hardly attend to the things we failed to do in the past. When you have a vision that demands immediate execution, if you don't act on it, there is a probability that that you will never act on it again. Consequently the vision dies. And you never know how beneficial the execution of vision can be to you. Shun procrastination!!
CAUSES OF PROCRASTINATION
1. Lack of determination. One of the major reasons why people procrastinate is that they are not really determined to do what they have initially planned to do. When you are vehemently determined that come what may, you are gonna get it done, then you will discover that procrastination will have no place in you. Whatever you want to venture into, first take time to have a strong determination towards it for that's what will help you to get it done.
2. Lack of preparations. This can also cause one to give in to procrastination. If you are not adequately prepared towards what you have planned to do, you are very likely to lay it off on the alter of unpreparedness. Preparations is very vital, as it helps you to shun every form of procrastination. Whatever you are prepared for will definitely get done.
3. Indefiniteness of purpose. When the purpose of a thing is not known abuse, they say, is inevitable. Before you lay your hands on anything worthwhile, first get to understand the purpose for which you want to get yourself involved. If there's a clarity of purpose, then you will able to decide if the task is worth doing at a or not . And if it's worth doing, then, no need to procrastinate, because you understand the reason why you venture into it in the first place. People procrastinate, most times, because their purposes are not defined. When a purpose is not defined, procrastination is inevitable.
4. Lack of discipline. The significance of discipline in getting anything done cannot be overemphasized. Whatever action you want to take in life, discipline is indispensably needed. This is because there will be many things competing for one's attention but it takes discipline to remain focused and committed to the necessary and important ones. If you are not disciplined, you are liable to procrastinate. It takes discipline to sacrifice your time, sleep, money, resources and energy on getting something done. It takes discipline not to count the cost. Rather than counting the cost, you will be concerned about the loss if it is not done.
5. Not knowing the value of time. Time might look very insignificant but it is priceless. If you don't know the value of time given to you, you will definitely give in to the enticements of procrastination. But if you really know the value of your time, and you understand how disastrous and consequential it can be if you waste it, procrastination will be far from you. Time is indeed a valuable commodity, make wise use of it. The time you have today, will never come to you again tomorrow.
HOW TO OVERCOME PROCRASTINATION
In order to overcome procrastination, here are some things that can help you.
1. Be passionately determined towards whatever you want to do.
2. Get yourself adequately prepared so that you won't lack any thing needed to get it done, and, so you won't procrastinate.
3. Get your purpose clearly defined before getting yourself involved in any action.
4. Clothe yourself with the garment of discipline. Be ready to pay the price.
5. Learn to be proactive. Nothing will ever get done unless you take steps towards getting it done. Don't be too passive, expecting things to take care of themselves. No! Be very much proactive.
These and some other things are what can enable you to overcome procrastination.
Procrastination is deadly, avoid it!
GOD BLESS YOU
©OLAKUNLE PAUL
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