By Patrick de Kretser
The relevance of this article really depends on what end of the spectrum you reside on; whether you are someone who works so often that you consider yourself a “workaholic” or whether you cannot get anything done until the last minute no matter what you do. Maybe you identify as someone in between. Perhaps you find that you’re an active person who only occasionally slacks off or maybe you see yourself as a lazy person who has bursts of productivity from time to time. Either way, procrastination is an issue that most of us face on occasion. And it could be for absolutely anything, mind you. It could be you putting off that important assignment for work or school until the final day or it could be something as simple as you delaying the cleaning up tasks you have at home. As teenagers and young adults, we can find ourselves really struggling with the consequences of procrastination on occasion. Things like paranoia, anxiety, depression, and anger can all occur as a result of procrastinating things that we need to do. So why do we do it if that is the case? Is it because we are simply lazy or is it more complicated than that?
Well, the first thing that we need to understand is that procrastination is not always a result of laziness. And this is a misconception that many people have when they think about the topic. It can be easy to equate procrastination to a lack of care or passion to do a particular task, but it is often not the case. We do not always put tasks off because we do not care about them, but rather because sometimes we have no choice or guidance on how to get around doing them. One example is because a person might be suffering from issues such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
ADHD affects millions of people worldwide and is a main reason why many adolescents and young adults struggle with doing tasks. It is estimated to affect 2.2% of all youth individuals worldwide under the age of 18.
(Source: ADHD Institute)
Maybe you do not realise it just yet, but you yourself could be suffering from acute symptoms of ADHD if you have not been properly diagnosed for it before. It can sometimes be hard for families and friends to see the signs of ADHD in an individual, hence many children grow up feeling a sense of confusion or frustration as to why they find learning so difficult. For those that go through ADHD, learning becomes a bit harder and the difficulties with focusing on tasks arise far more consistently than with someone who does not have ADHD. The problems associated with it could even be so severe that no conventional tactics will ever get you to do productive work; you could be locked in a room with no phone or distractions other than the textbook in front of you and you still would find it incredibly challenging to get through it. What we need to understand is that these problems are normal to face; it does not make us lazy nor does it mean we lack ambition. It simply means that we require a bit of extra guidance and support which will get us back on track.
Even if ADHD is not the problem you face and if procrastination is an occasional thorn that you still wish you could cut down on, you might find a solution in planning how you go about your tasks a bit differently.
Here are three easy methods that might work as a quick remedy for you to cut down on procrastination.
- Spread your tasks and deadlines out
- Be supportive of those around you and encourage them to do the same for you
- Keep clear instructions closeby so that you can refer it anytime