What day is it?

From time to time, we have tasks that we do not want to do – for example, cleaning or visiting the doctor for a routine check-up. People tend to postpone necessary, but not very pleasant actions for “later” and such procrastination becomes a habit. This problem is not new at all – ancient philosophers paid attention to it, and in the modern world it was called procrastination. Psychologists believe that putting off important things until the last minute is the source of many problems — from low grades in school to difficulties with career and health. Therefore, a special event is dedicated to overcoming this habit — Procrastination Daywhich is celebrated every year on September 6.

How did the idea to celebrate Anti-Procrastination Day come about?

Even many thousands of years ago, from the point of view of psychology, people were similar to us and had the same shortcomings, in particular, they often postponed the implementation of important, but not very desirable actions. There is an assumption that procrastination arose together with the division of labor, i.e. failure to perform work no longer meant quick harmful consequences for a person.

At the same time, views on life in ancient times were significantly different from modern ones, our ancestors were not too concerned with time management, and therefore procrastination was not considered something bad – for example, in Ancient Egypt it was called “waiting for the right time”, and in ancient times among thinkers, and and simply among non-poor people it was considered correct to spend the greater part of one’s life in unhurried contemplation.

One of the first known stories of appeals against procrastination belongs to the ancient Greek poet Hesiod – in his poem “Work and Days”, written in 800 BC, he addresses his brother Perses, who constantly put off his duties until tomorrow and therefore found himself in difficult financial situation. Socrates and Aristotle described the typical behavior of a procrastinator, but applied the term “akrasia” to it, that is, acting against common sense – when a person knows what he should be doing now, but instead engages in completely different things. Cicero, in his speeches before members of the Senate, called the habit of procrastination “hateful” and unacceptable in the conduct of most cases.

Outstanding procrastinators

The poet Geoffrey Chaucer, who lived in the 14th century, through the mouth of the heroine of “The Canterbury Tales” Lady Prudence, advised readers not to put off until tomorrow the things that can be done today. But even prominent people did not always listen to such advice – for example, Leonardo da Vinci painted the painting “Mona Lisa” for 16 years, because all the time he was distracted by other ideas and inventions. However, in the case of Leonardo, even procrastination was beneficial – the drawings and drawings from the notebooks of the genius served humanity later.

The writer Victor Hugo also had a penchant for procrastination – after signing a contract with the publisher to write the novel “Notre-Dame de Paris”, he put off work for a whole year, attended social events and received guests. In the end, the angry publisher set a new deadline for the author – 6 months, so Hugo had to fight the habit of procrastination. To do this, he asked the servant to take away all the clothes, leaving only one large shawl. Since there was nothing to wear to go out and meet friends, the writer spent his days at work and as a result finished the book two weeks ahead of schedule.

The cause of procrastination?

People often think that they procrastinate because of laziness or lack of willpower, but the real reason is a bit more complicated and related to our cognitive mechanisms. This is the problem of regulating emotions caused by certain circumstances — boredom, anxiety, uncertainty, disappointment. The fact is that the human brain consists of two structures — the limbic system and the prefrontal cortex. The limbic system is primary and dominant, regulating our automatic behavior in response to emotional stimuli, while the prefrontal cortex is thought to have developed later and is responsible for planning and making conscious decisions. When we feel unpleasant emotions, the brain wants to protect us, and since the limbic system is much stronger, it often wins, so we simply ignore unwanted things, even if we realize the need for them.

Certain character traits also contribute to procrastination, and one of them, surprisingly, is perfectionism. It would seem that the pursuit of perfect results is incompatible with procrastination, but in reality it sometimes makes you wait for perfect circumstances that may never come. Chronic procrastinators often have low self-esteem, so they put off important tasks until “later” for fear of not being able to handle them. Procrastinators and indecisive and timid individuals tend to put off making important decisions, end up letting other people make decisions for them, and then blaming them for their own failures.

Serious research on procrastination began in the 1970s, when the development of neurobiology and psychology helped to better understand the nature of procrastination, and before that this problem was considered laziness or the inability to effectively organize one’s time. Although procrastination is not classified as a personality disorder, most specialists consider it a negative factor that worsens a person’s quality of life. That’s why researchers of this phenomenon founded an annual event called Anti-Procrastination Day.

Anti-procrastination day in history

• 1548

  The word “procrastination” appeared in the Oxford dictionary.
• 1977

  Psychologist Paul Ringenbach published the work “Procrastination in human life”. Since then, this phenomenon has become the subject of deep scientific research.
• 1986

  A tool for diagnosing procrastination has appeared — the Canadian psychologist Clary Ley developed the “General Procrastination Scale.”
• 1995

  At Carleton University in Canada, the Procrastination Research Group was created — a group on procrastination research, led by Dr. Tim Pichil of Psychology.
• 1997

  The journal “Psychological Science” published one of the first studies on the harmful effects of procrastination.
• 2000

  Researchers have divided procrastination into two types: task-related and decision-making.

Frequent Questions and answers on Anti-Procrastination Day

How to celebrate Anti-Procrastination Day?

If we tend to procrastinate in important matters or in making important decisions, then this day we have a great reason to change the situation with step-by-step actions that should eventually get rid of this problem.

• First of all, psychologists advise breaking large tasks into smaller parts. For example, if you need to write an article, you must first decide on a topic, then find sources of information, and then write an introduction. At the same time, it is better to add new points of the plan after the previous ones have been completed.
• It is also important to choose the best period for productive work – for some it is morning, and for others it is better to work in the evening. A schedule with clearly defined hours will help prevent procrastination, as will clear deadlines — concrete and realistic. It is absolutely necessary to set a time limit on phone calls and social networks and in no case exceed it.
• Not least important in overcoming procrastination is increasing the body’s energy level, because often it is fatigue that makes us postpone things. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to sufficient sleep, healthy eating, outdoor walks, sports and favorite hobbies – everything that restores our physical and mental state.
• It will be right to make unpleasant tasks more pleasant – for example, cleaning to the accompaniment of your favorite music or planning some kind of reward for the successful completion of work. After all, you should think about the reasons for procrastination – everyone has their own, in particular, it can be anxiety or fear of failure, which outweighs even motivation and self-control.

Why is this day important?

Some people do not perceive the habit of procrastination as a serious problem, so Procrastination Day is designed to raise our awareness of this phenomenon and convince of its harmful effects.

• One example of the negative impact of procrastination on health is the constant postponement of medical examinations or necessary physical exercises. Scientists also found a connection between procrastination and cardiovascular diseases, in particular, hypertension. This is not surprising, because our subconscious always remembers unfinished tasks, and busy work in a hurry and at the last minute only adds to stress.
• In addition, the result of such work is desirable – if only because there is no time to check everything and make sure that it is done correctly. In this way, other people can be let down, for example, employees whose work is the next stage. That is, procrastination negatively affects professionalism and authority among colleagues and may even lead to dismissal.
• The habit of procrastination often brings financial losses – for example, if you put off paying utility bills and other payments until the last day, it is quite easy to forget something, and as a result pay much more, receiving a penalty or penalty.
• Both relationships with loved ones and friends, as well as a person’s self-esteem, suffer from procrastination, because it is bitter for everyone to realize that a lot of time and opportunities have been wasted, and to live with a feeling of disappointment and despair in oneself. So instead of letting a bad habit rule our lives, it’s worth fighting it, and Anti-Procrastination Day encourages just that.

When will we celebrate Anti-Procrastination Day??