We often have a feeling of putting things off, and ultimately, when the deadline for doing that task is closer, we are at the peak of our stress level. This kind of behavior is called procrastination, which can be a serious issue in our lives if we repeatedly do it. Due to that, the reasons need to be addressed so that we can come out from procrastinating things.
What is procrastination?
Simply, when we deliberately try to avoid things that we have to or need to do, it is procrastination. Often, people associate procrastination with laziness, but this is not the case. Melanie Robbins, an American author, identified procrastination as a habit that can be abolished by breaking the habit loop of procrastination.
Why do we procrastinate?
Behind the behavior of procrastination, there are several reasons.
- Fear of Stress: Most people procrastinate doing any task due to the fear of stress that the particular task brings along with it. Our brain does not want to deal with the stress of work. Furthermore, according to the resources of TEDex, there is a part of our brain which is called the amygdala, a set of neurons involved in emotional processing, that releases hormones such as ‘Adrenaline’. This hormone often causes ‘fear’ of doing something. As a result, we try to just avoid the task as much as possible.
- Boredom: Often we try to put things off because we think about the boredom of that work. Since the brain does not want to stick to boring things, we continually procrastinate so that we do not have to get involved with anything that is not enjoyable.
- Frequent Exposure to Social Media: Since nowadays we are getting frequent exposure to social media platforms, which are full of exciting content, we do not want to come from this interesting virtual world. The contents of social media help the brain release dopamine,’ which is a cause of our feeling of happiness. Due to this reason, it becomes difficult for us to be involved in any serious task, which will not give us a feeling of happiness.
How does it become a habit?
As Melanie Robbins says, procrastination is a habit, as it has all three parts of a habit formation process. which are ‘Trigger’, ‘Repetition’, and ‘Reward’. In this process, first, we are triggered by ‘the stress’ of the work. Second, by avoiding the task, we repeat the same action again and again. Finally, we associate the reward with ‘the ‘ relief of not getting done with the task. Thus, procrastination has become a habit of ours.
How to Get Rid Of It?
Even though we know very well that procrastinating things always causes us trouble and more stressful situations, we repeat the same action again and again as it becomes our habit.
The most effective weapon against this habit of procrastination can be eliminating everything that can distract us. By doing so, as we will not have any other options that would be overpowering to the task, we will be able to give focus to that task only.
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Writer,
Erina Chowdhury Prome
Intern, Content Writing Department, 11th batch
YSSE