Khadija El G., psychologist for over 12 years and doctor in psychopathology, sheds light on the phenomenon of procrastination which, wrongly, is described as laziness. Find her on her Instagram account: @kha.lapsy!
- According to this clinical psychologist: “Postponing an action does not make you a procrastinator.”
- As soon as there is a functioning of anxiety behind it, procrastination can be mentioned.
- Putting things off until the last minute can lead to stress and ultimately chronic anxiety.
Why doctor: What is procrastination?
Khadija El G.: Procrastination in societal jargon as we understand it, we have the impression that it is laziness, a form of laziness. But in fact, it goes way beyond laziness. If we follow the definition of Steel Piers, a Canadian psychologist, who has worked and researched on the subject, it turns out that it is not laziness at all. It is a deliberate behavior, an action that we will delay, but which will have negative consequences.
What are the negative consequences?
We will deliberately put ourselves in a stressful situation, where we knows that we will have to make an effort which will require extra concentration, activity, etc. It’s the tree that hides the forest a little because it will also cause anxiety.
Could you tell us about a concrete situation?
Yes, for example, if I have to move my garage, ultimately it is something that concerns me. There is not necessarily an impact, that is to say that there is no one waiting for this action, except me. But indeed, I will perhaps procrastinate more and tell myself I will do it later, etc. Despite everything, there is no psychological cost behind it, in the sense that, when we are at work or when we are in a school situation, there is still a deadline. And this deadline puts us in a bit of an emergency situation.
“It’s something that’s not going to stop until we do.”
Is it a psychological illness?
It is a psychological illness since, as I said, it causes and generates anxiety. This will also generate particular patterns of avoidance, which are however not in denial because we are aware of what is being generated for us, namely I have a task to do, I have my dissertation due, I have my work report that I must submit on the table at a certain time… So it’s something that we’re going to have in the background, like a common thread that is ultimately there and that’s not going to stop until we do. This is harmful because each time we will be in specific patterns, either of an avoidance strategy, or of relieving stress by doing something of the order of pleasure, or by finding something that will calm this situation. – there finally telling ourselves that we have other things to do, like taking care of the children, cleaning, etc.
Who are the people most likely to procrastinate?
We have not yet clearly determined whether there are typical profiles, whether or not we are more inclined to be a procrastinator. I think it is also linked to our environment, with our beliefs which are internalized. Example, if I have the belief that I need to be in the heat, in a hurry to finish a report, a memoir, a report, if I have this belief that I am very productive in these moments, I will internalize it, and in the end, I will also have a tendency to procrastinate, to say to myself, anyway, given that I know that I come out of it a little on the edge each time razor, I will tend to reproduce this operation. So it is also perhaps linked to internal functioning patterns.
“If I believe that I am hyper productive, when I am in speed, inevitably I will repeat it every time”
How to fight against procrastination?
To combat this, I believe there is a very important question to ask: why do I have to do this? What is the meaning of this work? Why am I finally doing this job? What awaits me, is it for me? Is it for the other? What is the meaning ? Then, we have to sequence this activity a little bit, that is to say if tomorrow I know that I have a report to submit and that I need 50, 100 or 200 pages, I know full well that I’m going to get into trouble. The question is “why do I do this to myself every time?”. You need to think about your behavior, try to study yourself, self-analyze. If I believe that I am hyper productive, as I said earlier, when I am in speed, inevitably I will repeat it every time. On the other hand, if I start upstream, I will still try to change how it works and see how I get on.
And when it comes to everyday tasks, how can we fight?
In daily life, indeed, at what point, for example, do I leave this pile of laundry lying around waiting for me when I know very well that if I do nothing, I will end up with a large pile and I will not not be able to finish all of this, or it will take me a whole day whereas if I did it in a sequenced manner, it would be more practical. There is indeed the question of fatigue. We are in a society where we are hyper stimulated, hyper overloaded also in terms of activity. So we don’t have time to sit back and think about our own needs and say, “Okay, maybe I’ll do things differently.” find a more flexible organization compared to what we usually do. There are going to be times where I might have more energy and that’s OK, there will be others where I might have less and that’s OK too. The key is to relearn how to refocus on your needs.
“We don’t know how to be in being”
How to refocus?
At some point, I think we need to be taught to refocus! What energy do I have? What are my needs? How do I concentrate? You don’t have to be productive all the time. We must learn to be in being. We are always taught what to do: wash the dishes, do household chores, play sports, do work. Therefore, we do not know how to be in being. It just means learning to put yourself back in the center and say, OK, now what do I need? What do I want? What makes sense to me? And little by little, relearn how to listen to yourself also in terms of energy, emotional needs, physiological needs. Maybe sometimes I would rather sleep than do or produce.
