It is thought by psychologists that the core reasons people procrastinate is to do with the way they see themselves and the world. Everyone has rules and assumptions by which they live their lives. As an example, you might have the rule that “I should be polite to people I don’t know” and the assumption that “If I’m nice to other people, they will be nice to me back”. These rules and assumptions are helpful in the sense that they are usually fairly accurate (it is typically true that when you are nice to other people, they are nice to you back) and they are also flexible (sometimes it is not appropriate to be polite to someone, say if they have done something wrong, however as a general rule it serves you well).
However, not all the rules and assumptions we live by are helpful. A rule or assumption tends to be unhelpful when they are inaccurate and inflexible in some way. At the core of procrastination lies certain unhelpful rules and assumptions.
Below are two of the most common unhelpful rules and assumptions linked to procrastination:
Need to be in Charge
Some people have rules in their lives, such as ‘I must be in charge at all times’. This type of rule reflects people who resent not being in control, not being independent or not holding the power. The person often assumes that if they are not fully in control, then they are weak. As such, you can imagine when a person of this type is faced with a task they don’t want to do that is imposed on them by someone else (say their boss), then they will feel angry and resentful because they see themselves as not in control. They may then use procrastination as a way of easing their anger and sense of weakness, and helping them feel like they do have the power, because they are doing (or not doing) the task on their own terms.
Pleasure Seeking
Some people believe that pleasure is paramount to everything else. These people are often impulsive, seek out pleasure and have great difficulty in tolerating boredom. Common rules may include “life is too short to be doing things that are hard, fun should always come first”. They may also have the assumption “if I don’t have fun, then I am boring”. These rules and assumptions reflect a need for instant gratification and a difficulty accepting ideas like it is better to suffer sort term pain for a great long term gain. These types of people have great difficulty in looking beyond the short term and in being patient enough to wait for any long term pay off. As such, for this type of person, when they are faced with an uninteresting task (say a university assignment) they will feel frustrated and bored. They may then use procrastination as a way of alleviating boredom and frustration, and helping them seek out the pleasure they desire.
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