Procrastination is a common problem. How often do you procrastinate? What causes you to procrastinate? And what are the consequences of procrastinating?
Here are several reasons why someone might procrastinate. Some people are afraid of failure, whereas others fear success. Others may worry about being judged negatively by others. Still, others may be overwhelmed by their workload. Whatever the reason, procrastination can cause severe problems in our lives. Therefore, today with the help of Virtue Map, we have tried to let you know the causes and effects of this phenomenon.
Causes
People procrastinate for different reasons. Sometimes it results from too much pressure from family, maybe while growing up in a strict household. For example, expectations for high performance from parents can make people put off projects out of fear of failure or criticism.
However, the reason we procrastinate cannot always be apparent. In some situations, passive aggression can be used to express that no one will be telling them what to do, such as fear of failure. It leads to the loss of expectations and needs that can result at the end of a job, points out experts from Virtue Map.
1. Gender
According to a study, your age and gender play a vital role. The first thing to note is that males are more likely to procrastinate than women are. (A study even states that if women procrastinated the same as men, 1.5 million fewer women would be in full-time employment in the United States. Yikes.)
The exception to this may be if there are other factors driving procrastination. The desire to make otherwise dull work more exciting, such as rebelliousness. In general, though, the mechanism outlined above is the most important one that explains why people procrastinate.
2. Anxiety
It can be caused by anxiety, which can cause health issues. When people procrastinate, they are postponing their work and setting themselves up for problems. Procrastination makes people to waste their time unnecessarily. People tend to wait for tasks thinking they will have time to do them later when they do not. When people fail at their work, they miss the deadline for the job.
3. Fear of Failure
Many people procrastinate because they fear failure if they fail at the tasks they need to perform. In addition to procrastinating in various ways, this fear of failure can cause people to delay finishing a job or to delay starting one.
4. Perfectionism
People sometimes procrastinate because of their perfectionism. Perfectionism can lead to procrastination in several ways, such as :
- By making someone so afraid of making a mistake, they end up not taking any action.
- By making someone so worried about publishing something with any flaws, they end up reworking their project indefinitely instead of releasing it when it’s ready.
Effects
Procrastination affects your physical health and psychologically can deteriorate your confidence levels and trigger your weaknesses and fears from the core. It could lead to a vulnerable plight you would not wish to witness. The adverse effects of procrastination can range from simply missing a deadline on an essential thing to something more permanent, such as a missed opportunity that kills a dream.
Some of us might be smart enough to identify our tendency to procrastinate in time and still do something about it. Check out these procrastination health effects from Virtue Map that need a solution soon:
1. Loss of Confidence
Do you know that your mind controls your body? Procrastination’s side effects start internally and slowly affect you physically. In the event of failure to complete work in a timely manner, one feels regrets and guilt. Thus, the person is not able present themselves confidently in front of anyone to whom the work is pending. Liability amplifies low-grade productivity and eventually brings out the worst in you.
2. Health Issues
Academic procrastination is associated with various adverse effects, such as worse academic performance, worse emotional well-being, and worse mental and physical health. Accordingly, academic procrastination is often detrimental to those who engage in it. The long-term effects of procrastination will cause you to feel like you are always behind. Working at a job you hate or not having any friends because you avoid doing the actual work could lead to finding yourself in a difficult situation. It is a recipe for disaster.
3. Affect on Productivity
Procrastination makes us feel good temporarily. When we procrastinate, we experience temporary relief from the anxiety associated with having to make a decision. We may even find ourselves enjoying the act of putting things off. But ultimately, procrastinating only postpones the inevitable task. As soon as we start working on the task, we’ll probably find ourselves feeling anxious again.
Similarly, procrastination can delay people’s personal growth, for instance, when it causes them to postpone valuable learning skills they’re interested in. Such as programming, or when it causes them to delay developing beneficial habits they’re interested in, such as reading.
Takeaway
In conclusion, procrastination is a common problem among students, business owners, and even professionals who work from home. Experts from Virtue Map acknowledge that procrastination is a problem that affects many people. However, it really doesn’t have to be this way! You can overcome procrastination by taking action today.
