BEHAVIOUR · MOTIVATION · CHANGE
Why do I procrastinate when I know exactly what I need to do?
You know what you need to do... You may even know exactly how to do it... And yet, somehow, you don't start.
So you tell yourself you're procrastinating.
That's probably true. But it doesn't actually explain very much.
Procrastination describes the behaviour.
It doesn't necessarily explain it.
Two people can put off exactly the same task for entirely different reasons. And if the reason is different, what helps them move forward may be different too.
The same behaviour. Different reasons.
Imagine two people sitting in front of an important piece of work, both repeatedly finding reasons not to begin.
O For one, starting means eventually producing something that feels like it will be judged. The standard they've set is so high that not beginning feels safer than discovering they might not meet it.
O Another is perfectly capable of doing the work but finds it almost impossible to engage their attention until there is enough interest, novelty, urgency or consequence to pull them in.
O Someone else may be depleted. They're interpreting their difficulty getting started as a lack of motivation when what they're actually short of is capacity. They may not even realise this is the case and be berating themselves for finding it impossible to begin a task they know they are capable of.
O Another person might be avoiding a decision hidden inside the task and may or may not be consciously aware of it.
O And someone else may keep telling themselves that they should do something without ever stopping to ask whether it actually matters to them and how they feel about it.
Previous experience can matter too. A task that looks fairly ordinary in the present can carry rather more weight if something about it connects with earlier experiences of criticism, failure, embarrassment or feeling not good enough.
From the outside, all of these people might appear to be doing the same thing. They're procrastinating, but the word hasn't told us very much about why.
Start with curiosity, not correction
Once we give something a label, it's tempting to go looking for the corresponding solution. If the problem is procrastination, perhaps you need a better routine. Remove the distractions. Break the task into smaller pieces. Set a deadline. Use a timer. Find some accountability. Sometimes that's exactly what helps.
But whether a strategy works depends partly on what is making it difficult to begin in the first place.
O If the task feels overwhelmingly large, making it smaller may change everything.
O If anything short of an exceptional result feels unacceptable, another productivity system may leave the more relevant problem untouched.
O If your attention engages much more readily in response to interest, novelty, urgency or immediate feedback, telling yourself to be more disciplined may misunderstand the system you're trying to work with.
O If you're exhausted, you may be trying to solve a capacity problem with a motivation strategy.
O And if some part of you doesn't actually want what completing the task represents, pushing yourself harder may bypass a much more useful question.
So before asking: How do I stop procrastinating?
What might be making it difficult for me to begin this particular thing, at this particular time.
That small change of question opens up a much bigger picture.
Sometimes action comes first
There is an important counterpoint to all of this. Understanding yourself doesn't mean you have to fully understand why something is happening before you do anything about it. Sometimes doing something changes the system.
We often talk about motivation as though it needs to arrive before action: first we feel motivated, then we begin. In reality, the relationship works in both directions. Beginning something, experiencing progress, reducing uncertainty, getting feedback or reaching a small reward can alter our willingness and ability to continue.
Our capacity to initiate action is also influenced by more than conscious intention. Attention, arousal, anticipated reward, physical energy and the way our brains respond to things such as interest, novelty, urgency and feedback can all affect how readily we get started.
This is one reason relatively simple behavioural strategies can sometimes be surprisingly powerful.
Make the first step smaller.
Change the environment.
Create some structure.
Work alongside somebody.
Introduce an immediate reward.
Start for ten minutes rather than waiting to feel ready to finish.
Then notice what happens.
If changing the conditions around the behaviour gets you moving, that's useful information. If you've tried every productivity strategy going and still repeatedly become stuck in the same place, that's useful information too.
The aim isn't to search for a deep psychological explanation when a practical adjustment will do. Nor is it to keep applying practical fixes when something else is clearly asking for attention. It's to work out what is relevant.
Look beyond the obvious piece
One of the ideas behind Optimise is that we don't function as a collection of separate parts.
Our thoughts, emotions, attention, behaviour, physical state, relationships, environment, beliefs, experiences, values and circumstances interact.
That means the place where we notice a difficulty isn't necessarily the most useful place to intervene.
In Optimise, we think about this as a Kaleidoscope. Move one piece and the pattern elsewhere can change.
A difficulty that appears to be about productivity might shift when you change your environment. Or your expectations of yourself. Or the time of day you attempt the task. Or the amount of recovery in your week. Or your understanding of what happens to your attention when a task isn't inherently stimulating.
Sometimes the relevant piece will be deeper. Sometimes it will be remarkably practical.
The problem may not be where the problem appears to be.
You can experiment with the picture
Curiosity doesn't have to mean sitting and thinking about yourself for hours. It can be experimental.
Think of something you're currently putting off and become curious about the conditions around it.
When is it easier to do?
When does it become harder?
What happens when you imagine beginning?
What are you expecting of yourself?
Does completing it expose you to anything: judgement, uncertainty, another decision, the possibility of failure or even the possibility of success?
How much physical and mental capacity do you actually have when you're trying to do it?
Does the task matter to you, or do you believe it should matter to you?
What happens if you make the first step almost ridiculously small?
What happens if you add interest, structure, company, urgency or immediate feedback?
What happens if you remove the expectation that you have to do it brilliantly?
You don't need to answer every question. You're looking for information.
Change something. Notice what happens. Refine your understanding.
Understand what matters
Sometimes procrastination really does need a very simple response: close the other tabs, put the phone away, make the task smaller and begin. Sometimes it doesn't.
The point isn't to make procrastination more complicated than it needs to be. It's to avoid making it simpler than it is.
Because two people can show exactly the same behaviour for very different reasons. Even the same person can procrastinate over two different things for completely different reasons.
Rather than beginning with the assumption that you need more discipline, motivation or willpower, begin with curiosity.
The same behaviour can make sense for very different reasons.
Understanding what's relevant gives you a much better chance of changing what happens next.
Explore what matters
Optimise is built on the idea that meaningful change begins with understanding what’s actually relevant — rather than applying a generic solution.