Ten Things You Need To Know About Procrastination
Just before reading this article from PsychologyToday.com I was thinking of how ‘the same’ all procrastination posts tend to be - and I was expecting something pretty similar to the lot.
This is the best procrastination-related article I’ve read in a long while. I’m not saying it’s the end-all-procrastination post or that other articles that have been written on the subject are garbage - far from it. However, this article by Hara Estroff Marano hits the right chords.
Procrastinators are made not born. Procrastination is learned in the family milieu, but not directly. It is one response to an authoritarian parenting style. Having a harsh, controlling father keeps children from developing the ability to regulate themselves, from internalizing their own intentions and then learning to act on them. Procrastination can even be a form of rebellion, one of the few forms available under such circumstances. What’s more, under those household conditions, procrastinators turn more to friends than to parents for support, and their friends may reinforce procrastination because they tend to be tolerant of their excuses.
What do you think?
Procrastination: Ten Things To Know - [PsychologyToday]
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Comments
Oddex says on July 5th, 2007 at 11:50 am
Most adults suffer from problems, and there are tons of answers out there for their problems. But the problem is, when given the answer to a question that has not been asked, it is like trying to figure out why 42 is the meaning of everything.
This artical cuts down to the root of procrastination instead of killing the leaves. Thank you for sharing this artical with us. Every person who thinks of themselves as a prcrastinator should read this before they try to “fix” the procrastination problem.
Stephen says on July 5th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
My first reaction was, ahhh cool I will read this later!
J says on July 5th, 2007 at 2:20 pm
It’s interesting but not exactly hopeful or helpful.
Exactly how much does “highly structured cognitive behavioral therapy.” cost, and where does one get it?
What can be done on your own?
russ Bankson says on July 5th, 2007 at 2:23 pm
An authoritarian familty environment is one possible source of this behavior but equally likely is fear of failure, an impossible standard of perfection. The coping response to the anxiety provoked by these feelings is often PROCRASTINATION!
matt says on July 5th, 2007 at 3:28 pm
Interesting, but I didn’t have a father and my mother wasn’t terribly domineering.
I believe the reason for my procrastination is all the chores and other things that I had to do growing up. I thought, when I’m an adult I won’t have to anything if I don’t feel like it. Hence, the reason my dishes have been sitting in the sink for a month and a half waiting to be washed!
Bryan Price says on July 7th, 2007 at 9:31 am
I cannot see this. The reason why I procrastinate is pretty obvious. I do the things that I want to do, and the things I don’t want to do get put on the back burner.
I can spend ours on the computer going through through thousands of fonts to see if I have the latest and greatest. Spend 15 minutes to tidy up around the computer desk. Ain’t going to happen.
Mark says on July 10th, 2007 at 11:08 am
May be true for some people, but I don’t have authoritarian parents - I was just born lazy.
Julie says on August 23rd, 2007 at 10:43 am
Wow, this actually hit home for me. I did indeed have a very domineering, authoritative father growing up and I resented being told what to do and being denied a lot of fun things as a child and teenager. So now that I’m an adult, all I do are the fun things and I put off doing any productive work at home, like budgeting, organizing my junk, etc. I actually feel a bit better now, that I’m not just a lazy, stupid person, there are actual reasons why I behave this way. Knowing the root of the problem, that’s it’s somewhere deep in my childhood psyche, is a relief for me. At least now I know where to start healing myself and be able to move on. So thank you, very much for posting this article. Maybe this doesn’t apply to all procrastinators, but it certainly applies to me!