Overcoming Procrastination by Figuratively and Literally Chilling Out
Are you struggling with procrastination in such a way that it causing you to feel a persistent sense of anxiety? If so, I’d like to share some thoughts on mitigating its effects by figuratively and literally chilling out. First, let’s look at a model of procrastination.
For this article, I’ll define procrastination as putting more attention on distractions than actions that will move us forward in life. Where we place our attention is where we place our energy. The the path to the action one needs to take to move out of procrastination is obstructed by a wall of discomfort. In the model above, you see that attention is being directed to the fog of distraction instead of action. There are two reasons for this:
Not knowing what to do
Refusing to pay the price of doing what needs to be done
The cost of this over time is anxiety that grows. Staying in this state for extended periods of time can sap one of their confidence and joy for life. Not a pleasant combination. I know from first hand experience.
I confront the problem of not knowing what to do by figuratively chilling out by spending time in silence. For me, this started with meditation. Before taking up this practice, I felt like I was a near constant state of overwhelm. I was either ruminating on the past or worrying about a hypothetical, catastrophic future. I was rarely if ever in the present moment. This led to confusion, frustration, and numbing. The meditation practice helped me to become present. In this state, it became easier to find a clear next step. A lot of times, that clear next step was uncomfortable.
I confront the problem of refusing to pay the price of doing what needs to be done by literally chilling out. I came across the subreddit for cold showers years ago and initially thought “why in the hell would anyone intentionally choose to take a cold shower”? I a started reading an FAQ out of morbid curiosity and came across a list of benefits for taking a cold shower. One of the them was something along the lines of - taking cold showers is practice for being comfortable with being uncomfortable. I knew that was something I needed. After adopting the practice consistently, I noticed a pattern when taking a cold shower. There’s resistance at first, but I do it anyway. It’s uncomfortable when it starts, but it’s not that bad after a minute or so. It feels fantastic when it’s done. Seriously, I feel energized. This is the same pattern of pushing through procrastination.
If you’re still reading, you may be thinking that meditating and taking cold showers sounds awful. I’m not suggesting you do those specific things, but I do suggest you pick practices that help you tackle the problems of not knowing what to do and not doing what you know will be good for you. Think about it this way. How do you feel living in the cycle of procrastination? What do you think it will feel like if you never get out of it? Is that how you want to live?
