Handling Fear by the Act of Procrastination
Posted on June 03, 2011 by Veronica Forsman, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
I've been pondering the possibility that procrastination is a cause and reaction from one basic, real and fierce emotion - FEAR.
The following are some descriptions as described by others, on Procrastination…
_Edward Young, Night Thoughts on Life, Death and Immortality I, 1, 393
Procrastination is the thief of time.
There is a belief that procrastination is like laziness. That through a lack of effort and will, a person chooses to sit back and watch time pass, offering a varied excuse list of why our goals are not being met, our dreams not much more than a foggy idea.
Wikipedia actually describes procrastination with much more clarity. It states,
Procrastination is a behavior which is characterized by deferment of actions or tasks to a later time. Psychologists often cite procrastination as a mechanism for coping with the anxiety associated with starting or completing any task or decision. 1 Psychology researchers also have three criteria they use to categorize procrastination. For a behavior to be classified as procrastination, it must be counterproductive, needless, and delaying.2
For an individual, procrastination may result in stress, a sense of guilt, the loss of personal productivity, the creation of crisis and the disapproval of others for not fulfilling one’s responsibilities or commitments. These combined feelings can promote further procrastination. While it is normal for people to procrastinate to some degree, it becomes a problem when it impedes normal functioning. Chronic procrastination may be a sign of an underlying psychological or physiological disorder._
When reading this description, what goes through your mind? Do lights suddenly come on for you? Think…what is it in your life that you are avoiding? I’ve been pondering the possibility that procrastination is, as well what is described above, a cause and reaction from one basic, real and fierce emotion – FEAR.
Fear has the ability to limit us, hold us back, pinning us beneath the veil of uncertainty, confusion, busyness, and anxiousness, all the while making us feel as if we are accomplishing nothing, so we’re left deflated, demotivated, stressed and ultimately, feeling like we are failing.
Could it be that our fear is manifesting itself in the disguise of procrastination in order to AVOID the fear? What came first, the fear or the procrastination?
I’m thinking that if we consider those things that might be creating fear in our life, face them, challenge them and create new perspectives around them, suddenly procrastination will not be at play in our lives. Fear creating items might include…
- Fear of Failure
- Fear of Change
- Fear of the Unknown
- Fear of being Invisible
- Fear of Making the Wrong Decision for our Lives
Does any one of these resonate with you? No wonder we want to avoid dealing with these things and more. But consider the supports you can draw from to face the fear. Having a coach in your life can help you to reframe your perspective, create realistic goals that you can be proud of and set yourself on a path of action that will blow your fears out of the water.
I’d love to get your thoughts on procrastination and how you feel fear might play a role in it. Feel free to email me and if you are interested in delving into your personal challenge around procrastination, I’d love to offer you a free discovery session to help you make real change for the better. It starts with you. It can start today. How does the saying go? “Face the fear and do it anyways”. Sounds good to me!
