Procrastinators Anonymous

I didn't even know what procrastination was! I always thought it was a family thing. We are sort of that people that end up doing things last minute cause we get "inspired" when we feel rushed. I spend most of my highschool year doin things last minute and now that i am starting college, I just feel lazy. I don't feel "inspired" to do something.

And that is bad.

I used to have some much energy and I never gave up...but know I feel like if I am not doing it at the moment...why do it at all.

I used to be a superb writer and sometimes inspiration comes and I get this grea plot...but then I can't even find a motivation to write so i just do other things and then i never get anything done.

I really wish i could explain this better.

But english is not my first language...so it is sort of difficult to express what i feel.

Gosh...i can't even get the energy to finish this.

I procrastinate in:

School, homework, studying, writing, doing stuff or even going out with my friends...(i am always telling them "lets go out" but i never seem to get around the idea)

I voted for the wrong one by accident, but what I procrastinate most on is excercise, schoolwork, and getting ready (sometimes).

I procrastinate on writing and other work-related tasks, filing taxes, handling bills, housekeeping, exercise, taking care of the car, planning leisure activities, writing Xmas cards, etc. Most anything that I feel I "should" do or that feels at all overwhelming/anxiety provoking to me leads to procrastination.
Mollie

I procrastinate work and job-related tasks, seeking medical care, studying and above all, take care of my social life and friends.

First, it interests me that there are people replying to this poll who said they never procrastinate! Why are they here?

I am a minister, so I am supposed to do an in-depth bible study each week as I prepare to write a sermon. Then I am supposed to WRITE a sermon. But for several years now, I just read the lessons hurriedly so that I can pick out songs by the time the secretaries need to type up the bulletin, then read the lessons again just prior to worship on Thursdays at a nursing home, again so I can pick hymns (they use a different hymnal), and then I speak extemporaneously during the service. On Sunday (same lessons), I think about what I said on Thursday, re-read the lessons, and then speak extemporaneously again. I honestly have no idea what I will say before I say it. I joke about being inspired, and to a small degree I honestly believe that, but mostly, not planning any more than that is sheer procrastination. After church is over I always wish I had said this or that, and sometimes I am even chagrined to realize what I said wasn't quite right.

Clergy taxes are bizarre, and I hate math anyway, so I have not filed my taxes in 7 years. I have filed extensions, but I never get around to completing them. It seems so traumatic that I am really avoidant of going back. Of course, I never start them until at most a few days before the deadline, and I never have the records I need, or the forms I need, and I never have even learned all of what I am supposed to file. I just give up. I am too embarassed to admit all this to a tax accountant. I have letters from the IRS buried in a pile on my dining table from May that I have never opened. I suppose the IRS may come to get me some day, and I ocasionally get scared, but mostly I don't care. Sometimes, because I am SO frickin' overloaded with responsibilities, I think going to prison would be a relief. Then I think about what a burden that would be on my family, and I get so depressed I want to crawl in a hole. And I do--by time-binging on something like reading or the computer or tv or gardening. I time-binge on professional reading, too, trying to figure out the meaning of life. When I have housework to do, I read. When I have work preparations to do, I play. When I am supposed to be doing R&R, I work. In all of this I greatly avoid my family.

Bills, insurance--buried in pile on table. Exercise, medical appointments, medications--usually forgotten. Late everywhere I go, much of the time.

Housework, also done in binges, and then I don't touch a thing until I can't stand it again.

In many of these areas, the problem is binging. For taxes, there's also a sort of phobia and my own incompetence and unwillingness to get help.

My husband has not been any help. He took 11 years to get his Ph.D.! And he doesn't know anything about the taxes, either, after my being in the ministry 12 years, and us filing joint returns. He's a fellow procrastinator, which I have known since our college days, but which he doesn't acknowledge. Sometimes he does really well with pacing himself and using checklist, plus he sees a therapist weekly. My therapist got tired of me being late and quit seeing me several years ago. In my small town, there are reasons why I can't see anybody else here locally. I'd have to drive an hour each way to see somebody else. So here I am on this site!

When I was in school, I was the last one sitting down to do homework or write papers. I wrote a 50 page senior project in 2 days (the 2 days before it was due). I do the same at work - although it seems to work for me, because my bosses like what I produce. I also procrastinate doing housework, mostly because I hate doing it, or seeking medical care - because I hate going to the doctors.

However - in terms of late or early arrival - I am almost always early, and often the first to arrive.

Dealing with my relatives. I actually like most of them, but we never talk!

Other areas on your list are problematic, but I have strategies to deal with them:
Anything that might lead to paying work
Seeking medical care (good thing I'm healthy)
Getting ready to leave
Filing taxes

It's probably easier for me to list where I don't procrastinate (or don't tend to) than where I do. I don't procrastinate on seeking medical advice. If something hurts and I have a concern, I make an appointment. I see a dentist regularly, and brush and floss every day. I follow through with medication if it's a short-term thing (like a course in antibiotics), but I'm less compliant in taking medication for long-term chronic conditions. "Less compliant" - who am I kidding! Not compliant at all. ;)

When I was younger I was very messy. I'm not at all messy anymore - not sure what changed. I'm now quite orderly, and habitually put things away after I use them. Maybe that's the answer right there - habit. I do my laundry regularly, wash the dishes every day, and clean the bathroom when it needs it (didn't do any of these things when I was younger). My home usually looks neat, but sometimes I procrastinate on dusting and vacuuming so it's neater than it is clean.

I didn't used to be chronically late, but lately I've had trouble getting places on time.

I solved the problem of bill payment by putting everything I can on automatic debit. Just about the only bills I have to explicitly pay now are credit cards. I have reminders set up for that to make sure I do it, and I usually do. The aversiveness of the late fees and negative credit bureau reports is a motivator. I still have a big problem keeping up with accounting and tax returns. This is a big job for me because I have a business.

In all other areas (job, school, writing, exercise) I function in bursts (time binges) and then not-at-all for a while (procrastination periods). I used to think that when I was time bingeing on a task I'd previously put off I was being "good", but I've come to recognize that time bingeing actually causes me to later procrastinate. When I've been able to break that pattern, the procrastination stops. (See the article in Time Bingeing on this Web site for more on why this is.)