The Procrastination Conspiracy

I despise procrastination. That doesn’t mean that I never engage in it, it simply means I think it stinks. For me, the “P” word has been detrimental to progress and, often, my mental and emotional well-being.

I recently came through a period where I nearly caused epic failure due to my procrastination. I found myself asking why I put things off. Why, after so long, with all my goals within reach, with all the pain procrastination causes, do I continue to do it? I hope I’ve found its source and cure.

Doubt and Fear

I’ve found that stopping to think and sort things out often gets me back to work. So, when I was feeling overwhelmed after letting schedules go and letting task lists go virtually untouched, I took a few days to reorganize. I went back to the beginning of the project I was on and started to recreate an action plan. It was also during this time that I discovered fear was the main tool the evil “P” word used to get me.

I’ve been a freelance writer for some time now and the latest idea I had was for a new website. I had done the research to see if there was a sizeable audience in the niche, it fell within my skill, knowledge and passion set. I knew it would work.
If you’ve ever started a new venture, you may have found that the initial steps can be great leaps toward the finish line, but as you progress, the minutiae can bog you down. It’s my belief that regardless how well you know the business you’re going into, there will be things unfamiliar. There will be problems you don’t know how to solve. It was in the midst of a succession of those things that I started to doubt myself and my project.

What if I missed something in my research? What if I don’t connect with my readers and subscribers? What makes me think I can build a readership from scratch? What if all this work comes to naught? Where did I get the idea that I can be a success?
If you don’t think those are destructive thoughts, stop reading here and move along.

Roots of Doubt and Fear

Collectively, those questions are examples of fear and doubt. They certainly aren’t examples of great entrepreneurial thinking. They have their origins in things I’ve heard others say, about themselves and others. My parents, God bless them, are a source for some of it. Many of their generation believe in finding a j-o-b and sticking with it. Why give up the security of a paycheck to seek out some pie-in-the-sky dream? In their case, it’s what they were taught, which came directly out of the fear caused by the Great Depression. Recently, when discussing some business matters with a trusted family member, I got the advice, “Well, everybody isn’t meant to be a star.” I generally disagree with that, but it sticks with you when it comes from an otherwise solid source.

Some of it came from within. Past failures can lead to doubts about the future. I’ve missed so many three-foot putts in my lifetime that it’s hard to face one without thinking I’ll miss it. The same goes for business. I’ve had some failures in the past, so it’s easy to assume the latest thing will go the same direction. Positive thinking can help repel these enemies.

Don’t Let the Conspirators Drag You Down!

Yes, procrastination, fear and doubt come from within. But, in trying to dig myself out of wallowing in them, I like to think of them all as conspirators. Whenever I recognize one of them creeping up on me, I look at why it’s there, what brought it to me, then correct the problem before it becomes a PROBLEM, a situation.

Distractions (like college and pro football telecasts, and The Golf Channel) can cause broken schedules for me, but the worst cases of real, honest to goodness, procrastination come from fear and doubt.

If you’ve faced the same problem with procrastination, I hope this discussion helps.

I’m sure we’re all different, so leave your comments so that others (and me) can see them. We may find clues pointing to other sources of the dreaded “P” word, and other paths back to our bright futures.

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