The Procrastination Cycle Example

Today’s Tasks:

• Study the Procrastination Cycle Example

Study the Procrastination Cycle Example

Click on the button below to get to the “Procrastination Cycle Example” exercise in this app. You’ll see an example of a filled Procrastination Cycle. 

Explained – Procrastination Cycle

Your Task/Project Example:

• Write my bachelor thesis
• Finish Project X for my work

Unhelpful Rules & Assumptions

Your unhelpful rules and assumptions (e.g. pleasure seeking or depleted energy) guide your thoughts and feelings, ultimately leading to discomfort about doing the task at hand.

Example:

• PLEASURE SEEKING – I have to feel inspired to do it. Life’s too short.
• DEPLETED ENERGY – I’m too tired to think effectively and do this task

Discomfort Driven 

When your inability to tolerate unpleasant feelings, the discomfort itself, and dislike of the feeling of discomfort merge, you become “discomfort driven”-meaning that whether you follow through will be heavily influenced by wanting to stop or avoid any discomfort you are experiencing about it.

Example:

• DETECT DISCOMFORT – Frustration, Tiredness.
• DETEST DISCOMFORT – I can’t stand this feeling and work effectively
• DODGE DISCOMFORT – Decide to avoid discomfort by procrastinating

Procrastination Excuses

You start finding excuses to rationalize your procrastination, concluding that you are better off doing the task later.

Example:

• I can’t work effectively when I’m not inspired and/or feeling tired so it makes sense to do it tomorrow

Procrastination Activities 

The more discomfort-driven you are and the more convincing excuses you find, the more likely you’ll engage in procrastination activities (e.g. social media).

• Example: Clear emails/slack, browse Twitter

Pleasurable Consequences

Then you may relieve your initial discomfort or feel good for having stuck with your rules and assumptions or pleasurable activities… and any such payoffs will result in a higher likelihood of you procrastinating next time.

Example:

• Feeling better due to discomfort relief

Painful Consequences

The painful consequences (accumulating demands, time pressure, punishment) make the task even more unpleasant. You want to avoid it even more and carry on procrastinating.

Example:

• Feeling pain in the long-term due to accumulating tasks, deadlines becoming unrealistic, and facing societal consequences

Putting All Elements Together

Combine needing to avoid discomfort about taking action (arising from unhelpful rules/assumptions about ourselves or the world), procrastination excuses, self-critical talk, more fun procrastination activities, and various procrastination consequences, and you’re more likely to engage in a vicious procrastination cycle.

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Welcome back, Ivo! Let’s put all the previously discussed elements of procrastination together into a Procrastination Cycle.

Unhelpful Rules & Assumptions

Your unhelpful rules and assumptions (e.g. pleasure seeking or depleted energy) guide your thoughts and feelings, ultimately leading to discomfort about doing the task at hand.

Discomfort Driven 

When your inability to tolerate unpleasant feelings, the discomfort itself, and dislike of the feeling of discomfort merge, you become “discomfort driven”-meaning that whether you follow through will be heavily influenced by wanting to stop or avoid any discomfort you are experiencing about it.

Procrastination Excuses

You start finding excuses to rationalize your procrastination, concluding that you are better off doing the task later.

Procrastination Activities

The more discomfort-driven you are and the more convincing excuses you find, the more likely you’ll engage in procrastination activities (e.g. social media) 

Pleasurable Consequences

Then you may relieve your initial discomfort or feel good for having stuck with your rules and assumptions or pleasurable activities… and any such payoffs will result in a higher likelihood of you procrastinating next time.

Painful Consequences

The painful consequences (accumulating demands, time pressure, punishment) make the task even more unpleasant. You want to avoid it even more and carry on procrastinating