This question is also a form of procrastination.
September 28, 2014 6:01 PM Subscribe
I have been procrastinating finishing up a project for work for months, only working the night before having to give updates. Tomorrow is the deadline with the client and it's a big event and once again I'll need to spend the night working on it. I have no idea if I'll be able to finish in time but if I don't my head will probably roll.
There are some circumstances that made my normal procrastination even worse: it was badly-paid, take-home work with requirements that exploded in amount after I agreed to take it. But of course, none of that will matter tomorrow.
a) Is there anything I can say or do tomorrow to weather the fallout if I can't finish everything in time?
b) How can I grow up and avoid doing this kind of thing before I die of stress? While this is biggest and more recent example of my procrastination problem, it's not isolated. I feel like I missed the "postponing things is actually more stressful than doing things right away. Here's how to schedule your life and actually do things." class.
There are some circumstances that made my normal procrastination even worse: it was badly-paid, take-home work with requirements that exploded in amount after I agreed to take it. But of course, none of that will matter tomorrow.
a) Is there anything I can say or do tomorrow to weather the fallout if I can't finish everything in time?
b) How can I grow up and avoid doing this kind of thing before I die of stress? While this is biggest and more recent example of my procrastination problem, it's not isolated. I feel like I missed the "postponing things is actually more stressful than doing things right away. Here's how to schedule your life and actually do things." class.
Break your things into subtasks and make a list. Subtasks should take 20 to 10 minutes. If you can finish one subtask right away, do so, and cross it off your list, then do the next biggest thing, and cross it off, to build some kind of momentum.
Also helpful: adding certain "impulse sites" to your block list. I do this by adding the following lines to my hosts file.
127.0.0.1 www.metafilter.com*
and so on. This will break the cycle of going to those sites when you have a microsecond of friction as you're working.
Your goal should be to gain momentum, enough to put in a decent amount of work.
*(on windows, you must run notepad as an admin to make the changes set, right click on the icon and select "run as administrator". The hosts file is located under Windows->System32->drivers->etc, and it's invisible unless you select the "All Files" filter option, as it isn't a text file. This alone has saved my bacon many times)
posted by hellojed at 6:41 PM on September 28, 2014 [2 favorites]
Also helpful: adding certain "impulse sites" to your block list. I do this by adding the following lines to my hosts file.
127.0.0.1 www.metafilter.com*
and so on. This will break the cycle of going to those sites when you have a microsecond of friction as you're working.
Your goal should be to gain momentum, enough to put in a decent amount of work.
*(on windows, you must run notepad as an admin to make the changes set, right click on the icon and select "run as administrator". The hosts file is located under Windows->System32->drivers->etc, and it's invisible unless you select the "All Files" filter option, as it isn't a text file. This alone has saved my bacon many times)
posted by hellojed at 6:41 PM on September 28, 2014 [2 favorites]
So I am just like this. As an adult, I've embraced this tendency - rather than feeling guilty and trying to make myself work on things periodically (which results in me sulkily working for a few minutes before drifting off to something else) I allow myself to DO NOTHING on the project until X before the due date.
I try to figure out how long I'll need working overtime on it and then double that. And that's when I start working on it.
It works quite well. Best of all, I don't feel guilty about not working on projects ahead of time.
In terms of tonight: turn off your internet. This Ask.Me's responses will all be there when you come back tomorrow. Work work work! Stay up all night if you must. Know this - you don't NEED sleep to be able to operate tomorrow and operate just fine. Get done what you need to get done. And then don't worry about this. I actually think I work much better and much more creatively when I'm working against a pressing deadline.
posted by arnicae at 6:41 PM on September 28, 2014 [3 favorites]
I try to figure out how long I'll need working overtime on it and then double that. And that's when I start working on it.
It works quite well. Best of all, I don't feel guilty about not working on projects ahead of time.
In terms of tonight: turn off your internet. This Ask.Me's responses will all be there when you come back tomorrow. Work work work! Stay up all night if you must. Know this - you don't NEED sleep to be able to operate tomorrow and operate just fine. Get done what you need to get done. And then don't worry about this. I actually think I work much better and much more creatively when I'm working against a pressing deadline.
posted by arnicae at 6:41 PM on September 28, 2014 [3 favorites]
Someone is depending on you to have something done by tomorrow. Do your best tonight to make good on your promise to make that happen.
Personally, I learned that procrastination was robbing me of the quality of my life. Because yeah, even though I'm watching tv or playing on the computer when I should be writing that paper, that feeling of dread is still there, lurking in the background - "Hey Nora, you do remember that paper is due Tuesday? Right? Ok, just making sure you knew." And that makes me nuts, having that hang over my head - I'm having fun and then BAM "Hey Nora, just your brain again.....so yeah, how about that paper?" For me, that feeling is such a buzzkill that I decided to do my best to avoid procrastination.
When I get my work done in a timely manner, it is such a nice feeling to not have things hanging over my head - I can really kick back and relax and enjoy the fun stuff. Another bonus to not procrastinating is to not have to pull all-nighters, and panic, and stress over deadlines or mistakes that honestly could have been avoided if I'd planned better. There have even been a few times where having my act together ahead of time saved my buttocks, and when that happens, it always serves as positive reinforcement for the next time I want to procrastinate. "Hey Nora, remember when you were able to use Adam's extra ticket to see Springsteen because you finished your paper a day early? You don't want to miss other opportunities, get it done!"
It will take a few things to break this habit - I'm not going to lie to you - one is discipline, and you'll need a lot of it. Positive reinforcement helps - reward yourself for finishing the task when its really hard to get it done. Another is to ask yourself why you are procrastinating. Is the task boring and uninteresting to you? Are you bitter about this particular task? What could you have done better? What would have made the task more enjoyable? Is there something else you are avoiding? Self-reflection is a great tool that can help you find answers and if you can learn from it, prevent future problems.
posted by NoraCharles at 7:30 PM on September 28, 2014 [3 favorites]
Personally, I learned that procrastination was robbing me of the quality of my life. Because yeah, even though I'm watching tv or playing on the computer when I should be writing that paper, that feeling of dread is still there, lurking in the background - "Hey Nora, you do remember that paper is due Tuesday? Right? Ok, just making sure you knew." And that makes me nuts, having that hang over my head - I'm having fun and then BAM "Hey Nora, just your brain again.....so yeah, how about that paper?" For me, that feeling is such a buzzkill that I decided to do my best to avoid procrastination.
When I get my work done in a timely manner, it is such a nice feeling to not have things hanging over my head - I can really kick back and relax and enjoy the fun stuff. Another bonus to not procrastinating is to not have to pull all-nighters, and panic, and stress over deadlines or mistakes that honestly could have been avoided if I'd planned better. There have even been a few times where having my act together ahead of time saved my buttocks, and when that happens, it always serves as positive reinforcement for the next time I want to procrastinate. "Hey Nora, remember when you were able to use Adam's extra ticket to see Springsteen because you finished your paper a day early? You don't want to miss other opportunities, get it done!"
It will take a few things to break this habit - I'm not going to lie to you - one is discipline, and you'll need a lot of it. Positive reinforcement helps - reward yourself for finishing the task when its really hard to get it done. Another is to ask yourself why you are procrastinating. Is the task boring and uninteresting to you? Are you bitter about this particular task? What could you have done better? What would have made the task more enjoyable? Is there something else you are avoiding? Self-reflection is a great tool that can help you find answers and if you can learn from it, prevent future problems.
posted by NoraCharles at 7:30 PM on September 28, 2014 [3 favorites]
I spend some time breaking big overwhelming or unpleasant tasks into the smallest possible atomic action, preferably ones that take only a few minutes. Call Dave about XYZ? No, look up Dave's number. That's one item. Write down what I want to ask. Call. All separate items. Every time I find myself wasting a few minutes, checking metafilter, what-have-you, I commit to doing one thing. Ok, look up Dave's number. I guess I can stand to do that, even though I'm not excited about it.
Checking off boxes on the list gets addictive, though. Once I start feeling like I'm accomplishing something, well, the next thing is just going to be real quick too, so might as well do that.
"Write the instruction" is too hard. "Create the word file and type in some placeholder bullshit ideas for later real quick" is easy. Then, "Translate a couple of those items to English" is easy. Then, the rest, then edit for real, etc. Next thing I know I'm done.
Also I make a point every day of telling my boss what my next thing is and what progress I've made, although I suspect he doesn't care until the end. But *I* like the feeling of reporting progress better than lack of same, so it's motivating for me. Bonus: it makes you look engaged and like a good communicator. And no phone calls or emails asking for status.
posted by ctmf at 8:56 PM on September 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
Checking off boxes on the list gets addictive, though. Once I start feeling like I'm accomplishing something, well, the next thing is just going to be real quick too, so might as well do that.
"Write the instruction" is too hard. "Create the word file and type in some placeholder bullshit ideas for later real quick" is easy. Then, "Translate a couple of those items to English" is easy. Then, the rest, then edit for real, etc. Next thing I know I'm done.
Also I make a point every day of telling my boss what my next thing is and what progress I've made, although I suspect he doesn't care until the end. But *I* like the feeling of reporting progress better than lack of same, so it's motivating for me. Bonus: it makes you look engaged and like a good communicator. And no phone calls or emails asking for status.
posted by ctmf at 8:56 PM on September 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
Getting advice on how to not do this next time is not what you need to be reading tonight, is it? Fake food poisoning and buy yourself an extra day. Maybe guilt for lying will finally start to get to you.
I procrastinate too, but just right to the point where I can still finish everything if I pull an all nighter. If you're procrastinating to the point where you can't even finish, you're doing it wrong. Next time just set a deadline for when you actually have to start and how much time you really need. Set the lofty, "would be nice if I was organized" goals you'll totally ignore. But know in your heart of hearts how much time you need. You won't give yourself less than your minimum if you actually know what it is.
posted by AppleTurnover at 11:15 PM on September 28, 2014
I procrastinate too, but just right to the point where I can still finish everything if I pull an all nighter. If you're procrastinating to the point where you can't even finish, you're doing it wrong. Next time just set a deadline for when you actually have to start and how much time you really need. Set the lofty, "would be nice if I was organized" goals you'll totally ignore. But know in your heart of hearts how much time you need. You won't give yourself less than your minimum if you actually know what it is.
posted by AppleTurnover at 11:15 PM on September 28, 2014
If this is happening in a work context (which is sounds like it is), one effective thing I've seen coworkers do is set internal deadlines to check in with colleagues or a supervisor/task lead, by scheduling appointments to "ask questions" that come up once they've started doing the work.
Most people understand that these kind of check-in meetings aren't really about asking questions, they are about putting something on the calendar that forces you to prioritize getting SOMETHING done before you meet, but it's generally viewed as a positive thing--I've straight-up admitted "Hey, let's put something on the calendar for a week from now to check in, that's the best way to make sure that I carve out time to look at this and start to make progress."
If having to admit you've not done work to other people is the most effective motivator for you, you might as well use that to your advantage rather than try to muster up more willpower from nowhere.
posted by iminurmefi at 10:46 AM on September 29, 2014
Most people understand that these kind of check-in meetings aren't really about asking questions, they are about putting something on the calendar that forces you to prioritize getting SOMETHING done before you meet, but it's generally viewed as a positive thing--I've straight-up admitted "Hey, let's put something on the calendar for a week from now to check in, that's the best way to make sure that I carve out time to look at this and start to make progress."
If having to admit you've not done work to other people is the most effective motivator for you, you might as well use that to your advantage rather than try to muster up more willpower from nowhere.
posted by iminurmefi at 10:46 AM on September 29, 2014
Pay yourself first. This is generally said about money w.r.t. saving, but I think it applies to time as well. You have a finite amount of time, and you're not using it adequately. What do you think will yield the largest return: investing your time into yourself now, or waiting until the last minute? You aren't taking care of yourself. You'll be happier when you take care of yourself and can enjoy the fruits of your well-invested time (stress-free leisure activities, better yields on projects, etc).
How can you accomplish this? Here is my strategy, and it's only 2 steps:
1. Make to-do lists every day, and finish them
2. Find yourself procrastinating on a task? Just do it! Why aren't you just doing it? Finish it now. What do you start on? ANYTHING. If you feel overwhelmed, stop trying to figure out what to do first and in what order. Just do anything, and do that thing until completion.
posted by semaphore at 3:32 PM on September 29, 2014 [3 favorites]
How can you accomplish this? Here is my strategy, and it's only 2 steps:
1. Make to-do lists every day, and finish them
2. Find yourself procrastinating on a task? Just do it! Why aren't you just doing it? Finish it now. What do you start on? ANYTHING. If you feel overwhelmed, stop trying to figure out what to do first and in what order. Just do anything, and do that thing until completion.
posted by semaphore at 3:32 PM on September 29, 2014 [3 favorites]
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Good luck!
posted by Linnee at 6:21 PM on September 28, 2014 [1 favorite]