Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

bbc.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

21–30 of 368 posts

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#21

Post by oyebenny »

temporaryvector wrote: post #4
adamnemecek wrote: post #2

Procrastination is a signal that you hate what you are supposed to be doing. Don't ignore it.

Not always true. I frequently procrastinate on things that I actively enjoy doing and want to do. There are times when I want nothing more than to be doing something and I still procrastinate doing it. This applies to things that aren't work or aren't productive just the same, things that take little effort like watching a series or playing a video game. Medication does make it a lot better and I don't procrastinate…

Thank you for this very honest comment. You make me feel less alone.

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#22

Post by adventured »

suyash wrote: post #12

This is a gem of an article, I always looked at Procrastination from a logical approach, turns out the real reason is emotional.

They don't inherently conflict. Emotions can be logical, so it can stem from both at the same time.

That is, a logical emotion isn't necessarily a contradiction. Procrastination may be more heavily dictated by emotion and that emotion may exist for a logical reason that has deep roots which you still need to introspect and resolve. The emotion itself has a cause. I view the two as more likely to be deeply connected, rather than two things to be regarded separately.

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#23

Post by mercora »

read_if_gay_ wrote: post #17
adamnemecek wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you procrastinate On these?

An example might be to quit smoking. Anyone who quits will probably procrastinate that for a while. But no matter how much you are going to hate quitting, smoking just isn’t worth it.

i do not favor this example either. to quit smoking is long term commitment to not do something anymore. When i am thinking about procrastination i think about tasks you can be done with. Even if you meant procrastinating before starting to quit i do not think it holds up as a good example because there is no way to be done with it and if i stop i restart at the beginning.

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#24

Post by temporaryvector »

kuerbel wrote: post #20
temporaryvector wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not always true. I frequently procrastinate on things that I actively enjoy doing and want to do. There are times when I want nothing more than to be doing something and I still procrastinate doing it. This applies to things that aren't work or aren't productive just the same, things that take little effort like watching a series or playing a video game. Medication does make it a lot better and I don't procrastinate…

I don't take medication even though I'm diagnosed with ADD. I guess there is the procrastination from ADD and the one talked about in the article. The one from ADD makes me do... nothing. I feel paralyzed somehow. I scream at myself in my mind to finally start the task, I know I have to but my body won't move. It's hard to explain. Then there is the procrastination as described in the article. I think it makes me do…

I definitely understand. As I got older, I found myself doing the first type of procrastination (the do nothing type) more and more, and after talking through some things with my psychiatrist we came to the conclusion that it's because that bad feeling you get after the second type of procrastination (the do something else type) started overpowering the good feeling of doing something, so I would end up paralyzed and doing nothing more often.

Now, on the good days I actually do the things I want to do or need to do, but on the days when I procrastinate, I tend to do the type where I do something else. The days where I get completely paralyzed are far less frequent now. Part of it is the medication but another part was learning to control my guilt and anxiety over not doing what I'm "supposed to." This is why I tell people that medication is not a magic solution to your problems, it'll help but you'll still have bad days and it won't work automatically, you still gotta put in the effort to get better, the medicine will just help a bit with that.

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#25

Post by temporaryvector »

idclip wrote: post #16
temporaryvector wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not always true. I frequently procrastinate on things that I actively enjoy doing and want to do. There are times when I want nothing more than to be doing something and I still procrastinate doing it. This applies to things that aren't work or aren't productive just the same, things that take little effort like watching a series or playing a video game. Medication does make it a lot better and I don't procrastinate…

Have you considered meditation?

Yes, mediation, mindfulness and several other techniques for controlling emotions were things that we tried with my psychiatrist. Meditation didn't really work for me but mindfulness sure did.

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#26

Post by temporaryvector »

oyebenny wrote: post #21
temporaryvector wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not always true. I frequently procrastinate on things that I actively enjoy doing and want to do. There are times when I want nothing more than to be doing something and I still procrastinate doing it. This applies to things that aren't work or aren't productive just the same, things that take little effort like watching a series or playing a video game. Medication does make it a lot better and I don't procrastinate…

Thank you for this very honest comment. You make me feel less alone.

The beauty of communities like these is that I can make an account and talk about my experiences without tying it to my real identity. Unfortunately I don't have the courage to do that yet, it's easier to be honest when the stakes are low. Somehow, HN also seems a better place to do so, rather than a community dedicated to the disorder. Probably because it's mostly about other things and only occasionally warrants posting about my experiences when the topic comes up instead of being 100% about it.

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#27

Post by djsumdog »

temporaryvector wrote: post #25
idclip wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you considered meditation?

Yes, mediation, mindfulness and several other techniques for controlling emotions were things that we tried with my psychiatrist. Meditation didn't really work for me but mindfulness sure did.

Meditation isn't always for everyone:

https://battlepenguin.com/philosophy/mindful-meditation-is-n...

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#28

Post by djsumdog »

flor1s wrote: post #3
adamnemecek wrote: post #2

Procrastination is a signal that you hate what you are supposed to be doing. Don't ignore it.

You might hate what you are doing in the short term but love what you will gain from doing that in the long term.

You might like the result (like a clean house) but hate starting the process. That's one possibility.

But you could also hate starting (a project for a job you hate) but you keep on doing it, ignoring those feelings, because we all have bills to pay.

I think the second one is what you need to be aware of.

Re: Procrastination is about managing emotions, not time

#30

Post by idclip »

temporaryvector wrote: post #25
idclip wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you considered meditation?

Yes, mediation, mindfulness and several other techniques for controlling emotions were things that we tried with my psychiatrist. Meditation didn't really work for me but mindfulness sure did.

Oh yes i did mean mindfulness meditation, i have been to several mindfulness retreats (vipassanas) and used to have ADHD. I find cold showers and a morning/evening mindfulness sit work wonders.
Post reply on HN