Procrastination should be solved by lighting fires, not filling buckets

This is just a friendly reminder that if you would describe yourself as a procrastinator, it might be something more. If you've always been one, if you want to do things, but can never do it, it could be a sign.

ADHD is a real problem, and has real solutions (and those solutions aren't all addictive).

If you feel like you are always running behind, always trying to catch up. If anyone says you are a great developer, but that you're always playing catch up, get checked. It can help change your life for the positive.

Yep, I think that's a great way to get over the fear of shipping imperfect stuff.

Procrastination and perfectionism are very tied together for me- it's largely a fear of failure. To be more precise, it's a structural, habitual, systemic underestimation of how it's better to fail a little bit every day than to "fail by default" (as JK Rowling beautifully put it) because you never try at all.

I see a lot of parallels between this and smoking, or any other unhealthy, damaging habit- an inability to grok, at a very visceral level, how small things add up to big ones.

The only way to learn is to stick to it, and anything that helps me/you stick to it is worth trying, I think.

I think I do exhibit ADHD symptoms, but I don't think I have it, or if I do, I don't have it bad. I can get a little dramatic in my writing. I have been able to make some progress on some fronts, I'm just easily dissatisfied.

Thank you so much for your concern, though. What are the solutions you're talking about? Do you mean medication? I think I'll give myself a few months to try and work things out myself (I think it's really just very, very bad habits entrenched throughout my adolescent years that I have to unlearn).

This. I've recently had some successes with an app called "Way of Life" on the iPhone (or its Android equivalent, Hab.it). It's half way between the bucket filling an fire lighting methods, but it's so quick and easy to use, I've actually managed to use it for 6 weeks now. I realise that doesn't sound like a lot, but this is coming from someone who can write a diary for 3 days max and to-do lists last a week or so.

The idea is that you put in a behaviour and tell the app whether it is bad or good, and then every evening you spend 10 seconds telling the app whether you did it or not. Very soon you have a red or green patchwork of your life's choices to stare at on a daily basis.

The bad: I've been pretty honest so my results aren't great (about 60:40 green to red).

The good: I've had many occasions where I'm at the tipping point of doing or not doing something and thinking about getting that green square for the day has nudged me to do the right thing. Which I figure means it's worth it.

Since buying the app, I've lost a few kilos, been to the gym twice as often, reduced my computer games usage, almost stopped biting my nails, and cut out 90% of the fizzy drinks in my diet. Stopping eating chocolate seems to be a persistent problem though...

I guess the key point is "I would pay 100$ a month for a helping app". I think you might not have enough constraints. A financiel constraint is a great motivation.

I have been a freelancer for 4 years. The first year, the excitment of this new activity was enough to motivate me. After this time I slowly became lazy (syn. for procrastinator). I was losing money and felt to a point where my bank account was almost at zero. This financial constraint sent me a huge kick in the butt. I stopped home-working, rented an office and (re)started to work for real. Two years after this episode everything is fine. I am still in a nice office and ready to hire my first employee.

In your case, I would say you need either bigger constraints or a challenge that drives real passion.