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Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

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Re: Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

#51

Post by skriticos2 »

Well, maybe sometimes this happens to me..

"I just go check the headlines on my favorite news sites and then I start my productive day.. and I drink this cup of coffee." .. 2 hours later. "Just this one headline, then I'm ready." .. 2 hours later. "Damn, where did the day go all of a sudden?"

Of course the solution is to first do the work and then read the news.. but that's the rational part of my brain speaking - not the sleepy, non-morning person persona of myself.

Of course ToDo lists, interesting tasks, deadline pressure and gamification work. Like pretending to be a character in an RPG - playing the game of my life. And then come up with ideas on how to level, quest and progress with the tasks/projects I have. Questlog: You have leveld up. You are now a level 14 code conjurer. You have completed the quest: Subjugate the data.. And then come up with fun side-quests (rewards) that I can only unlock at specific levels or after a particular quest is completed - like building a project RPG gamification tracker utility.

On the other hand, I am very productive once the day is over and I sit in front of the screen at night in the natural light of my computer screen, so there is that.

Re: Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

#53

Post by vbtemp »

yoodenvranx wrote: post #40
WhompingWindows wrote: post #28

Procrastination is the avoidance of activity due to a discomfort/fear/anxiety and subsequent inability to scale the discomfort wall that exists between you and the tasks' completion. Other comments mention a pointlessness or lack of purpose, which I consider secondary, since it's arguable if it's truly procrastination if the work is truly pointless. Procrastination as a term seems best applied to important/mandatory…

> Procrastination is the avoidance of activity due to a discomfort/fear/anxiety and subsequent inability to scale the discomfort wall that exists between you and the tasks' completion. I am pretty sure my main reason for procrastination is the fact that I never learned to endure suffering/discomfort while growing up. I grew up very sheltered and I was never forced to do anything which I did not like (bring out the tr…

I'd warmly encourage you to not make excuses or find reasons from your past to justify current maladaptive behaviors. If you're 18+ and grew up in safety, comfort, and with education you possess all the necessary executive functionality to take hold of what life will deal you.

Re: Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

#54

Post by gazsp »

anoncoward111 wrote: post #30
hh3k0 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And you do valuable things when you procrastinate?

That's actually debatable. I certainly do rewarding things for myself when procrastinating. And my job honestly is a negative value to society. I am a salesman at a rent seeking corporation. I would literally do society more good if I wasn't driving a gas guzzler to work every day and sitting in a giant air conditioned office.

Time for a new job?

Re: Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

#55

Post by IncRnd »

WhompingWindows wrote: post #28

Procrastination is the avoidance of activity due to a discomfort/fear/anxiety and subsequent inability to scale the discomfort wall that exists between you and the tasks' completion. Other comments mention a pointlessness or lack of purpose, which I consider secondary, since it's arguable if it's truly procrastination if the work is truly pointless. Procrastination as a term seems best applied to important/mandatory…

> Procrastination is the avoidance of activity due to a discomfort/fear/anxiety and subsequent inability to scale the discomfort wall that exists between you and the tasks' completion.

The cause isn't part of the definition. Procrastination is simply the delaying of something, whatever the reason for doing do. One can procrastinate due to wanting to do something else. It doesn't have to be from an aversion.

Re: Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

#56

Post by justbaker »

WhompingWindows wrote: post #38
aidenn0 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Smoking and procrastination are both correlated with ADHD (for which dopamine has also been implicated) so there almost certainly is a correlation between them.

Oh true, I studied ADHD a bit, it's a neuro-developmental disorder of the dopaminergic system. Specifically, the motor cortex will develop more quickly/strongly than the executive function system, leading to a hyperactivity of motor activity and a hypo*activity of the "secretary" of the mind which filters/prioritizes/plans behaviors. Now there is a subset of primarily inattentive ADHD, which has less to do with movem…

> I have heard anecdotal tales about ADHD medications as revelations bordering on spirituality, people crying after taking their first dose at age 30 and realizing how much more "normal" it might make them.

It really does whenever you have ADHD and you feel like your restless mind is finally at rest. It's absolutely infuriating to be unable to concentrate throughout most of my days.

Re: Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

#59

Post by cmplxconjugate »

My one little life hack for the morning procrastination is this:

Always make sure you have set yourself a simple task to complete/continue the following morning.

It gives an achievable goal that can help kickstart your working flow for the day.

Re: Show HN: Why Do I Procrastinate? – Web MD for Procrastination

#60

Post by have_faith »

logeek wrote: post #45

Nice concept, but all I got was: "Oops. Sorry, we can't seem to find what the problem is."

Ditto. In my case it's just that the amount of work I would have to do to be happy with my own side projects causes me to procrastinate on starting them, as I don't have a perfect image in my head of an objectively successful outcome yet so I just delay.
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