[[:encoded, "It's Friday afternoon, the clock is ticking, and your fingers are jumping from one key to the other. You're working furiously, your five o'clock deadline is nearing, and the weekend is just around the corner.\n\nBut you've still got so much to do and less than an hour to finish. You silently curse yourself for not starting sooner. So, what happened? How did you end up running out of time? \n\nWell, there were hours you spent scrolling through social media, your multiple coffee breaks, re-reading emails, and completing tasks that you could've started later.\n\nProcrastination haunts all of us. We're all guilty of procrastinating and saying, 'I'll do it later,' or 'I'll start in a while.' But the negative impacts of procrastinating can steal dreams, cause missed opportunities, and even destroy lives.\n\nSome people are lucky enough to pinpoint their tendency to procrastinate and how much it holds them back. Let’s discuss how procrastination can wreck your dreams and how you can combat it.\n\nThe Origins of the Procrastination is the Thief of Time \n\nOften, Charles Dickens gets the credit for coining the term 'procrastination is the thief of time.' However, the truth is that Dickens popularized the proverb by putting it into the mouth of Mr. Micawber. \n\nIn 1850, Mr. Micawber said, 'My advice is, never do tomorrow what you can do today. Procrastination is the thief of time.'\n\nWhile Mr. Micawber became a widely quoted character for pronouncing the proverb' procrastination is the thief of time,' he was hardly original. In reality, the phrase is an adage created by English writer Edward Young. \n\nYoung wrote a 10,000-line poem known as 'The Complaint' or 'Night-Thoughts on Life, Death, and Immortality or simply 'Night-Thoughts.' In this extensive poem, the poet muses over death over the courses of nine' nights,' i.e., nine sections.\n\nYoung's use of the proverb 'procrastination is the thief of time' goes beyond caution against putting things off. Instead, the poet suggests that time wasted procrastinating one thing is time wasted doing nothing of any consequence. \n\nIt goes to say that if we delay filling our taxes by arranging our spices alphabetically, the fact remains that we should have done something of far more importance. \n\nHow Does the Proverb Describe 'Procrastination'?\n\nEdward Young describes a procrastinator as someone who procrastinates in doing things at the right time and finds themselves in situations where they had little time to complete the task.\n\nTypically, people procrastinate because:\n•\tThe task is long and complicated. \n•\tThe activity is tedious and not important. \n•\tThey prefer doing their pleasurable activities.\n•\tThey have a careless attitude and believe that nothing wrong will happen if they miss their deadline.\n•\tThey are over-confident and think that they have enough time/competency to complete the task. \n•\tThey do it as a result of peer pressure and fear mockery or ridicule if they hand in work early. \n•\tThey do it due to pure laziness.\n\nWhy is Procrastination the Thief of Time?\n\n'Procrastination,' deferring a task or putting something off, is the 'thief of time' because you waste time by delaying tasks. \n\nThis hypothesis potentially embraces two meanings: you are wasting time when you could have accomplished what you need to achieve. And that all procrastination is time-wasting.\n\nLet's discuss the top common examples of procrastination:\n•\tSomeone who spends several days thinking about starting an essential assignment, thus they have to rush to finish work in a hasty and stressful manner.\n•\tA person who wastes months before approaching the person they're romantically interested in, thus missing their chance to enter a relationship with them. \n•\tSomeone who wastes years before starting a project they're passionate about, thus struggling with guilt and shame.\n•\tA student who wastes the whole year not studying. \n\nAccording to an insightful study, up
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I’m the author of many books, including, Excuses Don’t Count; Results Rule, Live Life with No Regrets, No Excuses, The Guide to Stopping Procrastination, The Power of Visualization, My Gratitude Journal, the Work Life Balance Emergency Kit, and The Roadmap To Success with Stephen Covey and Ken Blanchard, and more.
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Anne Bachrach
The Accountability Coach™
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