In the Mind of a Procrastinating Perfectionist
You are probably familiar with the lines, āIāll do it tomorrow.ā Accompanied by the heavy feeling of laziness, you find yourself procrastinating again for the umpteenth time. It is as though there is an unswayable force holding you back from finishing something. Before you know it, a pile of backlogs looms over you at the end of the week. You groan internally just thinking about doing them.
Sounds familiar…
Can you relate? I bet you can. It is unlikely that you have not procrastinated yet in your whole lifetime. In fact, the act itself is a common phenomenon, brought about by running away from doing something. I wrote this article to reassure you that you are not alone, and you are not lazy!
I donāt think procrastination equates to laziness. I believe that each person who does that has a particular reason why they delay themselves from doing things. In my case, it is due to being a perfectionist.
Iām going to tell you what goes on in the mind of a perfectionist procrastinator every time a deadline is impending.
In the mind of a procrastinating perfectionist
Underestimating time
The entire procrastinating fiasco begins with me underestimating the time that I have. Iād first do a quick survey on the details of my task. Then, Iād do some calculating in my head ā Oh, that would take me a good three hours to do, for instance. Iāll tell myself I can do it sometime today or tomorrow when my laziness dissipates. What really happens is that the lethargy only goes away the actual day before the deadline. Consequently, I stress myself out hours before the deadline. But hey, whereās the fun if I wonāt let the adrenaline rush get to me?
Constant distraction
If I actually do manage to sit through my work, guaranteed itās going to be seamlesslyā¦ chaotic. Wielding the attention span of a goldfish, everything would be a distraction for me. Iād be extra motivated to play video games that Iām too lazy to play during an otherwise plain day. A friend of mine would send a video on TikTok and an hour later, Iām tumbling down the rabbit hole that is my FYP. At the end of the day, I never get any work done.
Iād rather do something else
That book that has been sitting on my shelf, rich with dust? I think itās a good time to read it. Anything just to escape my nightmare: accomplishing my task.
I need more inspiration
Most of the time, I convince myself that I do not wield enough inspiration to begin working. This is because I rely on my spontaneous bursts of creativity. If I donāt think I have enough ingenious cells during that particular time, Iād decide that itās not yet a good time to commence being productive.
Gaslighting myself
The term is funny, I know, but one of the things that go on in my head when thereās a deadline is a lot of gaslighting. I convince myself that I should reward myself with more rest. Reality check: I have a paper due in two days! Nonetheless, my mind reigns superior, and I get persuaded that I deserve to rest indeed. Youāve been a good girl, my brain would insist. Youāve been a good girl after doing literally the bare minimum. I would then be coaxed and proceed to sleep.
Everything has to be perfect
Needless to say, when a perfectionist works, they really work. A lot of the effort goes into proofreading every now and then. Even the smallest detail would never go unnoticed. Every little thing has to be polished meticulously, consequently consuming a lot of time.
The closest situation I could analogize it with is that one episode of Spongebob Squarepants. It was when he scribbled furiously, as if writing something substantial, only to end up with āThe.ā
At the end of the day, I do get work done, albeit under the rockiest path. Still, I want to give credit where it is due, and that is to myself. Cheers to me, and to all of my āput the pro in procrastinationā lasses and fellows out there. We all managed to pull through despite the odds of our quirky minds.
What are you procrastinating about today?
Moira is a clumsy extroverted writer who scribbles about everything that piques her interest. That includes her own emotions, love, life, love life, music, books, you name it. Albeit reliant on her random bursts of creativity to get going at times, she is ingeniously curious and dependable, and talks to her seven cats as a stress reliever. She has found home in writing ever since she was a child and sees it as the sole legacy that her parents she barely knows has left for her.