Here's the real reason you procrastinate | Fuschia Sirois | TEDxNewcastle
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.พ. 2025
- Many believe that laziness, poor time management, or disorganisation are the reasons why people procrastinate. In this talk, Fuschia will explore the science behind why people procrastinate to reveal the “real” reasons why people unnecessarily delay, the toll it can take, and what you can do to reduce procrastination. Fuschia Sirois, PhD, is a Professor in Health & Social Psychology at Durham University. For over 20 years she has researched the causes and consequences of procrastination, and in particular the health consequences of procrastination, as well as how emotions play a key role in explaining why people procrastinate. Her research also examines the role of positive psychology traits, states, and interventions for supporting self-regulation and enhancing health and well-being.
She has authored over a 120 peer-reviewed journal papers, over 200 conference papers, and edited two books. Her latest book will be published in July 2022 by the American Psychological Association and is entitled “Procrastination: What It Is, Why It’s a Problem, and What You Can Do about It”. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx
Summary for procrastinators:
- Procrastination caused by mood, not by poor time management or laziness.
- Procrastination is a psychological way to get relief from negative emotions associated with a task. When you use procrastination to manage your mood, you're actually rewarding that procrastination behaviour.
- That's why negative feelings caused by procrastination increase procrastination too (vicious circle).
- Due to mountains of negative emotions we overestimate how bad we'll feel doing the task.
You should (evidence-based approaches):
1) View your tasks from the lens of meaning. Ask yourself "why is this valuable to me?", "how is it important?", "what will I learn about myself from doing this task?"... It gives tasks more context.
2) Be compassionate and forgiving to yourself.
Both approaches help to dial up your positive feelings, reduce some of the negative emotions.
🙏 so much, i was 3 min in and ready to turn this cringey talk off.
Graci! Great Sunday🎉😮
Seriously, does this lady need fifteen minutes? Even at 1.5 speed she's an annoyingly round about in everything she says, constantly blurts out cliches, and sounds like a high schooler trying to meet their time req. in a public speaking assignment.
So if your job is meaningless and you can't find a more meaningful occupation you're stuck with it suffering forever.
I see signs of cognitive behavioural therapy in speaker's thoughts. IMHO it's almost impossible to fit the whole psychological CBT-technique into several sentences for wide audience. Maybe that's why the speech looks unconvincing or inconclusive. But there's no magic pill. From my point of view we should combine two things: 1) work on your thoughts, behaviour on your own or with the help of a therapist; 2) work on habits using time management. The speaker gives only a hint, a direction, not a ready-made solution.
I learned many years ago to do the one thing I least wanted to do right away even when I didn’t really want to do it. It has helped me immensely in all aspects of my life, but particularly my career and I have passed this on to my kids. And what I discovered is that when I accomplish whatever task it is that I really didn’t want to do, I got an emotional high and felt really good about myself. So the relief I get, the reward that you talk about, comes from doing that thing I never wanted to really do. So there.
Its like Jumping in the cold water or from a high springboard, the longer you wait, the harder committing to it gets.
Procrastination is one of the biggest reason to be unsuccessful
definitely going to watch this later
😅😅
🤣
😂😂😂 me too
Noooo stop this is the first comment I saw as I was putting this on my "watch later" list
First thought in my mind, but I kicked it out and played the video. No going back now! 🙂
As a procrastinator, I’ve noticed that my problem stems from my also being a perfectionist. Something inside of me says if you can’t do it perfectly then don’t do it. Can anyone else relate to that?
Yes exactly...that's me
@@perditabarman56 something for us to work on.
This!!!!!
I can relate! Give me tasks for which I have competence and call someone appropriate for tasks I'm unfit for... but nevermind... life, too often presents us with tasks and/or situations and/or people we're incompatible with (for our learning the hard way, perhaps too often...)
Definitely. A sentence I keep trying to remember is "The perfect is the enemy of the good". In other words, doing something well but not perfectly is better than not getting it done at all.
I saw this video and felt that I really need to watch it to solve my procrastinating issue. I opened the video, paused it, and decided to save and watch it for later. Problem remains unsolved.
you magnificent :D
That’s a self-defeating choice. I do the same thing.
I think I will watch this tomorrow or sometime next week.
Jesus loves you all and is coming back soon!
Believe in His death and resurrection and repent of your sins and be saved!
Remember that He died and rose up again for you to be in heaven with Him!
Have an amazing day ❤️❤😊
@@Gg-ij7li Your proof appears lacking. Copies of copies of copies by supposed authors, most of whom were not there, isn't proof of anything. Do you remember all your school reports that said you need to try harder and focus? They were right and you haven't.
This is such an important and overlooked subject. But all I could focus on what on the "mouth noises". no doubt a side effect of my ADHD inattentive/hyperfocus brain. my life has been blighted, but informed by my procrastination.
It’s all about delayed gratification for me. Doing the hardest part first, has helped me a lot. I almost always find that my ‘magical magnifying mind’ has overestimated how awful ‘it’ would be.
“Just do it” has also helped…and sometimes “Just Start It” is even better. Getting started is the hardest for me.
The best explanation I've heard on the subject. My interpretation follows however it is no substitute to listening to the whole speech: Procrastinating is way worse for you than you realise. You don't do it to avoid the task, but to avoid the negative emotions associated with that task. That task likely isn't as monumental as you think, it just feels that way (and that is natural). Any relief from procrastinating is counteracted by other negative emotions and consequences. It also increases the negative emotions associated with the task that was postponed leading to a downward spiral. Try instead to identify the positive aspects of the tasks that need doing. When procrastinating be forgiving and compassionate instead of beating yourself up.
Hear hear. In fact it is the only explanation I've heard that accurately explains my behavior. Of course I was looking for a quick fix (after all I wouldn't be procrastinating if I wasn't into quick fixes, right) so I am a little disappointed not to get that.
Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after.
Seriously, though. This video is right on point. It is emotional. I tell myself that the time I take while procrastinating will somehow recharge my battery to help me deal with that thing I don't want to do. It rarely works.
This really gave me a whole new different perspective about procrastination! And I find myself agreeing with the points and understanding more of myself in a way as a self-confessed procrastinator. Thanks for this talk.
Jesus loves you all and is coming back soon!
Believe in His death and resurrection and repent of your sins and be saved!
Remember that He died and rose up again for you to be in heaven with Him!
Have an amazing day ❤️❤😊
I said no to procrastination this year. I started my youtube journey this year. I wish you all success in the things you want to achieve. The fact is, you can, and there is someone who will always support you.
Let's do our best in our Living Years.
Wooow!! Well done to you! How has it been going for you? Thanks for the inspiration. Also, how exactly did you reduce it?
When she said that "when you had a task to do but you were uncertain about it that how will you do it how much time it will consume and what will be it's consequences will you make it or not, but when you started doing it once you felt that it's not that much hard as you were thinking" I felt her feelings cause it matched with my current situation and I have experienced it lots of time.
I think procrastination is a fear of not being perfect. I am a procrastinator. I never considered myself lazy and I always completed the job (reports) on time.
I think a procrastinator is not always avoiding a task, but rather thinking about the best way to do it and the steps to do it in. A perfectionist and probably OCD.
Or someone who is afraid that they or the outcome isn't good enough, this could be caused by esteem issues or trauma (:of being looked down at/ of too many expectations)
In my case it’s more like lack of self discipline. But it hurts my heart as I know that consequences can be great as time flies.
@@lordkjamal this
I think, procrastination has so many different factors that go into it that it's not possible to pin it down to one thing.
same
I’ve been struggling with my own demons that is procrastination. Your lecture has given me the strength to rise from my lowest point and soar as high as possible to reach the unknown. I can’t thank you enough to spread this message to help me gain my own confidence. ❤ 🙏
Good talk! However, the mic was too sensitive and it sounded like she had dry mouth, which made it difficult to listen to.
So true. I couldn’t finish the talk because of those sounds.
Had a hard time focusing on her message because of this. Drove me batty.
Omg yes! So glad I wasn’t the only one who noticed that. It drove me crazy and I kept wanting to turn it off. I got through it but it was really awful to listen to 😐
@@Rivanni - Oh, I didn't hear those clicking sounds.
@@terri-annkent216& @Missi the Achievement Huntress:
Yes, it's unfortunate because she is a good presenter. Just wish the audio tech would've caught it.
I almost turned this off because she started so negatively. Glad I listened to it because yes yes yes she hit the nail on the head.
Alright, everyone has made their "I'll watch it later" joke by now!
I will post my joke later...
I'll reply later
@@DrTomb it may take a while before I read it
Yes I added this to "Watch later" but I really watched it later
😂😂😂
I can see myself reflected in this.. so I'm glad this precious information is shared freely to understand how to help myself and others. Thank you!!
Brilliant, and spot on!
I have read somewhere that Procrastination is the killer of time,by that time I started to do things on time and it worked for me.
Got recommended this video and then realised she’s my uni lecturer! so strange to hear her voice on TH-cam!
I have been thinking for a long time to talk about procrastination, but listening to this, I should continue thinking....
Sometimes it is thought that doing this would have adverse consequences or of rejection. The fear prevents us from doing things at the right time.
Glad I finally got around to watching this.
Let's not ignore the fact that people can even procrastinate when the outcome is expected to be positive. I mentioned this in a blog post I wrote, and I've done it on more than one occasion, so I can't be the only one!
Would you care to expand on this? I’m interested! Wondering if you could give some examples, and what are your thoughts on why? Do you think it could be linked to wanting to extend the pleasure of anticipation?
@@prawncrisp5951 Possibly! Here's an extract from the post I wrote:
You could be thinking about the exciting outcome of your actions, but if the idea alone of so much excitement feels overwhelming, that could be a reason to procrastinate, especially if you’re used to feeling disappointed more often than not.
Will you be able to handle it? What will you do with all the positive emotion that you’re likely to feel? Will you explode?? What if you allow yourself to get truly excited, but something goes wrong? What if getting excited turns out to be a waste of your precious time? What if, what if, what if.
It's also about insecurity, feeling unprepared or unfit; and fear of making a mistake and the possible consequences of that mistake... feeling the weight of our responsibility, especially if we feel unfit for a task we're unfamiliar with, that pushes us out of our comfort zone... and feeling that it takes time, right competence, correct planning and reflection to "do it properly" (in my personal experience)... also hesitance sometimes, needing to find a balance between wanting to be incisive enough while not wanting to be superficial and sloppy at the same time. All the excuses generated by reluctance, really.
Well, all the above, i suppose, is a description of some of the negative feelings that may hold us back and which we must acknowledge, forgive ourselves for, and then push through the unpleasantness of the task before us, once we've evaluated the benefits associated with its completion.
Thanks for this talk!
There are also people like me who are not procrastinating but, daydreaming. I am addicted to thinking and it can be so maladaptive. It can be so unmanageable and make life dysfunctional.
Omg yes I relate to this soo much!!
How are you not still procrastinating?
the fact that i’m watching this for a school project the day before it’s due because im a procrastinator-
I'm procrastinating right now!
"The graveyard is the richest place on Earth
because it is here that you will find
all the hopes and dreams that were never fulfilled,
the books that were never written,
the songs that were never sung,
the inventions that were never shared,
the cures that were never discovered..."
- Les Brown
For the overtasked, the option to procrastinate is a godsend.
Excellent content. Thank you!
Thank you.
I procrastinate completely where my own goals or dreams are concerned. I don't value my own wants over the needs of my family. So, my list of to do is always back burner to everything else. In this way, I feel much more accomplished because only when I hear no complaining and requests in the background can I even hear myself think about what I could do for myself. Procrastination has it's place where irrelevant plans are concerned. I finished a bunch of decade old projects recently and felt no satisfaction they were done, why did I bother? I bothered only to distract my mind from the recent diagnosis of my husband's life changing heart condition. I was always the student who waited last minute to complete projects, usually receiving very good grades. I wait until the grocery is about to close to shop frequently. And I am usually still vacuuming when the family begins arriving for holiday dinners. Nobody cares, and I think it's just how some folks are as people.
And perhaps later, I'll actually watch this video 😆
It might also be related to anxiety, depression or adhd, etc. and not being diagnosed for either of these issues. This is just what i've been thinking might be going on with myself, but i do relate to what you have expressed.
Great! This uncovers the actual emotional nature behind the problem. It might help for people who have a well functioning emotional regulation. But for many the root of the problem lies much deeper. People with a negative self-concept who also miss a basic sense of self-efficacy experience so much negative emotions that it's a huge task to counteract all that negativity. The causes of those counteractive emotions and thoughts need to be dealt with and then procrastination might improve. Not to mention people with ADHD who procrastinate all the time because they can't keep their focus and constantly experience motivation gaps... That's also aquires another, more complex, approach. I would guess that if investigated, a high percentage of those people who are chronic procrastinators would fall into these categories.
it is in human nature, we can control it to some extent but can not abandon it completely.
8:10 Procrastination in the view of psychological science
Seems good, gotta watch it later
Mistakes are proof that you are trying
Jesus loves you all and is coming back soon!
Believe in His death and resurrection and repent of your sins and be saved!
Remember that He died and rose up again for you to be in heaven with Him!
Have an amazing day ❤️❤😊
Yes, about time this was a Ted.
“People engage in this irrational cycle of chronic procrastination because of an inability to *manage negative moods* around a task.” - "Why You Procrastinate (It Has Nothing to Do With Self-Control)"
We procrastinate because of bad moods.
Need to learn *emotional management skills*. Deep breathing and music are quick helps.
thank you
Poor lady needed water :( her voice is relaxing though
Amazing Talk!
Very tremendous speech
Procrastination is the grave
in which opportunity is buried
~Alyce Cornyn-Selby
Sometimes it's also taking some time for reflection and careful planning before taking action, in order to avoid making a total mess of an important task...
She talks about the negative emotions associated with tasks that we have to do, but I think something is missing.
It's not only avoiding negative emotions, it's also the absence of tasks what leads us to procrastinate. Don't even knowing where to start, or how to start, or thinking just to much about option A over option B or vice versa.
Procrastination is about weakness and lack of bravery to say: just do it whatever the outcome is gonna be.
facts.
Any evidence to support your claim - apart from anecdotal experience?
Her claims - as highlighted within the videos description - come from 120 peer reviewed papers and 20+ years studying the construct of procrastination. What you 'think' isn't true just because you think it is, or because it 'feels' right. Empirical studies trump introspection and individual experience, I'm afraid.
If you have links to any references that support your view, I'm happy to be corrected here.
Procrastination is not fear of the outcome.
Just start!!! Start now
Happy new year to everyone
Happy new year!
Happy New year buddy
Happy New Year
Incredibly eye-opening.
Excelent! Thank you
Parece un video interesante, lo veré despues
One of the best talk on this subject, thank you!!!
Hands up for whom who are procrastinating watching this video.
That's really great
Speaker procrastinates for 13:00 minutes until revealing the cause. Start there
Procrastinate due to negative emotions. This creates a cycle.
Ways out:
-Why is this task meaningful?
-Be forgiving and compassionate
(Not a free pass though
-Accept harmful affects of procrastination without attacking those who procrastinate with character flaws (lazy ness).
I've saved this video to my 'Watch Later' folder. Hopefully I'll get around to watching it at some point in the future.
You probbably won’t. The truth about procrastination is that over 90% of people never overcome it, thus why majority of people at old age realize that their deisres will remain forever unfullfiled. There were several studies made on this topic.
Saved this to my watch later playlist 😏
Actually, excellent 🙌🏻
Please 🙏 Someone give this lady a bottle of water. L.O.L
Me and my procrastination story go waaay back noticed myself getting in the deep of it in my middle school years and now still with me as a med college student..I really suffer a lot from my lack of interest in literally every important task that's given to me and am always led to risky stages in studying.. I don't know how to overcome the negative feelings my deadly procrastination gives me but I think it's been years since I gave up on trying to change anything.
Be strong, don't let it destroy your life✊️✊️
We are with you!!! 💪
Thank you for the kind words!!! It really warms my heart being encouraged by other supportive people like you:(♡︎
Procrastination is avoidance off negative emotion we associated with a task
Video starts at 8:43 Thank me later
Timely message
I will just keep this in my watch later tab
Awesome to hear on Jan 1st:)
Tom's story is not procrastination, it's self sabotage. That is why he procrastinated. He was not feeling worthy of himself and his procrastination was one of many results. In his case procrastination was the result, not the cause. It's important that you recognize this. 🙂 Also, some people procrastinate because they really don't want to do something that is not enjoyable. To reiterate, procrastination is not the cause, it is the result. Go to the source. You will never find the answer from the result.
Yeah she wants to tackle the cause.
That's why she's telling us to practice self compassion because it's a way to Regulate our emotions
Reason for procrastination :
What are the negative emotions you are trying to avoid regarding the task by procrastinating the task?
Procrastination Is about poor mood management not poor time management
One way to overcome procrastination is view our task as meaningful. See how it helps us , what will I learn from it etc.
Be compassionate and forgiving when someone procrastinates. By being compassionate we acknowledge that the other person is suffering. It reduces procrastination and boosts peoples Morale.
Tedx
The answer begins at 8:00 the beginning needs parsimony but if you start at 8:00 its easier to understand-
😮 the smacking
Annoying AF, isn't it?
Saved it in whatsapp. Will watch it later
Procrasturbating is better, at least get something accomplished. Thanks for listening to my ted talk.
😢 you sooo silly
Jesus loves you all and is coming back soon!
Believe in His death and resurrection and repent of your sins and be saved!
Remember that He died and rose up again for you to be in heaven with Him!
Have an amazing day ❤️❤😊
This is the way
I'm watching this video right now because I am procrastinating reading my book, because I'm stressed about going back to work tomorrow, where I will most certainly procrastinate, and can't focus on my reading.
I started to watch and then I decided to watch later
I started watching it, but changed my mind. I’ll get to it later…….
Exactly 💯
Great video
please make more
Going to comment tomorrow maybe
Her speech helps my procrastinating issues but now her mouth noise gave me OCD, ADhD, PTSD, etc.
😂😂😂😂😂
Some people have dry mouth for medical reasons. Head/ neck cancer patients lose saliva from radiation treatment . Please be kind
Maybe Ill watch later
Yeah, ive been told term of procrastination moonlights as depression with lack of concentration.
Good talk
Great lesson. Something to work on for 2023. (Someone should've handed her a bottle of water.)
I'm kind of busy right now, I'll watch this tomorrow..
Not all procrastination is voluntary theres this very common thing well known as ADHD paralysis your brain is tell you to get up and do the thing your supposed to do but no matter how hard you try most of the time you just end up staying in bed despite knowing what you want to do.
Which procrastination is voluntary? I’m so frustrated with this ADHD conversation.
If you’re brain is telling you to do something. If you’re aware, you’re steps in front of most people.
What’s the point in convincing people you “can’t” listen to your internal monologue and perform tasks?
We are all human. It’s so unnerving to classify other humans under Mumbo jumbo in the DSM.
And this is why you give people a glass of water on stage
This women is giving valuable life altering information if your serious you can over look a lil lip smacking.
I'm gonna watch this later.
_Why do today what you could put off until tomorrow?_
--Self-proclaimed Procrastinator
What is today, if not yesterday’s tomorrow?
- Mr. Krabs maybe
@@PK_Droid : _Mayhaps, tomorrow's yesterday?_
--Pretty Patty Possibly
Thank you for your advice and that's it, time ⌚ is our life and we can't waste our lives, we don't have to life to be wasted, time never comes back, and the worst is have regrets in the future, time is made by good moments and actions,, at least, we'll have nice memories having a complete life, thanks to God
Someone get this lady a water bottle!
I'm gonna ignore the fact that I'm watching this while procrastinating
HASTY DECISIONS CAN BE HARMFUL
"He who hesitates is lost" vs "Look before you leap."
(Decisions, decisions.)
Nice
I'll look at this later - haha, good talk...
what about the extreme resistance to stat a task? i can't get started even though the exams are soo close,, i am facing episodes of depression and lots of anxiety beacause of the guilt.
For me Ikigai rule worked to stop my procrastination
I love that book!
Something else I have a question on. You mentioned how one examples partner was sad that she missed out on a lot of time with him because he was busy chasing deadlines. What was he doing with the time that he spent not completing his reports in the first place? Usually I find when I procrastinate, I push it off long enough so that I end up being under pressure to get it done. As a result I usually end up working more quickly and saving time overall. So can you please validate
Soo where would you draw the line defining procrastination... Like.. If i have dishes... and am really tired... sometimes ill procrastinate sometimes not. Depending on how urgent the task, the more force might be needed to just do it...
BUT
Then I have something like
An idea of building a business
Not surely knowing how
Not surely knowing who might best help
Bigger Step loaning money to really invest in this business
So im procrastinating FINDING a way to just do it. But this is so much more complex than doing dishes, or getting up to do monotone work for 8 hours, or excercising... or whatever
But still procrastination in a form yes?
Curious on input on such a comparison
Aw sweet, validation to pop off another year of procrastinating 🤣