PROCRASTINATION- A BRIEF COMMENT FROM A PSYCHODYNAMIC PERSPECTIVE

In the previous Post, we were talking about some of the unconscious reasons for lack of motivation. In a society constituted by multitasks individuals in a permanent readiness to change the state of mind[1], not only theories on motivation/lack of motivation have grown, but also on their correlate-procrastination. Defined as a behavior of delaying something that must be done[2], most of the times because it is an unpleasant one, procrastination is one of the top 5 complaints in psychotherapy. There are lots of good strategies available to deal with it, although, in our view, many of them are efficient when directed to people’s healthy part, i.e, when there are real or detectable reasons that cause the procrastinating behavior. Once our focus is on symptoms whose etiology is mental/emotional, we will mention, briefly, some examples in which the cause of the procrastination is not evident. In order to do so, it is important to explain the connection between conflicts, motivation and procrastination. Let’s start using a metaphor:

1) Think of a conflict as a rope being pushed by two opposite agents/forces.

When people are aware of these two contents (emotions or ideas) in opposition, they commonly must decide between one of them. If they can’t decide, the conflict is not solved and may end up producing anguish, which is usually externalized in the form of anxiety. However, many times, people are not aware of some of their internal conflicts. And, once these conflicts are not elaborated, the anguish/anxiety they may cause is `discharged in the form of symptoms, such as disproportionate anxieties, and all sorts of emotional disorders. Following this line of thinking, let’s remember John and Peter, from the last Post[3]. In those examples, they knew what had driven them to success. However, one was permanently haunted by the possibility of panic attacks which, besides the horrifying feeling of losing control of their own bodies, came along with fear of social embarrassment, and the other with the feeling of procrastination. In both cases, such feeling wasn’t proportionate to their outcomes. Maria[4], in other example, is a self-employed professional in cultural area and Joana is an executive. Despite their different work areas, their symptom was, in a way, similar. They’ve always delivered their tasks within the deadline and have positive feedbacks. However, a hundred percent of the time, they feel exhausted at the end of each delivery and with a sort of “moral hangover”, because the job is always done at the last minute, and the feeling is that it could certainly have been better. In both cases, for some reason, they accept a lot more tasks than they can deliver, and then, feel desperate or start them all at the same time without completing them until the last minute. In the two first examples, John and Peter knew what motivated them to have well-succeed careers, but they weren’t sure about what they liked or wanted to pursue as a more decisive direction in their lives. What lied at the root of anxieties wasn’t exactly lack of motivation, but a conflict between different desires that would lead them to an impasse, which could end up putting them in a position of having to make a choice that would have repercussion in their lives. This was the “not evident” conflict behind their dissatisfaction with their lives, regardless of their outcomes. Hence, to a certain extent, they were related to existential anguishes. In the women’s cases, on the other hand, they knew what they wanted, their jobs were aligned with their values and interests. What lied at the root of the procrastination was a non-evident conflict: one side of them was committed with their jobs and wanted to do it with excellence, and the other one couldn’t say no to new demands, but also can’t be organized in order to deliver on time, in a clear self-sabotage mode. Regardless of it, it is worth noticing that, in these two examples, they also ended up delivering what they should within the deadline, but were exhausted ate the end of each task, in a repetitive pattern. In these cases, these anxieties are clearly disproportionate to real life demands. They are neurotic. Finally, once again, there are lots of great strategies to overcome procrastination. A psychodynamic view may be useful to understand cases in which such strategies don’t work and end up reinforcing people’s feeling of failure. To be continued in the next Post [1] For more details see Pots 14- Centennials- generation "do it yourself", Post16- Centennials egos-multitask thinking outside the box and and Post 18-The results of Millennials and Centennials cultural changes in today's personalities, in: Cultural influences on Identity. In: www.ceciliapsicologa.org [2] dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/English/procrastination [3] For more details see Post 19- (Lack of ) Motivation- A brief comment form a psychodynamic perspective, in: Cultural influences on identity. In: www.cwciliapsicologa.org [4] We are using examples inspired in real cases, so that people can connect them with their experiences. The information given, however, is generic enough to be applied to different sorts of cases and not to expose anybody.