For too long I’ve sat idly by while the good name of procrastination is dragged through the muck. For the sake of getting things done we’re advised to banish, kill, and avoid procrastination without any acknowledgment of the good it’s done.
We owe procrastination. Big time. It’s responsible for our best ideas and busiest hours. Used effectively, procrastination is a powerful motivator and source of inspiration.
Structured Procrastination
Productive procrastination falls into two categories, structured and unstructured. With structured procrastination (via pmarca, via via 43F) you use the desire to avoid an important task as motivation to crank out dozens others. Anything to postpone what you really need to do, right?
Whenever I need to avoid something important, I turn to a few tasks that rarely get the attention they deserve.
- Get Organized – There’s no better way to feel productive while avoiding the inevitable than organizing your home or work space. Without procrastination my desk would be perpetually cluttered and the dishes would never get done.
- Network – Have a bunch of contacts you should really touch base with but don’t have the time? Procrastination is a great opportunity to politely reply to nonessential email. Taking the time to stay in touch with people pays dividends in the long-run.
- Plan Ahead – The only thing better than actually doing something is thinking/talking about doing something. Take the time to identify, record, and schedule all your tasks, obviously leaving the most important for last.
- Odds and Ends – Procrastination is the best time to find closure for everything that’s on your mind. Use it as an excuse to investigate and resolve issues that have been nagging you.
- Meetings – If you’re not going to be productive, you might as well take other people down with you.
- Errands – Need to schedule a dentist appointment? How about that oil change? Procrastination is capable of making the most tedious and trivial errands appealing.
- Get Up To Date – Have a bunch of dull reports and memos you should probably read? They’re starting to look a lot more interesting.
- Assist Others – If you’re not going to do your own work, you can at least deliver on the help you promised your colleague last week.
Unstructured Procrastination
Structured procrastination is a great way to keep busy, but sometimes that doesn’t cut it. When you’d rather not do anything work related, unstructured procrastination is the way to go. It might seem like laziness, but what’s wrong with that?
Unstructured procrastination is essential for recharging creative energy and allowing the unconscious mind to work on difficult problems. These are 6 productive ways to avoid work completely.
- Go to Lunch – You need to eat, might as well do it now so you can’t use it as an excuse later.
- Exercise – Same as lunch, with the added benefit of increased alertness.
- Take a Walk – A casual walk is a great way to unburden your mind and allow great ideas to come to you.
- Relax – If you feel a strong desire to procrastinate, there’s probably a reason behind it. Relax ation is important for a healthy productive lifestyle, why not do it now when you can’t get anything else done?
- Come Up With a Great Idea – This one can’t exactly be completed on demand, but studies have shown that entrepreneurs and other creative people tend to get their best ideas during down time.
- Read a Good Book – If you’d rather not think for yourself, you might as well absorb the great ideas someone else took the trouble to record.
14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively…
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Haha, good stuff. I mean to start procrastinating more, I just never get around to it.
Thanks, you’ve just proved a point – browsing the web avoiding work, I’ve hit upon some useful information.
[...] From one of my favorite websites, 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively. Click here! [...]
Walton,
Thanks, glad you found it useful. I should have flattered myself and put reading this website under unstructured procrastination.
I procrastinate, but not productively enough. Now I know how to do it. The things I do when I am procrastinating are making a to-do-list, going through (snail)mail, and cooking. Not enough. Thanks for the extra suggestions. I just wrote a piece about “How to do things that suck!” – but it never occured to me that you can be productive while procrastinating. Awesome idea!
Haha, yes, procrastination can be (somewhat) productive, but we all have to eventually bear down and “do things that suck” like you said.
Great post. This should be a good reminder for everyone that procrastination doesn’t always have to be negative. As long as we do it for a better result and benefits our routine, it’s great for everyone.
John:
Excellent post. I know you like feedback, and hence I am writing this comment. The new location of the google ad-words seems to be a in the way of reading the article – a potential putoff to new readers. Just thought I would let you know.
GCM
Great ideas. May as well use the time for something constructive while the delaying lasts.
For tips on how to get on with the required task without further delay, I wrote a post recently: “Tackling a Difficult Task” which you can see on my blog in the Achieving Goals category, or just go to http://dweezeljazzart.com/blog/2007/05/tackling-difficult-task.html
Cheers
GCM,
Thanks for the feedback. I know those ads are a bit intrusive, but they’re the only place people click them. You have a good point though, I plan on leaving them off the newer posts for a few days so they don’t annoy the regular readers.
[...] or not. The reason why I brought this up is because I was over viewing my RSS feeds when I saw a good topic on procrastination. John at Pick the Brain, broke down the benefits of procrastination by structured and unstructured. [...]
I procrastinate by leaving comments on interesting blogs. It’s kind of like making a friend in a karmic sort of way. I can’t say that it’s productive really, but I’m sure there’s some intangible benefit I can’t think of right now.
I think you’re right, Greg. That could be included in the indirectly productive forms of procrastination. Exchanging ideas with other readers can stimulate creativity and also build an online reputation.
Nice post. These are great ways to be productive. I also procrastinate but seldom in a productive way. It would be great to make use of these benefits from procrastination.
[...] Original post by John Wesley [...]
Great post. I like your ideas regarding structured and unstructured procrastination and how we can be productive. Some are common things we do but most of us probably don’t know that we are productive with those activities.
Wow, what a perfect example of “thinking outside the box” by giving us a new perspective on what most consider to be a negative trait. For the first time in a long time, I actually feel accomplished and don’t have those lingering feelings of being such a LAHOOSER! BTW, I have also picked up great info from those who leave comments, so thanks to all!
[...] Wesley presents 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively posted at Pick the [...]
[...] Wesley presents 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively posted at Pick the [...]
I enjoyed this post – I thought it was very original. I also like your About Page. It’s refreshing to read stuff that is different. Regarding this post: What about procrastinating with no end in mind – procrastinating with no intent to gain something that helps you succeed or improve in some way? Is that just pure laziness? If so, then call me Lazy.
It seems like the thesis of this article is: “Can procrastination help your productivity and improvement in some way?” My question is: “Can procrastination (or, doing nothing of importance) be a cool, fun, enjoyable way to spend some of the moments of my life?” I think they are both worthy questions and I think the answer to both questions is Yes.
[...] Wesley presents 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively posted at Pick the [...]
[...] 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively: Structured procrastination? How does that sound? John wrote about how procrastination can actually be a good thing if you procrastinate well and structure and plan ahead. Maybe i should start postponing stuff, and get more done! [...]
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[...] Wesley presents 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively posted at Pick the Brain resolves that you can put procrastination to work for you to help get [...]
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Hehe, Brilliant, Bang on target
[...] Wesley presents 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively posted at Pick the [...]
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[...] in law school!), tell us a bit about the ways they personally procrastinate. And then there’s Pick the Brain’s analysis of how procrastination actually makes you productive. John Wesley, the brain behind [...]
[...] so you’ve probably heard them all, right? Write out lists, eliminate the unimportant and nuke your procrastination. For the getting-things-finished junkies, I’d like to share some lesser known productivity [...]
[...] all suffered from procrastination at one time or another. Probably the worst part about procrastination is its uncanny ability to rob of us time, while simultaneously making us feel miserable about it. [...]
motivation…
Our will is to point you in the right direction for making money study….
[...] the brain. To me a sophisticated life-hacking site, it has articles ranging from using procrastination to your advantage, to essays about the nature of some of our social problems; this site is a heavy [...]
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[...] Fear is a huge driving and motivating force, be it fear of failure or success. People who are afraid to fail, are afraid to put in effort or to even try to attempt the task. It is easier [...]
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[...] include: 14 Ways to Procrastinate Productively, How to Become a Highly Productive Night Owl, 5 Simple Ways to Increase Your Intelligence, and [...]
I procrastinate all the time at home an dat school. I dont do any of my work in fact im procrastinating right now
Ha! im procrastinating right now ! i have a deadline to be met today at exactly 2 pm .. have i started it .. NO!!
i wish i had Bernards watch =[
[...] all suffered from procrastination at one time or another. Probably the worst part about procrastination is its uncanny ability to rob of us time, while simultaneously making us feel miserable about it. [...]
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simple and to the point, i really like it
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This is a fantastic article!
I always feel terrible for not getting started on a task but you have reminded me of all the useful things I get done in the meantime!
Incredibly useful and motivational website – thank you so much.
I always fell guilty about procastinating. No more! Now I can procastinate and be productive too.
Wow. Great article…. however it just disproved one of my favorite quotations:
“Procrastination is like masturbation. It’s awesome until you realize you just f*cked yourself.”
Ah yes. hahahaha. At least I now feel better about reading this site instead of writing my paper that is due tomorrow. Blah. Thanks for the new point of view!
I just made fabulous chocolate cherry bread pudding while not writing an article that was due yesterday. But then I wrote the whole article in the time the pudding was in the oven (70) minutes! After stalling for a month…
[...] So it’s definitely been way too long since my last series of posts. Way too much time spent procrastinating and not enough time doing anything [...]
[...] Pick the Brain: 14 Ways To Procrastinate Productively [...]
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