Discover the Factors Behind Procrastination

Anxiety, depression, self-demand... There are factors behind procrastination that you must face to be more productive. Discover them here.

Written and verified by the psychologist Valeria Sabater.

Last update: 08 October, 2024

You have to hand in that pending project tomorrow, and yet you don’t have the mood or energy to turn on the computer. You get angry with yourself because that situation makes you desperate and you know there’ll be consequences, but you can’t help it. Now, if you’re wondering what causes this behavior, we’ll tell you that the factors behind procrastination are quite complex.

What happens to you isn’t always due to simple laziness or lack of responsibility. The continued act of postponing tasks and obligations is explained by multiple psychological factors. Sometimes, it’s anxiety, fear of failure, or even underlying depression. In the following article, we’ll describe what factors trigger this type of reality.

7 factors behind procrastination

Procrastination is the act of delaying tasks or obligations until the last minute and even delaying their completion. The most frustrating thing about this experience is that you often waste time on the most insubstantial activities, such as spending hours on social media. In psychology, we know that such behavior camouflages the weight of negatively valenced emotions.

A work published by Frontiers in Psychology describes the impact of this factor on university students. Generally, postponing what needs to be done is explained by physical triggers such as simple fatigue, but there are also slightly more serious dimensions. In many cases, there are psychological problems that are overlooked. Let’s delve into this below.

1. Lack of motivation and interest in the task

Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you can’t find the motivation even under the stones. This makes you frustrated with yourself and the discomfort intensifies until creating a vicious circle. Therefore, it’s important to understand that one of the causes of procrastination lies in the lack of interest in what you must accomplish.

If you have a job that you don’t like or you are forced to carry out an activity that doesn’t fit your personal tastes, the motivational boost won’t come automatically. What you’ll experience in these cases is an internal blockage, lack of creativity, and a high degree of negativity and stress.

What can I do?

From time to time, we’re all forced to carry out tasks that aren’t in tune with our passions. In these cases, it’ll be useful for you to establish a series of rewards for each time you make progress. Set small daily goals and, after meeting them, give yourself a simple incentive, such as a break, eating out, or any activity that excites you.

2. Decision fatigue

A significant part of the obligations you must carry out involve having to make decisions. And something like this overwhelms us, tires us, and increases our stress levels. As explained in an article in the Journal of Health Psychology, this phenomenon is common in healthcare workers, which affects their performance to the point of resulting in somewhat impulsive or irrational actions.

Decision fatigue is a form of mental exhaustion caused by an accumulation of information and tasks to complete, which often ends in psychological blockage and exhaustion. If you feel this way and keep postponing activities and resolutions, don’t hesitate to act as soon as possible.

What can I do?

If you procrastinate due to the anxiety caused by having to decide certain things, the first step is to rest and then regulate your emotions. Your mind is dominated by fears and also by exhaustion. Relaxation and deep breathing exercises will help you.

Likewise, you’ll benefit from carrying out the time-blocking technique, which consists of dedicating a specific moment of the day to said decision-making. The objective is to prevent this task from taking up your entire day by not solving it and always having it looming over you.

3. The mixed bag of anxiety

One of the most obvious factors behind procrastination is anxiety. This is something that’s frequently seen in academic environments. An article in the Journal of Education and Health Promotion describes this relationship and how irrational thoughts about exams intensify delaying behavior in studying.

The anxious mind is one of your main enemies when it comes to completing your tasks. It usually feeds on the fear of failure and negative future scenarios that completely block your energy and motivation. Now, with appropriate strategies, you can regulate its uncomfortable influence.

What can I do?

If the persistent shadow of anxiety is hiding behind your tendency to procrastinate, it’s important to act. Approaching your obligations in a different way, reducing the level of negativity, and acquiring new habits are essential steps. We’ll list other basic strategies:

• Do relaxation and deep breathing practices.
• Set a realistic plan and schedule that you can stick to.
• Break down tasks into smaller, easier-to-perform steps.
• Rationalize your fears and don’t worry about things that haven’t even happened yet.
• Detect the triggers that make you procrastinate, for example, your cell phone.
• Exercise self-reflection to establish better control of your thoughts.

4. Excessive self-demand

Are you someone who’s obsessed with doing everything perfectly? Do you always need to be the best when it comes to completing your tasks? Do you often doubt your abilities and even suffer from imposter syndrome?

Procrastination is a behavior that’s reinforced by each of these dimensions, which, believe it or not, affects a significant part of the population. If your self-demand leads you to maladaptive perfectionism, your procrastination may be associated with it.

What can I do?

Being demanding of yourself allows you to always give your best, but, in some cases, it can lead to non-adaptive patterns. It’s best to regulate this dimension without falling into unrealistic expectations that can block your performance. The following keys can serve as a guide, but don’t forget that, if you feel overwhelmed, it’s best to ask for professional help:

• Lower the level of demand and self-criticism.
• Set realistic goals that you can conquer.
• Practice self-care and strengthen your self-esteem.
• When you start your tasks, take care of your internal dialogue.
• Avoid comparing yourself to others; perfection is impossible.
• Be more compassionate with yourself and deactivate the fear of error or failure.

Typically, those who have high standards of perfection may procrastinate because they feel they’ll never reach a satisfactory level of excellence. This can cause them to enter a vicious circle of persistent self-boycott, which is capable of blocking many psychosocial spheres that go beyond the world of work.

5. Problems in planning and sequencing

One of the causes behind procrastination has to do with neurocognitive factors. What’s more, you’ll be interested to know that, according to a study on ADHD and procrastination, inattention correlates with general procrastination. Often, these are individuals with brilliant profiles, but incapable of planning their tasks.

What they tend to have a hard time with is dividing activities into the steps necessary to successfully undertake an objective. They don’t know where to start, time is running out, and they feel lost when it comes to applying those executive skills necessary to achieve a purpose.

What can I do?

It’s important to note that, although planning and sequencing problems are common in ADHD, they can also appear in the neurotypical population. In these situations, it’s useful to learn attention, planning, and time management strategies. The pomodoro technique, for example, is an interesting resource.

6. Task overload and procrastination

Think of your brain as a computer. Sometimes, you install multiple programs because you need it to perform a multitude of tasks. However, its capacity is limited and sometimes it becomes overloaded and ends up jamming. The same thing happens in real life. You may have been assuming multiple responsibilities for a while and your internal central processing unit has had enough.

Work, home, family, future projects… The brain is limited and, in some cases, the level of stress is so high that it’s no longer efficient and the risk of procrastination increases. Furthermore, when tasks are repetitive, unnecessary, uninteresting, and boring, procrastination appears, as pointed out in an article in the Journal of Education and Health Promotion.

As a consequence of all of the above, the mind wanders, and attention, motivation, and even the ability to perform effectively fail. If you can identify with this feeling, take note of how to respond.

What can I do?

Continued procrastination is a cover behavior and a warning sign that something’s going on. Task overload often hides behind it and, to address it, you have to prioritize. Saving obligations and delegating relieve the weight of stress and remind you that you’re not a superhero. You’re a human being who must learn to take care of yourself and organize yourself better.

7. Underlying depression

Sometimes, procrastination is the echo of an underlying mental disorder, such as depression. Postponing obligations, not having energy or motivation, and falling into negative rumination are symptoms of this clinical condition. A work published by the Journal of Rational-Emotive and Cognitive-Behavior Therapy reports this relationship.

Likewise, in these contexts, depressive symptomatology extends to any area. You may find it difficult to attend to household chores, perform at work, or even neglect your own personal hygiene. It’s best to always have a diagnosis from a professional.

What can I do?

If any obligation, big or small, overwhelms you, you don’t enjoy almost anything and you feel hopeless, it’s useful to start psychological therapy. Postponing obligations is just the tip of the iceberg in these cases. Don’t hesitate to ask for help, talk to those around you about what’s happening to you, and commit to the therapeutic process. You’ll regain hope again.

Procrastination, a silent reality that hurts

As you’ve come to see, the factors behind procrastination are multiple and complex. The most striking thing is that, in most cases, this reality is experienced in a self-annihilating way, given that it’s not something voluntary nor is it a behavior that’s easily controlled. Generally, seeing that you can’t carry out your obligations further destroys your self-image.

If you’ve been trapped in this vicious cycle of discomfort for a while, try to deactivate it. Apply some of the suggestions described above and act with new mental approaches and more proactive habits. Sometimes small changes give way to motivating transformations. You deserve to feel good and regain your usual productivity.