The Power of Procrastination

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I am, officially, an incredible procrastinator. And no one believes me. 

I'm the sort of person who will set a deadline for finishing a book, but won't read the book during the week set aside; instead, I'll stay up all night the day before the deadline, set the audio book speed to times two, and stare at a wall and do nothing else until the credits roll. Does that make me a bad reader? Maybe. Does that mean I don't appreciate books or get out of them what I ought to? Perhaps.

Homework is sort of an afterthought I'm always thinking about. I'll be learning to do forearm stands, or macrame-ing, or watching a true crime series on Netflix; all the while, I'll be thinking about how I should be doing chemistry papers. Then, after hours (plural) of considering working, I'll get it all done in an hour (singular). I'm either extremely focused, or completely distracted. There is no in between.

The thing is, no one believes that I'm a procrastinator. Here's my theory: I'm the tight rope walker of procrastination. I put things off as much and as long as possible, but I always get it done in time. A two month project is always turned in on the due date, adorned with silver lettering and scrap-booking paper I stole from my mom. But you best bet I did the whole thing the night before. If only the circus would offer me a job. Maybe I'll do a parody of The Greatest Showman and send it in. There's a thought.

I am trying to decide whether this is a good thing, a bad thing, or a nothing in particular. It could be good, because I only work when I'm extremely inspired or extremely pressured. That means the fruit of my labor is usually quite creative or bizarre. Then again, it could be bad, because as every writer will tell you, writing is a habit and a practice, not a lightning bolt. If you only write when you're burning with the thrill of a new idea, you'll probably write about twice a year. Inspiration is inconsistent, and feisty, and you can't count on it. Also, procrastination is never good for classes that prohibit most imagination (I'm looking at you, mathematics - method makes me mad). Or stress levels.

I always have a plan, usually color-coded, and I never follow it. I am a theatre nerd, and I usually learn my lines the day before we're supposed to be off-book. It'll be one in the morning, and I'll jump out of bed to tidy up my room. One day, I want to be an eye doctor, and design a machine to discover whether or not you see things the same as me, and if science can perhaps be our key to empathy. The next, I want to go to a film school half way across the country I can't afford so I can pursue a career that usually requires a crap ton of work and results in practically nothing. Even if it does result in something, it probably doesn't, because as Oscar Wilde said, "all art is quite useless."

Clearly, I'm a very linear, logical human being.

All run-on sentences aside - procrastination is something lots of people struggle with. It's no fun sometimes, and it screws up sleep schedules. I'm not going to sit here and say that procrastination is a healthy habit or hobby, or that it will improve your life. However. However.

Maybe it's not the worst thing. Maybe it results in more inspired, more fun, more original work. Maybe procrastination will explode into some of your best ever firecracker ideas. Or maybe, I'm putting off my chemistry papers to write this.

Happy procrastinating.
- Maya

Photo by Pedro da Silva on Unsplash, Photo by Karim MANJRA on Unsplash,
Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash, Photo by My Life Journal on Unsplash

Comments

  1. Found these Cellphone Repair Bellevue3:43 AM, September 28, 2021

    Procrastination is the ritual. It eases the mind into its game day ritual so that it is ready when the starting whistle blows.

    ReplyDelete

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