3 ms·

There is nothing new in the article, it is basic motivational “science”. However, I feel this does not apply for me and greatly misses one of the main aspects

by 0x008 3y ago

There is nothing new in the article, it is basic motivational “science”. However, I feel this does not apply for me and greatly misses one of the main aspects of procrastination: the fear of disappointment. Can I fulfill my parents expectations? Can I fulfill my own expectations? Will I fail? Will it hurt to face my own demons and my own fears of not succeeding? Am I just different? I thought this was what procrastination is about for everyone.

pc86 3y ago
I'm sure many have the same feelings as you, however for me procrastination has always been (to use a college example not super relevant these days) "I'd rather do $A than $B, even if that means doing $B later means I'll do a worse job at it" where $B is something like writing a paper and $A is hanging out with friends or playing video games or something. I haven't much experienced the "I'd rather do $ANYTHING than $B because I might not do very well at $B regardless," at least not consciously.
- Swizec 3y ago
  Here’s a super common pattern of procrastination for me that is similar to fear of failing, or even related: “I’d rather do $ANYTHING than $B because I don’t actually know how to get started with $B or haven’t yet decided it’s the right next step” In those moments the gut is trying to tell me something important. Usually $B is not in fact the correct next step and a better option $C exists if I just take the time to look around a little. Of course sometimes the gut is just afraid or needs more info in which case you gotta give $B a forceful attempt to see how it feels. Often it ends up working just fine or you gain additional info that makes $C super obvious.
tomek_ycomb 3y ago
This is 100% not just you. Procrastination for many people in an avoidance mechanism of sorts related to anxieties. New York times article on procrastination was pretty nice called "why you procrastinate"
layer8 3y ago
> the fear of disappointment. Can I fulfill my parents expectations? Can I fulfill my own expectations? Will I fail? Will it hurt to face my own demons and my own fears of not succeeding? This falls pretty squarely into the “expectancy” factor. You don’t have faith that you’ll obtain a pleasing outcome, hence you procrastinate instead. From the article “Expectancy. Do you expect to succeed? Are you confident in your ability to achieve a great outcome in whatever you aspire to do? If your expectancy is high, then you’ll be more motivated and you’ll procrastinate less. It’s only natural: you’re more motivated to pursue something that gives you a good chance of having a pleasing outcome.”
- 0x008 3y ago
  Well not really what I mean. I mostly have faith I create a pleasant outcome, but the way to get there is painful. I feel the simple equation fails to account for that.
culopatin 3y ago
Fear of disappointment is associated with the difficulty of the task, which is mentioned in the article. You won’t be too afraid of failing at something easy, is the hard stuff you veer away from. The reasons why that’s hard is different for everyone
- 0x008 3y ago
  I think my critique to the article would then be that there is not distinction between actual objective utility of the solution (I.e. expected outcome) versus the own standards and fear of being not good enough (which is totally unrelated to the actual utility or greatness of the solution).

by 0x008 3y ago

pc86 3y ago

I'm sure many have the same feelings as you, however for me procrastination has always been (to use a college example not super relevant these days) "I'd rather do $A than $B, even if that means doing $B later means I'll do a worse job at it" where $B is something like writing a paper and $A is hanging out with friends or playing video games or something. I haven't much experienced the "I'd rather do $ANYTHING than $B because I might not do very well at $B regardless," at least not consciously.

Swizec 3y ago
Here’s a super common pattern of procrastination for me that is similar to fear of failing, or even related: “I’d rather do $ANYTHING than $B because I don’t actually know how to get started with $B or haven’t yet decided it’s the right next step” In those moments the gut is trying to tell me something important. Usually $B is not in fact the correct next step and a better option $C exists if I just take the time to look around a little. Of course sometimes the gut is just afraid or needs more info in which case you gotta give $B a forceful attempt to see how it feels. Often it ends up working just fine or you gain additional info that makes $C super obvious.

tomek_ycomb 3y ago

This is 100% not just you. Procrastination for many people in an avoidance mechanism of sorts related to anxieties. New York times article on procrastination was pretty nice called "why you procrastinate"

layer8 3y ago

> the fear of disappointment. Can I fulfill my parents expectations? Can I fulfill my own expectations? Will I fail? Will it hurt to face my own demons and my own fears of not succeeding? This falls pretty squarely into the “expectancy” factor. You don’t have faith that you’ll obtain a pleasing outcome, hence you procrastinate instead. From the article “Expectancy. Do you expect to succeed? Are you confident in your ability to achieve a great outcome in whatever you aspire to do? If your expectancy is high, then you’ll be more motivated and you’ll procrastinate less. It’s only natural: you’re more motivated to pursue something that gives you a good chance of having a pleasing outcome.”

0x008 3y ago
Well not really what I mean. I mostly have faith I create a pleasant outcome, but the way to get there is painful. I feel the simple equation fails to account for that.

culopatin 3y ago

Fear of disappointment is associated with the difficulty of the task, which is mentioned in the article. You won’t be too afraid of failing at something easy, is the hard stuff you veer away from. The reasons why that’s hard is different for everyone

0x008 3y ago
I think my critique to the article would then be that there is not distinction between actual objective utility of the solution (I.e. expected outcome) versus the own standards and fear of being not good enough (which is totally unrelated to the actual utility or greatness of the solution).