Procrastination: An Opportunity?


So, as I mentioned on Monday over on Facebook, I’m not getting anywhere with a particular story which I started last week.

I saw my counsellor yesterday and we had an illuminating talk about it.

First of all, procrastination is a choice that I make, whether it’s because of conscious or unconscious pressures. Quite often though, it’s a choice made without any sort of self-dialogue.

If we say, for example, that the aspiring writer part of me is a comic book hero, and the procrastinating side of me is a villain in the same comic book, then it’s easy to give them voices. And since comic books are visual, it is easy to imagine the battle between the two.

Now suddenly there has to be a dialogue. It’s the done thing in comic books, right?

Let’s say just for the moment that Negatron has some logic for wanting Writimus Prime (me) to not write that story. What would that be?

Well, ‘The Unexpected Pillow’ is sort of a pivotal story. If I can write it, then I can write all the other stories that are on hold. At least, that’s what I believe to be true.

Any why would Negatron not want that? He doesn’t want to see me succeed, because guess what? It means even more work in the future. And Negatron is work-aversive.

Why is he work-aversive? Because he thinks that it harms my well-being.

Okay. Well, it’s true that too much work can get me stressed out. It’s true that sometimes I take on too much and just need to say no to one more project.

Negatron also says that if I finish this story, then I will lack a fresh challenge.

That is true to a certain extent. I don’t have a new hurdle to overcome once I get this story written. I should plan ahead and see what else I can do. It doesn’t have to be a writing challenge, but if it is then okay.

Negatron want me to chill out and take most of the morning off.

I would love to be able to take the morning off (or whenever it is that I wake up these days) but it’s becoming a bad habit to take the rest of the day off as well. So, no. Mornings are now writing time. Suck it up and wait until evening.

Giving voice to the force causing procrastination doesn’t make it stronger, it gives you the ability to spot the faulty logic, put the good points into practise, and override the desire to be idle. It’s an opportunity to fine-tune how writing fits into your life and vice versa.

Hope this is helpful. 🙂