
To Stop Procrastinating, Start by Understanding the Emotions Involved - prostoalex
http://www.wsj.com/articles/to-stop-procrastinating-start-by-understanding-whats-really-going-on-1441043167?mod=trending_now_1
======
Htsthbjig
I was a big procrastinator in the past. But I was lucky in that one of the
things I procrastinated with was learning psychology !.

As I learned more and more psychology it became obvious how to win over it. I
created a mastermind with other entrepreneurs and it helped enormously First,
everybody has this "problem". Second, you help other people and you help
yourself.

Now I can make amazing things in very small amounts of time, and spend a lot
of time reading-writting things that interest me, or stay with my family.

Basically what happens is that the human beings are flexible enough to do
things no animal could do. But it comes at a price, no natural things require
immense amounts of effort to do, even if trivial.

For example, most men could spend all day long hunting or fishing without
problem, even if it is hard, rich people do that when they are free to do
whatever they can. But plowing the earth or writing a book or programming are
totally different.

When you do non natural things, odds are your body responds badly. For
example, programming all day means you don't exercise your inertial system. If
you sit all day, your lymphatic system suffers a lot. There are hundreds of
things like this. You don't see any of this, you only know that you try to
work and your body says NO!! You try to force it, but the situation worsens
and your body will tell you NO WAY even stronger.

My cofounder died in his twenties by cancer trying to work harder. He forced
himself so much into work that he got weaker and weaker before getting cancer.
No sleep, no exercise, bad food. We know today that eating well, exercise and
sleep is essential for your immune system.

Anyone that offers you an easy solution, he is BS. It requires effort and time
to learn how to control yourself, but it is probably the best investment you
could do in your entire life.

Probably the best practical book on the issue is "the Now Habit". I prefer the
audiobook. Wake up Productive from Eben Pagan is great too.

------
eldude
Procrastination is a rational emotional response that the outcome will
_probably_ not be worth the effort. Essentially, our body shuts down to
conserve energy (resting) until we get to a point (waiting) where we feel a
successful outcome is more likely.

This is especially evident in relationships when we put off "difficult
conversations." It's not that we don't want to have the conversation
(typically we rationally accept the "need" to have it). It's that we fear it
probably will not go well. So we procrastinate until the odds are in our
favor, either because the effort to achieve the desired outcome has decreased
(waiting), or because our total available effort has increased (resting). This
is a rational response and strategy toward achieving goals.

The problem of course becomes when the outcome is not something directly
within our control, such that there is potentially no amount of energy or time
that will make success possible. In these cases, we must "make your own fate"
as many say. Or, to put it another way, one must gain leverage over the
outcome by changing one's relationship to it.

Thus, the best way to overcome procrastination is to focus on setting outcomes
you have control over (e.g., studying for a test vs getting an A), which
creates a positive feedback loop since your goals are regularly achieved and
thus rationally worthy of additional future effort.

This is also a circuitous way of defining momentum and it's importance
stemming from a default to action.

In psychology, it's been shown empirically to be better to praise children for
their efforts and actions than praising with identifying language (e.g., "that
was a smart thing you did" instead of "you're so smart"). As stated above,
this sets a rational positive feedback loop in favor of "smart" actions over
behavior, which may include inaction, that successfully perpetuate a "smart"
identity.

------
mhartl
One thing I like to do is "ratchet down" by saying, "OK, what's the _most_
amount of time I can handle on the task I'm putting off." Sometimes it's as
little as 5 minutes. So I set a timer for 5 minutes, do that much work, and
then take a break to do something fun. By stacking enough tiny slices
together, eventually I get back in the groove, and in the mean time it's
amazing how much you can get done even in 5-minute increments.

Speaking of which, I have some writing to do… See you in 5.

------
geezard
I think this article is much better at explaining procrastination:
[http://waitbutwhy.com/2013/10/why-procrastinators-
procrastin...](http://waitbutwhy.com/2013/10/why-procrastinators-
procrastinate.html)

------
DrNuke
The underlying issue is know yourself and learn to follow your inner needs and
desires. Once we find our natural way, inner friction almost disappears. Here
on HN I would say let's make use of our talents for a cause (a domain) we
love.

------
hosh
Yep. That's been my experience with procrastination too. I didn't get any
headway with it until I started addressing the underlying emotions. It could
be anything: anger, fear, shame, guilt, and at the bottom of it is existential
anxiety.

~~~
chockablock
Much of the article (and Hosh's comments) resonated strongly with me. I fall
into the category that had quite a bit of therapy before making real progress
on my procrastination. In my case, the key to the puzzle has been cultivating
compassion for myself and others--especially myself! :)

A great book if you want more exploration of the emotional roots of
procrastination is Burka and Yuen's "Procrastination: Why You Do It, What to
Do About It Now"
[https://www.amazon.com/dp/0738211702](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0738211702)
). It's not a 'quick fix' type book, but I found it helpful.

------
vishaldpatel
Here's 'one weird trick' that will instantly stop you from procrastinating:

\- Schedule the activity

\- When the time comes, you'll probably try to think of ways to put it off -
ohh the great internal debate: to do, or to punt. Tell yourself that you might
as well get started while you rethink your position.

You'll find that you only need to be motivated for about five minutes before
you're cruising right along! =)

~~~
dasboth
My experience tells me you're right - once you start, the barrier to continue
is infinitely smaller than the one that stopped you starting in the first
place. However, I promise you if it were that easy, this discussion would be
moot :)

------
letster
There is a book that I have found when I had issues with my studies. It helps
to understand what lies behind procrastination and how to handle it. Despite
non scientific title it is NOT one more time management training. The
Willpower Instinct by Kelly McGonigal.
[http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10865206-the-willpower-
in...](http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10865206-the-willpower-instinct)

------
lighthawk
One technique mentioned was delaying access to common timewasting sites. That
is way too complicated and doesn't get the job done. Just put it in your hosts
file and "block" it by pointing it at 127.0.0.1. If you really need access,
"unblock" it by undoing that. This sounds stupid, but it really helps.
Everytime you waste time at a site, add it. That works for most sites- not
all, but enough.

Another technique mentioned was breaking tasks up into hour blocks with
rewards. This sounds like Pomodoro technique. I tried that on multiple
occasions and it never worked. The timer and breaks distract me and interrupt
whatever flow I might have been lucky enough to get into. I've never worked
with anyone that has continued to use this technique. Rewards in-general work,
but I'd just have a reward when done with a task and have smaller tasks.

Here are other techniques that really work: (1) Find work you like to do and
that you are good at, and find an environment where you excel. If you can't,
then try to reduce stress through music, taking brief walks, etc. (2) Sleep
more. (3) Lose weight in a healthy sustainable way. (4) Get exercise
regularly. (5) Take care of your physical and mental health. (6) While at
work, write down one thing you need to do. Finish it before doing anything
else, unless there is an emergency you should assist with. Repeat.

~~~
mikekchar
Breaks in pomodoro have always been bad for me too. I've been doing something
else recently which is working well: 5 minute pomodoros. The idea is to start
something and after 5 minute write down what you accomplished in that 5
minutes (just a quick sentence), then carrying on. I find that it gives me an
awareness of what I am doing and allows me to insert decision points -- i.e.,
should I continue, is this productive, should I change strategy, should I get
help, etc. The one extra question is: should I take a break. Very often I find
that the quality of my work goes downhill without my realizing it. The short
timer brings my attention back.

However, it does not help with my procrastination (hence posting this
message...)

------
marincounty
A friend of mine died a few years ago. He was no success by society's
standards, but a success in my eyes. He had a saying that at first I didn't
agree with, but saw the wisdom as I got older. He used to say, "When in doubt,
do noting."

There's some usefulness to that comment. Sometimes, procrastination can let
the mind(including subconscious) figure out all consequences of an action. In
other words, "Don't do any thing hasty." sometimes is the best plan? I know by
procrastinating on certain legal/business decisions, I saved a lot of
money/time. The more I thought about the problem/opportunity, the more I saw
its flaws, and pitfalls of acting too quick. (No I didn't read the article,
just the comments. I find myself going right to the comments on some topics. I
wonder if other HN's do the same? I imagine it must tick off the website who
wrote the original article?)

------
jblow
This is one of those cases where science, viewed globally, is being dumb.

Is it not consistent with the scientific narrative that procrastination, being
a universal behavior, must have been developed evolutionarily for some
benefit? It is a pretty sophisticated behavior after all (as the article even
describes). So isn't it naive to assume it is a problem to be solved? Maybe it
is, maybe it isn't, but shouldn't the early work be in trying to understand
the full effects of procrastination on lifestyle and future fitness so that we
actually get to a place where we can make judgements about it?

TL;DR: These guys are totally amateur hour.

~~~
nitrogen
Instincts are useful tools for making fast decisions, but in my view we should
see them as nothing more than tools. As self-aware beings I see no harm in
deciding for ourselves when to follow our instincts and when to override them.

~~~
jblow
I agree! But the first step in a good decision is a clear understanding of the
situation, and it is a barrier to understanding to just blanket-decide that
procrastination is completely bad without even considering otherwise.

~~~
Tenobrus
So... what's the alternative? Depression is another common behavior
pattern/mode that "must have evolved for a reason". And sure, there might be a
benefit to depression that is yet unnoticed. But since based on the current
information it's _so_ bad, treating it anyway makes sense. It's pretty
implausible to somehow verify there are no benefits from procrastination, and
it clearly causes problems for people (from their own and other's
perspectives). That seems like something to attempt to solve. It's not like
every single mental/biological feature must be beneficial somehow, that's not
actually how evolution works. It might be, we can't "prove" otherwise, but we
kind of have to work with what we have until there's a complete map of human
neural structures or something.

------
jwdunne
Concepts found in mindfulness and CBT can help with this.

The idea is that thoughts influence emotion and physical responses, which then
influences behaviour, consequentially influencing outcomes.

With procrastination, you will think of a task that you are avoiding. This may
create anxiety and a tightening in your stomach. This will then prevent you
from taking action. The outcome of that is rationalisation thoughts such as
"I've got loads of time on this" or "I'll just do it later", which then eases
the emotional and physical responses, leading to you postponing the task and
doing something else. This cycle will continue.

By being mindful of these thoughts and recording them, you can then begin to
look at rational responses. So, for example, you might say "I'm not good
enough" and then craft a written, rational response to it. You continue this
until you have an uncertainty, where you can't be sure if it's a rational
response. You then create a practical plan of behavioural experiment to test
it. This may include doing a small part of the task and seeking feedback to
see if you're on the right lines, as an example to not being sure if you have
what it takes for the task.

Identifying these cycles and consciously taking steps to elimate them can
probably do more than focus on any particular part of the cycle alone.

~~~
delbel
Can you recommend any good resources or perhaps a book on beginning CBT? So
far, CBT For Dummies (ironic title, I know), is what I am working from. That,
and a handful of random youtube videos is what I've been trying to build my
CBT knowledge from.

~~~
jwdunne
Feeling Good by David Burns is a very good book. I've heard of studies that
have shown it just as effective as medication for depression. The second
chapter "Do Nothingness" has a chapter on procrastination specifically too.

Achieve Your Potential with Positive Psychology also includes a good chapter
on CBT. The book also includes other findings/techniques in psychology that
can help improve mood, motivation, relationships, etc. It also starts out by
smacking down the Law of Attraction, which isn't really effective - it's more
like an emotional pyramid scheme.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy: Teach Yourself by Christine Wilding contains
some good information too.

Outside of CBT, Man's Search for Meaning, which defines logotherapy, is a damn
useful book. Tim LeBon's book also includes information on this.

~~~
jwdunne
To clarify, Tim LeBon's book is the Achieve Your Potential book.

------
scelerat
I suffer from procrastination. This article hit a lot of notes for me. The
"moral compensation" of doing other things -- watering plants, cleaning the
house, doing chores when deadlines loom -- hits close to home.

Sometimes those things actually help to calm my brain and I can formulate a
work plan without being faced with a keyboard.

Another thing that works for me (and I'm saying this for me only; know thyself
and all that) is smoking a little bit of weed. Not to get hammered, but just
enough that it calms my brain a bit. It seems to help me relax, sit down and
get into (and stay on) a task like nothing else.

------
pelight
I created a quick 1-question survey about procrastination and I'd be super
happy if you participate.

I can share the results later here if anyone is interested!

Here's the survey:
[https://generic.typeform.com/to/j3EiUF](https://generic.typeform.com/to/j3EiUF)

~~~
florianpnn
Would be interested to see how much people would be ready to pay!

~~~
collyw
The question would involve finding out a lot more details for the answer I
gave. It would have to be proven to be pretty effective.

~~~
pelight
> It would have to be proven to be pretty effective.

Good point. Just imagine and assume that this cure is the most effective cure
available w/a success rate of 100% without knowing further details.

~~~
florianpnn
If only a 100% success rate solution was existing we would already know it!

------
mariusmg
How about a popup that tells you "get the fuck back to work otherwise you'll
get fired and end up on yhe street" ?

~~~
config_yml
How about it auto calls the police or some other place which would result in
utter embarrassment? External pressure works best for me.

~~~
njloof
Imminent Threat as a Service?

------
pelight
I took 7 anti-procrastination strategies from this thread and created a survey
to learn which is the most effective.

Additionally I ask about your demographics—maybe there are some correlations
between procrastination and demography.

[https://generic.typeform.com/to/plFSop](https://generic.typeform.com/to/plFSop)

Would be very nice if you participate and I can share the aggregated result
later if of any interest!

------
danharaj
Emotions are cognition. I think in the blooming of rationality as a mode of
engaging the world we forgot to keep that in mind. It is easy to focus on the
mode of cognition most amenable to rational methods, the verbal. Just because
emotions are not words does not mean they do not follow their own logic.
Engaging your emotions 'rationally' is extremely important! There is a reason
why we fall in love with people who speak to us in a way that seems to
transcend mere words.

Emotions change as they are 'processed' and as new observations are made. That
sounds like a 'logical' process to me. It's just hard to turn such processes
into processes involving words (at least for me!).

Geometric, visual thinking is often as invaluable as logical, verbal thinking
in mathematics. I believe that emotional thinking (some uses of the word
'thought' render that phrase paradoxical) is valuable in many human
undertakings, too. I admire those who can swiftly translate emotions into
words and back again. It is a form of power just barely beyond my grasp.

~~~
hosh
Yep, there are different intelligences including emotional intelligence. It
uses a different part of the mind. Emotions don't have logic or rationality,
but they do have a observable, sometimes predictable dynamic.

The processing of emotions are simple: experience it when it arises, allow it
to do it's thing, and allow it to pass. There isn't a need to comment on it,
though it is possible to gain some interesting insights by observing them.

~~~
unabst
Not just observing. Expressing is also key and is actually what most of us
spend our time doing. At a higher level philanthropy is tied to empathy,
terrorism to fear, entertainment to fun, food to hunger, family to love, even
sleep to sleepiness, and so on. Human civilization practically runs on emotion
and barbaric it is, but then what would we be left with? Maybe it's control
that we should be after...

~~~
hosh
Observing is the foundational skill. Expression is secondary and not what it
is cracked up to be.

I've found that most of the time, people don't want to know what you are
feeling. They want to know that you are feeling what they are feeling. The
most crudest form of that is mirroring techniques, but that's actually not
necessary and can be detrimental. It's a bandaid because the person is
ignorant or unskilled in healing.

There is a Sanskrit word called "dukkha" that doesn't have an easy English
cognate. The closest would be "existential anguish", something that lies
underneath every single experience.

There is a particular way of opening yourself up to someone else's dukkha that
I've found extremely effective. It's at that point, you forget about yourself
("this isn't about you"), and you drop all your psychological armoring,
shielding, interpretations, etc. When I am mindful enough to remember to do
that, people tend to walk away feeling better, even if I never say anything.
Just listen.

Being able to do that requires meditation, and you first start with observing
emotions as they come and go. It does not end there. At some point, you
directly experience the insight that your self is an illusion, that this
existential misery underlies everything and you cannot escape, and that the
ground of being is emptiness. It's at that point you can listen to the dukkha.

------
kenesom1
People procrastinate because work is painful. Naturally people want to avoid
pain.

To stop procrastinating:

\- Stop doing things that are painful. Do other things instead.

\- Improve your pain tolerance by becoming stronger, better rested, etc.

(Disclaimer: haven't read the article yet.)

~~~
bbcbasic
> (Disclaimer: haven't read the article yet.)

That's procrastinating!

------
serg33v
I have few tricks how to stop procrastinating: 1 - work with partner or
colleague. That's why pair programming is so efficient 2 - I daily create
Eisenhower matrix for all important task for tomorrow and always tried to fill
urgent and important task very careful. If there are too many urgent and
important, something is wrong with you or your tasks

------
praptak
The internet therapy site is www.prokrastinera.se. Seems Swedish-only. Next
round starts October 13th.

The article itself is at [http://www.invent-
journal.com/article/S2214-7829(15)00024-X/...](http://www.invent-
journal.com/article/S2214-7829\(15\)00024-X/pdf)

------
luxpir
> The researchers, who have continued following up with the participants, will
> look at one-year outcomes later this year to see if the results were
> maintained.

This is quite important. Let us know how they've done in a year. I have been
through times of extreme productivity and, well, the opposite in much shorter
time spans. The difference being partially down to self-confidence, being
aware of the reality of the results of the work and a mastery of stress
levels. 'The opposite' happens when stress and the resultant bad decision
making creeps in. To me it's the external factors in one's life that mean that
any single person can be both a procrastinator and an extremely productive
'100x' person in the same year, month, week. When stressed or 'temporally
myopic' (as per the article) no amount of tools, widgets, hosts files or GTD
schemes will work. They are all too easy to disable, workaround and ignore.
The solution can not be quick-fixed, imho.

I've tried a lot of things myself over the decade-plus of working from home,
currently even having my machine announce new Pomodoro sprints every 25
minutes (+5 minutes for break) to try to enforce a working atmosphere. It has
an effect in that it at least generates the atmosphere, but it can have the
opposite effect if external factors have already primed me for
procrastination. Those factors can be tiredness, everyday life issues, being
overworked, underworked, distracted etc. Any of which cause me to frequently
ignore the espeak announcements. The cronjob that launches Anki every day gets
equally ignored during these periods and they tend to start to bake in a habit
of ignoring the automated reminders and thus the good habits for longer than I
might have done without them.

All of which leads me to believe that self-motivation and constant reflective
thought of one's current and future situation (all with a confident and
optimistic outlook) are the only ways to maintain a level of productivity
approaching constant. Understanding that there isn't a quick-fix, that effort
must be exerted, anxieties must be overcome. Learning to cope with life's
external factors so that they don't push your work off course. Those kinds of
things seem like the real solutions to procrastination. And they are great
personal challenges for many, myself included.

The irony of the length of my post on this subject is not lost on me, but then
I have had a productive morning and this is my lunch break (sweet, sweet
excuses...).

------
_bdog
The main emotion involved in procrastination is disgust. A basic emotion that
is as strong as fear, but is completely learned and can be attached to every
kind of situation, activity or just the thought of starting them.

Procrastination is protecting yourself from feeling the upcoming revolting
disgust these activities can bring. You avoid feeling it, like you avoid
touching a hot plate, that's why the disgust never shows. Only when somebody
forces you to do it anyway.

The (scientifically tested) theory for this is called Anstrengungsvermeidung
(german for "effort/stress avoidance") and isn't widely adopted.

~~~
kossTKR
Lol, googling "Anstrengungsvermeidung", leads to your post on hackernews. Any
external references in English?

~~~
_98fj
It has been developed by austrian & german psychologists, the test for school-
children etc. is also in german unfortunately.

Like I said, the theory isn't widely adopted. When there's material available
in english, I'll post it.

------
wobbleblob
I'm an expert on this subject. I have something vital to contribute to this
discussion, but I'll post about it tonight. Or maybe tomorrow. First thing, I
promise. After breakfast. Or after coffee.

------
nathan_long
Bookmarked as "read later".

------
frogpelt
I'm a sucker for reading these articles rather than working on what I should
be doing.

------
naveen99
I thought I was having procrastination issues. Turns out I was in heart
failure from an atrial septal defect. Get a cardiopulmonary stress test, check
your thyroid, blood sugar. Make sure it's not a treatable physical issue too.
Hacker types (intj, intp) don't procrastinate.

~~~
chillacy
> Hacker types (intj, intp) don't procrastinate

Not necessarily:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/INTP/comments/29ui2d/why_are_intps_...](https://www.reddit.com/r/INTP/comments/29ui2d/why_are_intps_prone_to_procrastination/)

------
Laaw
Article is behind pay wall. Any alternative links?

~~~
logn
[http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-read-the-wsj-for-
free-...](http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-read-the-wsj-for-free-
online-2009-6)

~~~
monochromatic
Just tried that and it didn't work.

------
Kluny
Ok, here's an idea for a procrastination preventer. It's like the ones you've
seen already, which you add to your browser, and then they kick you off reddit
after 15 minutes or whatever, or blog problem domains entirely.

Instead of that, a popup that asks "what are you supposed to be working on
right now?" with a short text input. You type an answer, and carry on
procrastinating. Then after 15 minutes, it pops up again and says "Remember,
you were working on this: ... Is there a URL where you can find information to
help you with it?" Then an input field for a URL where you can put your
project domain, or the wikipedia article you need, whatever. After another 15
minutes, "Hey, it's time to start working on x. Go here to get started."

Thoughts?

~~~
hosh
Tried it. I have been using such a plugin for a couple years now. (I gave
myself no more than 60 mins within a defined working our).

I've also tried pomodoro. Printing up reminder signs. Talking myself into it.
All sorts of things.

If you are avoiding the underlying emotional issue, it works like a bandaid:
helps in the short term, doesn't address the root problem.

It was only until I started seriously practicing meditation that things start
to move, and not because meditation magically fixes procrastination. Rather,
if you are practicing meditation correctly and stripping away self-deceptions,
then you will eventually start surfacing up the things that lead to avoiding
things that are important or urgent.

And it can go the other way too: people who are busy doing stuff may well also
be procrastinating the really big, important issues in their life. Doing
things that are urgent but not important becomes another procrastination tool,
and helps with the self-deception that "you are doing something about it".

It's also been my experience that trying to face procrastination face on,
takes on the quality of the emotions involved.

For example, if you were to attempt to rest your awareness on anxiety, the way
you would go about it will be skittish, and avoid it. If you were to attempt
to rest your awareness on anger, you will start to get aggressive towards your
anger. If you were to attempt to rest your awareness on depression, then
you'll get to the point where you say, what's the point in being aware of
depression?

I've said it here:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10144329](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10144329)
... Emotional intelligence will supercharge your intellect because for most
people, their lack of emotional intelligence holds back an otherwise brilliant
mind.

~~~
kmundnic
May I ask, what specific technique/type of meditation have you been
practicing?

I've used some meditation exercises coming from kundalini yoga to tackle other
problems, and they have worked wonderfully. Nevertheless, I haven't
encountered something like what you're mentioning.

Thanks!

~~~
hosh
Meditation will follow the same principles regardless of the specific
techniques or tradition. The reason is that there isn't much to it. When you
come down to it, there isn't much difference among Zen (Chan), Vipassana,
Insight, Taoist shengong meditations, etc. This is because they all touch on
the same ground of being (emptiness). (And yes, you'll find this in Western
traditions and indigenous tribal traditions).

The exercises that will have the most variants are concentration exercises,
usually some sort of one-point concentration on a sensory object -- sight,
sound, touch, kinesthetics, taste, smell, etc., tangible or untangible in
varying forms of abstractions. Journeying methods (where you visualize a
space, or say, in Gestalt therapy where you allow fragments of your persona to
embody) are variations on concentration techniques. Despite the emotional
connotation of the word 'concentration' (which usually mean, some sort of
pressure, stress, or force), skill in concentration has more to do with
relaxing than stressing.

Kundalini yoga is interesting because you'd have to distinguish between
Kundalini Yoga (tm) (the specific lineage of Kundalini yoga promoted by a
genius in marketing) and kundalini yoga (the class of practices or yoga
designed to awaken shakti and kickstart the Kundalini process). I don't know
the details of your practice, but I wouldn't doubt that you would find them
helpful. If you are arousing energy, then you will start surfacing up buried
emotions, memories, habits, etc. and a complete system will also include
methods on dealing with it. If nothing else, there is simply "sitting through
it", and that is where it intersects the mindfulness practices like vipassana
or insight.

Does this help?

~~~
kmundnic
It does! And actually, everything that you've mentioned has started to
surface. But since I've only tried one specific technique/tradition, I was
wondering if I was "missing out".

I'd say I've practiced kundalini yoga, since the Kundalini process definitely
started. Nevertheless, I'm wondering who is the marketing expert now.

~~~
hosh
@kmundnic oh, I'd like to add something here, about the "missing out".

The first is suggesting that that wondering or doubt can be an entry point to
explore something buried. You might surface up all kinds of interesting
things.

The second is this: when Shakti pierces the 4th chakra and/or the hrit padma
(below it) ... you'll gain a kind of "compass". From there on out, you'll
always have a way of checking which path to go. It might mean staying with
kundalini yoga, it might not be.

The journey getting to the center involves piercing through the 2nd ganthri,
learning to surrender. It will be like peeling an onion. You'll cry. A lot.
And you'll know it is worth it.

Whatever way you are choosing, you won't "miss out". Some paths are shorter --
and more intense -- than others. That "compass" is guiding you whether you are
aware of it's influence or not, more so if you are re-affirming your
dedication to the discipline. You take any path to it's ultimate end, and they
all come to the same ultimate end.

------
hashberry
I am a remote worker and suffer from chronic procrastination. "Understanding
emotions" is an oversimplified solution because many are addicted to
procrastination. It's like asking an alcoholic to understand the emotions of
why he drinks. I have procrastinated as a student and my entire career and
have always gotten away with it. I've been rewarded with praise of my great
work, higher paying positions, and bonuses. I find myself enjoying waiting
until the last minute and then using stress to help me succeed. It is a
vicious cycle. I want to stop procrastinating but at the same time I like
doing it.

~~~
spdustin
I don't mean to sound flippant, but it seems like AD/HD to me. No real concern
for due dates far off in the future: "Look, it's either due _now_ or _not
now_."

Describes me perfectly. :)

~~~
mattmanser
Why would this be ADHD? I suffer from the same problem and yet when I'm doing
something I like I can concentrate intently for hours if not days. I've worked
60 hour weeks for months when I'm invested.

But when it's stuff I don't enjoy or I'm a bit down, it's a totally different
ball game.

I also tend to not be concerned about dates far in the future because I
secretly believe I can pull a rabbit out of the hat whenever I want and get
the 1 month task done in a day, I'm that fucking good. Of course, I'm not.

ADHD is not something to be flippantly tossed around on not being able to do
stuff until a deadline, that's just classic procrastination. I know you didn't
mean to sound flippant, but you are being flippant and also I don't think it's
a good idea to start conflating ADHD with procrastination.

~~~
spdustin
I don't believe it was flippant, and as I said, didn't intend it to be. As
someone with AD/HD, and who's studied it intently for many years trying to
better understand how it may affect my autistic son (who is also showing signs
of AD/HD) I can safely say that the kind of procrastination he describes is
exactly the kind of procrastination that manifests in someone with AD/HD.
Having that kind of insight lets me help my son learn coping strategies before
it's too late to make those kinds of changes to his brain in any meaningful
way.

Frankly, the description you have given is very similar to AD/HD, especially
the "I'm that fucking good" part. Yes, I know you weren't bragging, but that
sense of infallibility and the letdown that invariably follows when your
abilities don't manifest ... I'm guessing it sours you to the project you're
working on? Can't seem to direct yourself back to it to care again like you
did when you were focused on it the first time? Anxious to find something else
that's more interesting where you can prove what a rockstar you are? That rush
when you pull that rabbit out of the hat, feels good, doesn't it? Dopamine is
great, when you do something that creates enough of it that your brain feels
rewarded. For many, it doesn't take much. For many people with AD/HD, the last
minute YOLO cramming/programming/building/working session is what it takes to
feel like we're doing anything worthwhile.

~~~
mattmanser
Are you self diagnosed? Because in my book none of that's AD/HD. That's called
life.

~~~
spdustin
No, I was diagnosed by two psychiatrists (I wanted a second opinion). That is
sounds like "life" to you is the point - people without AD/HD make those kinds
of judgments of those of us who DO have it.

EDIT: I guess that means either you don't have AD/HD, or just something else
that inflates your sense of your abilities. Maybe you're just addicted to the
rush of the looming deadline? I don't know. I'm not a psychiatrist.

