The Secret Connection Between Procrastination and Productivity

Hustle culture can lead to overproduction and eventually burnout, especially when mental health isn’t made a priority.

Productivity is often viewed as a positive outcome within hustle culture.

You may have meetings scheduled, be maximizing your time management with apps, and ultimately making sure every minute is accounted for each day.

This type of organization not only leads to burnout but also is not productive.

When it comes to productivity, you will fill the time you have even if it means procrastinating, according to Tanya Dalton, bestselling author of The Joy of Missing Out and expert in productivity.

Read More: “5 Tips For Making New Habits Today”

Productivity isn’t about filling all the time you have available to you; it’s about prioritizing what is most important and not wasting your time on the fluff.

When it comes to stress management and increased mental health, procrastination and productivity are similar even when they appear different.

Making a to-do list for the 100^th time may be seen as productive, and it can be a way to avoid work through procrastination.

Individuals who identify as neurodivergent may need different types of organization to support executive functioning skills, and even then, there are ways to help yourself through the obsession of setting yourself up for success rather than completing a task.

Self-regulation can help save you time and energy so that you have time for rest, relaxation, and activities that support your mental health throughout your day.

The obsession with productivity and being productive can actually lead to procrastination.

Here are a few myths about productivity:

1. You must optimize every minute of your day.

By optimizing every minute of your day, you may be wasting time.

Rather than logging minutes worked in that new app or scheduling another meeting to discuss something that could be an email, you can prioritize what actually needs to be done so that you have time for rest and relaxation.

2.Time management is the #1 predictor of productivity.

Time management can be a distraction, especially if you are using complicated systems to achieve simple tasks.

For those who struggle with time management, finding a system to manage time can take precedence over simply starting.

If there is an easier way to do something; simplify rather than complicate.

3. Scheduling a meeting can solve the problem. 

Sure, there are times when a conversation can’t be written in an email but consider your time and others before you schedule that extra meeting.

Your production doesn’t equal your worth, and meetings may be leading to more procrastination.

Procrastination can be a stumbling block and contribute to low self-esteem, especially if you identify as a person who is neurodivergent. You may have a habit that is no longer serving you.

There are ways to feel successful, even when procrastination may be getting the best of you.

Ways To Reduce Procrastination and Increase Productivity

Set up your space for success.

Get all the materials you need for the project, clear away any distractions, and settle into your space with some deep breathing. This can help you to feel less overwhelmed.

Read More: “How To Make Lasting Changes With ADHD/ADD”

Sometimes depression and anxiety can lead to procrastination, so gaining inertia through a successful setup can help you with momentum.

For those with ADHD, setting up a space, distraction free, and taking a deep breath and settling in before starting can be especially helpful.

One step further; set your intention for how you will spend the next amount of time as you begin your task.

Chunk your big tasks into smaller pieces.

When you think of the doom and gloom of the big task you need to accomplish, you can procrastinate and stop the process all together.

Build up your confidence by helping yourself start small.

Get one piece of the big task done so that it feels manageable and the momentum can continue. Time blocking can also be helpful.

Keep up the positive self-talk. 

You will not be more productive if you are filling your brain and heart with negative self-talk. By speaking harshly toward yourself, you are only delaying the positive outcomes of finishing a task.

Positive self-talk can be challenging when you are upset with yourself for being in the same situation again.

Getting stuck in negative-self talk keeps you stuck in that pattern.

Try shifting instead to compassion for yourself especially if you identify as neurodivergent; small and big tasks can be extra hard to get started.

Even if you don’t experience instant gratification with an important task, you can still use positive self-talk to help support yourself.

You deserve to feel successful and move toward rest, joy, or another task. The option is yours.

Complete a brain dump. 

Get everything you need to accomplish out on paper so that it no longer bogs you down. Your brain can shift into completing the tasks instead of stumbling on the dread of how to get the task done.

This can lessen stress in the long run and enable you to develop self-regulation.

There are tasks in our life like laundry, cooking dinner, writing a report, or attending an event that may be necessary and unavoidable.

Start for your future self.

Rather than procrastinating, think about how you can lessen your stress in the future by getting the task done now.

Read More: “The Secret to Finding Control in Your Life”

When we are faced with something we struggle to begin, for whatever the reason may be, think about your future self and what would be helpful for your future self.

When you start or complete a task with your futures self in mind, sets you up for working with rather than against yourself.

Take a moment of pause to think about what your future self needs. Ask yourself how you will feel if you give yourself what you need right now.

Building self-discipline through trust, thinking about your future self, and keeping promises to yourself can help.

You get to select how you want to balance your work life and personal life.

If you struggle with executive functioning skills like organization, procrastination, and motivation, there are Denver therapists can help you.

Overwhelming procrastination and productivity are both debilitating. There are ways to get balance back in your life to feel your best. Our therapists can help.

At Denver Metro Counseling, we have therapists who specialize in therapy for ADHD and take a trauma-informed approach when working with you. Individual differences are addressed and supported.

Our therapists understand that with ADHD, anxiety, or depression, productivity and procrastination require unique approaches that fit your specific needs.

If you struggle with one or both, it could be helpful to talk with someone who gets it.

Not all brains think alike and not all people have the same needs when it comes to the challenges of procrastination and productivity.

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Written by: Randi Thackeray, MA
Clinically Reviewed and Edited by: Julie Reichenberger, MA, LPC, ACS