How do you define procrastination? For many people procrastination is something that they

associate and identify themselves with far too easily. The challenge is that once you identify

with a behavior (positive and negative) it becomes part of who you are and your experiences

and actions are filtered through this identity.

We can define procrastination as "task aversion" which is the irrational delay of an intended

course of action. Translated from the original Latin meaning, procrastination quite literally

means ‘in favor of tomorrow’. As human beings we are always pursuing ways of being better

off – everything we do, we do with a positive intent. Although procrastination seems to

contradict this fact, it actually illustrates a very important point. What we do, or fail to do, is

 not purely the result of our conscious choices, but often the result of factors we are not aware

of consciously. When you procrastinate, at some level of your unconscious thinking, you believe

that taking the action will leave you worse off than actually taking the action.

To change this negative tendency, you need to do two things. Firstly you must remove the

association and ‘attachments’ that you might have with procrastination. Realize that you are

NOT a procrastinator. Although you might procrastinate at times, you cannot afford to limit

yourself by defining yourself by your behavior. Secondly, you must redefine procrastination

in such a way that it will motivate and empower you instead of limiting you.

The way we define things for ourselves will determine the way we interact with it. If you see

procrastination as a chronic problem that you were born with, then it is likely that you will

struggle with it all your life. If you define procrastination as a bad habit that you need to deal

with at some point in the future, then it will control you. If you see procrastination as something

you cannot overcome then you will probably be right.

If you define procrastination as a negative tendency that you choose to put aside, then you will

be empowered to take action despite procrastinating. Whether you CAN do something is

rarely the result of your ability. It’s almost always a case of motivation. Motivation is nothing

but an inner drive that compels you to action, and gaining leverage on yourself is a powerful

way to find the necessary motivation.

There is a definition of procrastination that can do just that. I choose to define procrastination

as the thief of time. When you think about it you will realize just how true it is because

procrastination is what keeps you immobilized and stuck in inaction. Time is your most valuable

and your most precious asset. People go to extreme measures to protect their money and

their possessions, but do very little to ‘protect’ their time – the one thing that money can never

buy. Learning to value your time, is a powerful strategy for overcoming procrastination and

getting the most out of your life. When you value something you will look after it and protect it.

Your time is limited. Have you ever wondered how many days you have in your lifetime?

At first blush you might guess that it is a hundred thousand or even a million. In fact, if you

grow to be 70 years old your entire lifetime will only have 25 550 days. If you are 30 now,

then you’ve only got another 260 000 hours left – and a third of this will be spent sleeping.

You have just as much time as Bill Gates, Mother Theresa, Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey or any

other person on this planet. The only difference is in the way you use your time. Don’t allow

procrastination to steal your most precious asset.

Instead, see procrastination as a call to action. It is likely that what you are procrastinating

about is something that you ‘must’ do. See, what we don’t do and what we don’t face

controls us. But when you face it and you do it, you liberate yourself and it no longer has any

control over you. If you have this sense of urgency and awareness that your time is precious,

then you won’t allow the thief of time to hold you down. What you get out of yourself does

not rely on your ability. It relies on how much of your resources you can get access to and this

is almost exclusively a psychological exercise. By changing how you define procrastination for

yourself you can start to change this internal conversation and empower yourself to take action

and make things happen.