Intentional Procrastination Can Boost Productivity

It may seem odd to think of procrastination as a useful tool, but it can be  quite powerful with a little creativity and thought.  I discovered this little gem recently when a very cool opportunity presented itself to my already overloaded schedule.  This new project should have taken me about 60+ hours to complete, but I procrastinated for several days and when I finally dove in I was able to finish it in just under 24 hours.

So how does it work?

Rather than stressing about something not getting done, think of procrastination as an incubator of sorts. Imagine you just came up with the greatest idea of your career.  Don’t move! Write it down.  Now picture yourself placing your big idea safely inside a warm little box, where it can be fed and nurtured.  Think of it as being too fragile to be handled and moved about.  After all, it is a fresh thought… like a newly hatched egg with a very thin shell.  It’s not quite ready for criticism or to be passed around for others to touch and poke holes in it.  It’s your baby and you need to protect it and properly prepare it for hatching.

Meanwhile, think about your little egg often.  Think about how it will feel to be working on your little stroke of genius.  Think about what your life will be like once your masterpiece is unveiled to the world.  Consider the steps and materials you will need to get to that point.  You don’t have to sit down and have a brainstorming session.  Just take the thoughts as they come and write them down. If you are truly committed to the project, the ideas will flow at their own pace and in their own time.

At this point, you will start to generate ideas and questions you hadn’t thought of before.  Write them down and keep procrastinating until you feel you have cleared enough room on your plate to give it your full attention.  I don’t mean you have a free hour to get started.  I mean you have an entire day or week blocked off to really dive in.  I looked at my calendar and then picked a future set of days to work on it.

But I want to start on it NOW!

I know it can be tough not to just jump in and just “git ‘r done” when the idea bulb first lights up but when you can grant yourself a little space between your next big idea and it’s actual implementation, you will see a big difference in how well you can execute it.  The bigger the project, the better this works.

Why Does It Work?

My theory is two-fold:

1. You’re forcing yourself to wait until you have made room to really focus on the work.  When you finally get to the project, it becomes much less stressful than if you had tried to cram it in.
2. Incubating your thoughts allowed your subconscious mind to think through the steps and potential conflicts and gave you a head start in working them out before you ever began working.

The Proof

I started switching to my new vendor on Monday, December 21st.  It should have taken me at least five 12-hour days to complete.  By Wednesday evening of the 23rd, I had wrapped it up and launched the new products.  The incubation period allowed me to think through possible gotchas and form an orderly workflow.  I was working at top speed and I felt like a pro even tho I was using completely new tools, a new vendor and new terminology.

And you know what?  I even stopped along the way to answer a few questions in the vendor’s forums for some newbies, even though I should have been considered a total newbie myself.  I’m a very big fan of helping other people, especially when you are asking for help yourself.

So give it a try.  Pick something you really want to do and then set a future date to start on it.  Just be sure it’s something YOU really want to do…  Not something you think you should do or anything influenced by peer pressure or hype.  Try procrastinating a bit and then jump in.  Let me know how it goes.