Procrastination

Procrastination is the deferment or putting-off of an action or task, usually by focusing on some other distraction (compare temporisation). The word comes from Latin procrastinatus: pro- (forward) and crastinus (of tomorrow).

Related Topics:
Temporisation - Latin

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The allure of putting off an unpleasant task is pervasive in our society, a fact which has given rise to jokes and cliches such as "never put off until tomorrow that which you can put off until the day after tomorrow". Procrastination can be as benign as waiting until the last minute to file one's taxes, or never cleaning out the garage.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Traditionally, procrastination has been associated with perfectionism, a tendency to negatively evaluate outcomes and one's own performance, intense fear and avoidance of evaluation of one's abilities by others, heightened social self-consciousness and anxiety, recurrent low mood, and workaholism. However, research indicates that perfectionists are not any more likely to procrastinate, though they do feel worse about it when they do put things off.

Related Topics:
Perfectionism - Workaholism

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The term is referenced as a proverb, which in itself first appeared in the novel 'David Copperfield' - by Charles Dickens: "Procrastination is the thief of time." This conveys the meaning that deferment is both negative and wasteful of the time on which the action could properly be completed. Don Marquis neatly parodied this adage with the following: "Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday."

Related Topics:
Proverb - Don Marquis - Parodied

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Procrastination is considered a virtue by some groups such as slackers and the Church of the SubGenius.

Related Topics:
Virtue - Slacker - Church of the SubGenius

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~