Procrastinating Productively

Hi,

Today’s email is about an important technique for getting more done: productive procrastination.

This technique involves doing beneficial things while delaying doing more important things. This is useful in cases when we don’t have enough energy or motivation to do the main thing that we should be doing, but we’re still able to do some meaningful work, so we want to make the most of the situation. For example, if we’re procrastinating working on an important project, then we might answer emails instead, rather than waste time browsing social media.

To use productive procrastination effectively, there are three key things you should keep in mind:

• Make sure that the secondary tasks that you’re working on are actually beneficial. Just because you’re busy doesn’t mean that what you’re doing is helpful, so avoid spending time on things that feel productive but aren’t.

• Have a plan for ensuring that the main thing you’re procrastinating on doesn’t get postponed for too long. Since productive procrastination helps you get things done, it can be tempting to overuse it. Accordingly, make sure to still finish your most important tasks on time, by using additional techniques, like breaking down large projects into manageable steps.

• Recognize that sometimes you might just need a break. For example, if it’s the middle of the night, then it might be better to go to sleep so you have more time to work tomorrow, rather than try to be productive while you’re exhausted.

I hope you'll find this helpful.

Have a great week,
Itamar