Can We Design Our Way Out of Procrastination?
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010Procrastinating or putting things off when it is not in our best interest to do so is a common problem. According to research reported on Psychology Today:
“Everyone procrastinate sometimes, but 20 percent of people are true procrastinators. They consistently avoid difficult tasks and deliberately look for distractions, which, unfortunately, are increasingly available. Procrastination in large part reflects our difficulty in regulating emotions and to accurately predict how we will feel tomorrow, or the next day. Procrastinators say they perform better under pressure, but that’s just one of many lies they tell themselves. Since procrastinators are made and not born, it’s possible to overcome procrastination—with effort.”
This makes procrastination a major cognitive design challenge. As with all such challenges the first step is to understand the underlying cognitive processes and needs.
