Putting off work till another time more often may keep us deprived of the benefits, which might have accrued to us from its having been done.
Almost everyone is guilty of procrastination at some point in his life. The question is – why do people procrastinate? Are they so busy all the time? We live in the 21st century when time is of great essence. However, we waste our precious time by delaying everything and thus wasting the resources.
What you have to do tomorrow, must do today; what you have to do today, do it now. Procrastination is the habit of delaying a task or an activity deferred until a later date. The habit of procrastinating is one of the worst habits of a person. People tend to be slothful to put off the finishing of a piece of work, or implementation of a plan till another time. But the life is not certain and it is possible that circumstances may change and one may not be able to do the work at all. It is good to procrastinate on things that are bad, but we think is right and what we have decided to do, we must do in time.
One of the major reasons for procrastinating on a task is slothfulness. When a person is indulged in luxuries and slothfulness, it will blunt his edge of urge for action. When a person starts fearing the outcome of the task, he tends to procrastinate the task for a later date. Other factors for procrastinating work for a later date are low self-esteem, weak determination, less focus and distraction and also high impulsiveness. .
Procrastination is harmful in various ways. It maintains tension in mind. It will relieve you of this tension if you do the work right now. Putting off work till another time more often may keep us deprived of the benefits, which might have accrued to us from its having been done. Opportunity knocks at the door once. Opportunity lost once is lost forever. There is no guarantee that the circumstances will remain the same. They may change and you may have to repent later on over the fact that you missed the opportunity. Sometimes it may prove tragic and change the good side of your career to a bad one. A successful man is one who strikes the iron while it is hot. When procrastination becomes a habit, all cheerfulness and carefree living go out of life and we live a life of perpetual tension, which indeed is not a life worth living at all. While procrastination is harmful to individuals, it may be more harmful to groups, communities and nations.
Ashfaque Sangi
Karachi Sindh
