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Comment by akrakesh | Hacker News Reader

There are many valid points in the summary but it seems to consider only procrastination caused by perfectionism, while it's just one of the causes. Procrastination is usually the result of difficulties in regulating emotions. When we face a task we don't want to do we feel an assortment of negative emotions—we may feel bored, resentful, frustrated, anxious or guilty. We put off the task to avoid these negative emotions.

Techiniques such as Unschedule are at best just hacks that are effective only in the short term. The only way to permanently beat procrastination is to persist on work you don't want to do until it becomes a habit. Along with the usual techniques of splitting a task into sub-tasks, removing distractions, starting immediately, etc., making yourself accountable goes a long way in crushing procrastination. Read more at https://procrushtinate.com/guide.html

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The book states that procrastination is caused by anxiety, and I agree. Perfectionism is just one way to create anxiety. Frustration, boredom, frustration are others.

We put off the task to avoid these negative emotions IN THE FUTURE. The definition of anxiety is anticipating something bad in the future, so we can avoid it.

Techniques like the Unschedule work extremely well for me and other people. Other things that work well is splitting the task into sub-task, writing everything down, recording the intensity of what you do.

Persisting on working on something you don't want to do is extremely dangerous.

Thanks to Paulov conditioning you will be anchoring a bad experience to something you want to do. Linking a bad memory to work and reinforcing it with habit. Not good.

You can beat very weak procrastination with it. If the procrastination is serious(anxiety is great), you will be creating a strong trauma linked to work.

In fact you are probably referring to not crushing procrastination but reinforcing it increasing anxiety and going from avoidance(flight) to fight. This works(badly) and is the usual method of normal people for dealing with it, using deadlines(like frequent exams) as the tools that make them increase their anxiety.

A friend of mine had a very serious accident of his bike. He can't get on one without shaking and avoids them because of the trauma.

You will be doing the same thing with work, like the rat anticipating the electric shock, you will be anticipating the bad experience just by sitting down on your desk.

The anxiety those memories create will add procrastination to the already high level making impossible for you to work.

While you will be "in place", "at work", your thoughts will escape with fantasies evading work because the high levels of anxiety. Your productivity will be very bad.

Your linked page states that procrastination is voluntary, conscious, it is not.

Not procrastinating is in fact extremely easy, once you know how.

Could you continue with the knowledge of how to easily not procrastinate?

Your friend needs to get on a bike again. For me, your anecdote doesn't say much else to me. Certainly, avoiding bikes isn't the answer?

You have described the problem, not the solution

> Not procrastinating is in fact extremely easy, once you know how.

please share your knowledge.

I can relate, but unfortunately have no real strategy for overcoming this. I've ended up leaving behind the things I used to care so much about, just to avoid the feelings. The feelings only became overwhelming after several months of forcing myself to work through procrastination.

Quite possibly the least helpful piece of advice I've seen around here. If you have concrete advice, then say it. Otherwise, you're just making baseless claims that don't help anybody.

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