3 Hidden Costs Of Procrastination That Lead Makers To Burnout & Ultimately Quitting

As much as I want to say I don't procrastinate, I do and have noticed a few things over the years.

Every time I procrastinate, it starts when I tell myself I can just do whatever it is tomorrow. Unfortunately, the thing inevitably is always going to be done "tomorrow" until I realize that I've made no progress in weeks (or months). But how does this happen when there are so many things I want to do?

I've found that my procrastination comes with 3 hidden costs that lead up to my ultimate cost.

Hidden Cost 1: Unmanageable To-Do Lists

Whether you keep your to-do list on your phone, on paper, or in your head, procrastination only makes it longer.

It's easy to assume that if you are static, your list remains static as well, but that's simply not true. As time goes on, we get more ideas, shifts in our thinking, changes in priorities, and things are inevitably added to our already lengthy lists. As they get further out of hand, just looking at what you need to do is overwhelming and "look at to-do list" becomes an item itself on our list!

When you procrastinate, your to-do list stops being a tool for productivity and starts becoming another burden you neglect.

Hidden Cost 2: Immense Pressure To Over Perform

Once your to-do list becomes a burden, anytime you have some motivation to tackle it, you try to take on everything on it at once.

You believe that you have slacked off enough and can make up for it by doing more than you did before. The problem is that you only have so much you actually can do and jumping between priorities fragments your attention and motivation even more. Plus, instead of seeing the microscopic progress you made on many things, you just see how much you still have to do, but feel exhausted at the "little" you did.

Even if you manage to over perform a day or two, it's not sustainable and procrastinating is an easier option to fall back into.

Hidden Cost 3: Constant Feelings Of Inadequacy

When your list is unmanageable and you can't continue to over perform, you start destructively looking at yourself.

You'll ask why you put so much on your plate to begin with thinking that you could do it. You've managed to do it in the past, so why are you failing now? Looking at yourself, what you've gotten done, and comparing it to your goals and what is left to get there makes you wonder if you were actually cut out to Make things in the first place.

If you start to believe your own thoughts, you end up burned out and quitting Making things all together.

Ultimately, each hidden cost builds on the others leading to you giving up on your dreams of being a Maker.

Once you procrastinate one day, it's easier to procrastinate the next (as I've too often found). This cycle repeats until you find yourself weeks or months away wondering how you can even get back to treading water instead of drowning.

The secret is to acknowledge that you have been procrastinating when you shouldn't have, but instead of letting things continue to build, just compare your progress today to yesterday. Don't look at the rest of what you have to do, but just make consistent progress each day.

Consistency will win in the long run and you'll look back amazed at what you have built and accomplished.