Essay Sample about Procrastination

How do you like to spend your day? Is it being productive and getting work done, or lounging on the couch with your tv, laptop, phone and tablet in front of you. The general idea of procrastination is an intensional decision to postpone some kind of job or duty; particularly one that is of importance which is why it is typically viewed as a negative habit to adapt. It requires a high level of self-discipline in order to overcome that procrastination mindset, but it is a person's self-determination to maintain the discipline that will prove to be the crucial factor in the hunt for success. With the right motives, determination is a significant trait to have as it allows for the persistence of achieving your goal especially when faced with obstacles. If someone is determined then they will not let procrastination get in the way of achieving what they desire, however situations such as an overwhelming task, being distracted and lack of motivation can result in procrastination getting the better of you. Procrastination is said to be the thief of time, in that same sense it can also prove to be the thief of determination. 

Those who find themselves easily distracted are also those who find themselves with the least amount of time. Distraction is procrastination in disguise; by acting as a filler for what should really be done. A common example of this today is using our phones for the likes of various social media platforms. Distractions diverts your attention from one thing to another, and often the easier of the two options. When distracted you unknowingly force yourself away from what you should be doing. Arnold in Gina Berriault story “The Stone Boy,” demonstrates this as he continues the task of picking peas in order to distract himself from the shock of what he has done. When confronted with the sheriff, Arnold uses the excuse of “I come down to pick peas,” when asked by the sheriff why he did not tell his father right away. People get distracted because it is easy, it is easier to be on your phone scrolling through Instagram than finishing that paper that is due tomorrow. For Arnold it was easier for him to pick peas as opposed to confessing to his family what he has done. The easy things in life don’t require determination to get done, but if that easy job is just an excuse for what really needs to be done then yet again procrastination comes out on top. 

Once realization hits, the thought of how little time is left to finish is often what first comes to mind of those who find themselves procrastinating. For Willy Schlegel in Bernard Malamud “The Bill,” his situation gets out of hand when the bill is nearly thirty times the original amount; in which he realizes that life and the owners will not always have it easy for him. Willy decides to stop adding on to the bill by completely cutting off any and all future interactions with the owners of the store. The determination to resolve a problem is often overshadowed by worrying about the problem itself. Willy finds himself in this situation, thinking about the problem of how high the bill has gotten rather than the solution of how he is going to pay it off. Willy resorts to avoiding the problem by avoiding the owners instead of undertaking the responsibility of finding a solution. The result is him further procrastinating due to an overwhelming task instead of finding the determination to deal with a difficult situation. 

It has been emphasized that determination is for difficult situations, but there is no situation more difficult than not having a reason to be determined. Lack of motivation makes it hard to get started, which is all the more reason why determination is an important asset to have. You must not let a lack of reason prevent you from trying, doing so and you let time get the better of you. Willy circumstances, while overwhelming, are not a complete lost cause like Arnold’s. Willy would find motivation through imagination the day he could tell the owners “here it is,” and though he shows to put in an effort, he lets the overwhelming circumstances and his mind get the better of him, believing that he could never make that imagination come true. Even when opportunity lends itself to Willy for a second time in the form of a letter from the owners asking for ten dollars, his first reaction is to cowardly hide all day in an attempt to once again avoid the owners. Though Willy eventually finds a way to get the ten dollars, by the time he can give it to them there would be no worth to it anymore and thus showing what happens when you let procrastination get the better of you. 

People procrastinate in an attempt to get out of a difficult situation, whether it be a physical job or psychological fear. but determination is meant for those difficult situations. Both Willy and Arnold showcase what happens when procrastination gets the better of you. There is no greater obstacle to progress than time, and when given time you run the risk of procrastinating causing an overwhelming sensation of emotions that will put you further back than when you started. The previous examples show how procrastination results in avoiding what you have to do, and when you avoid you do not try and when you do not try you cannot say you are determined.