Causes of procrastination

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I'm a chronic procrastinator, though I never failed to do something on time, I always start when it's almost too late and I'm under heavy time pressure.
The only times when I don't do this is when the task's content (e.g. homework for Uni, learning for an intresting subject) interests me a lot and captures my attention.
The reasons for me procrastinating are mainly about being absorbed by other interests and unable to shift my focus. I always know it's necessary to do whatever I have to but my mind justs skips to my interest of the moment most of the time until I feel that the time for completing the task is almost over.
So for me it's not about having fear or being overwhelmed, rather than a concentration and focus problem.

I found this little text segment on wikibooks:

I find that I am driven by "context".

For example, if I am at home on my laptop, I find it very difficult to work. Why? Well, because I associate that context with chatting with friends, surfing the net, etc.

If I want to get a solid day's work done, I go to a place where I either haven't been before (e.g. a cafe), or a place which I associate with work (a silent place at university surrounded by people who are working). If possible, I work on a uni computer instead of my laptop.

I'm not lazy, I'm just context-driven! In the right context, I will literally work for six straight hours.

One of the best methods I've developed to combat procrastination is extensive planning. For example, Let's say I have two reports and 1 project that I know are due in exactly two weeks. I will judge approx. how much time each will take, and then set up a schedule of exactly when and how long I will work on each. Then, I follow the schedule no matter what. If I finish early that's great, and if not then I readjust my schedule to try to make it work (that or pull an all-nighter lol). I find that the biggest factor of procrastination for me is a lack of motivation (and also as you said, a difficulty in multitasking). But since I have started planning out schedules like this I have gotten much much better about procrastination.

There are several things that cause me to be behind in getting things done. I think this monotropism fits for part of it, as it is hard for me to do stuff that I am not interested in, or that doesn't need to be immediately done, so anything else gets pushed back, just as that excerpt mentions. I also have input processing issues that cause time delays in absorbing and reacting to things, and I have minor motor skills issues that cause me to be slower at doing things than other people. And lets add my other health issues to the mix. My IBS keeps me on the toilet a long time several times a day, which leaves less time to get things done, and my sleep apnea leaves me exhausted all the time, which slows me down even more, as it leaves me with little energy to do anything.

So yes, I am always behind in getting things done. I would need to be at least 4 people to get all my stuff done on time.--Or just even done. }:-(

I'll reply to this thread later...

For me this is not being able to do stuff that are not part of my daily/weekly routine. I have problems with keeping my apartment clean (severe), washing bed-clothes, jeans (moderate). I have a lot of unfinished projects (unfinished hobby car, some built-in furniture, electronic projects).

Usually I do what I have to do at work, but I don't take many assignments and the workload I have to do isn't overwhelming for me, to be honest.

Sometimes I'd procrastinate when I'm supposed to hand-in an application for something, risking the deadline, like NOT applying for mentorship in one of my professions for a year.

Huh.. Procrastination is a big problem for me. It is very important problem, because I work as a freelancer, (write texts, search information etc), and I need to sit with laptop, use internet and not being distracted. Difficult. I feel like I work much better under pressure of time.

I havent foung full solution yet, but there some small things, that may be helpful. In case with working on computer at least.
1. Use good ad-blocker to block distracting pictures, ads and links.
2. Even block some sites (for example, for my flash games and collections of jokes often are source of procrastination). Actually, you can un-block them at ay moment, but procrastination is, I think, impulsive behavior. And this helps to block the first impulse to distract.
3. Divide task in small parts. I use ToDoList from Abstractspoon Software.. It is very good free application for planning and task management.
4. Sometimes I do two task in one time.. one routine (like writing boring text) and one that helps me stay alerted (for example playing Scrabble online, with 5 minutes per move or more... So it will not totally dictract me from main task)
5. If there typical things you do as procrastination, choose a special time when you are free and do it and do it until you will be totally full with it, like when you eat to much.

This all dont makes me free of procrastination... but helps))

Oh good find on mono tropism, that sounds very familiar. I definitely work like that. I can only truly focus on one thing at a time, wether its work an interest whatever. So I go through phases where I get very little done at work, but perhaps I'm doing 10k runs every day.. Or working 70 hours a week and hardly sleeping or anything else.

I discussed this with a psychologist (coach/therapist) this week, she was pretty surprised by some of my procrastination behaviours. If something is minor it can be ignored, but I then ignore it too long till it turns into an ugly mess, then it seems such a huge issue that I have to deal with it or avoid it altogether. That's generally how I "organise" myself at work.

She was really baffled when I said I'd turned a standard police documents check into a £500 fine and 5 penalty points. I procrasted on the document production, then court, then everything, up to the point the bailiffs arrived to recover the unpaid money. I had insurance all along but turned it into a right mess for no reason.

The trouble with this is that some of the minor things are dealing with people on a daily basis, which if ignored turn into real messes. Why did I allow myself to be promoted again...? Line-management is not a good career idea for a probable aspie,

Jason

Procrastination is really nothing more complex than lack of prioritizing.

IMHO, if you have a lowered, or complete lack of ability to properly prioritize, that's not procrastination. Procrastination is by definition, deliberate. If one simply refuses to prioritize, that will result in procrastination.

"Putting things off" isn't always a bad thing. In order to accomplish everything we must do certain things have to be put after other things, meaning some things will always have to be "put off" for a while. Even some important things have to be put off. When important things are put off intentionally for less important things, or even unimportant things that is procrastination.

If it's happening because of a lowered or nonexistent ability to prioritize, that isn't procrastination, because it is not deliberate.

This is where Autistics can get into trouble, not being able to put down something they're in the middle of to take care of more time sensitive matters. We end up being called procrastinators because of this, and even convince ourselves that we are procrastinators. ADDer's are prone to the same thing. Imagine having both. I do, and it SUCKS.

The only way I have found to deal with it that works is to study prioritizing strategies, and OBSESS over them to the point that they drive what you do. The hardest part of adjusting to priorities though, is forcing yourself to put one thing down to start something else, or picking up where you left off with a previous unfinished task. The best way I've found to deal with that problem if find ways to "leave tracks" (notes of anything you think you'll most easily forget) or find ways of identifying the best stages at which to leave a project so that it can be easily picked up and continued without too much thought.

It ain't easy! And I suck at it. I suck so bad at it that I haven't even had a planning book going for a few years now.

I have gone through periods of keeping scheduling books, task and priority lists. When I do use them, it works very well and a get a LOT done. But I DO have to obsess over the organizational process, else it falls to the wayside and the usual chaos eventually ensues.