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I recently came across a formula for procrastination developed by a University of Calgary academic and it really caught my attention. I saw a lot of potential in it, but as is typical with formulas of this type, real world application isn’t obvious. Trying to mathematically apply it in your daily life is hardly practical (go to the author’s site if you want to understand the intricacies behind it). As a result I decided to look into the four elements that make up the equation (expectancy, value, sensitivity and delay) and consider how we can proactively increase/improve the odds for each of them and in turn decrease our chances of procrastination:

I recently came across a formula for procrastination developed by a University of Calgary academic and it really caught my attention. I saw a lot of potential in it, but as is typical with formulas of this type, the real world application isn’t obvious. Trying to mathematically apply it in your daily life is hardly practical. As a result I decided to look into the four elements that make up the equation (expectancy, value, sensitivity and delay) and consider how we can practically increase/improve the odds for each of them and in turn decrease our chances of procrastination. First, let’s remind ourselves of the formula:

Expectancy & Value (E x V)
Expectancy is how likely the outcome from the task is going to occur. Value is how rewarding the actual outcome is. Obviously we want tasks that provide a high chance (expectancy) of having a pleasurable outcome (value). Thus, we are very likely to eat bread rather than wait for our meal to come out, or talk to our friends online rather than type up lecture notes because the benefit is obvious and immediate. How do we increase expectancy and value to minimize our chances of slipping into the task of procrastinating?

• If you are not especially keen on the task you are doing, or are not confident of getting anything out of it then consider the following. One of the most pleasurable outcomes of doing a task you are not particularly bothered about and are procrastinating on, is to actually have it done and out of the way so you don’t have to worry about it anymore. At the very least you are decreasing your work load which in itself is a relief.
• Another approach is to reward yourself for just finishing a task. My personal choice is usually to go out for a big fancy meal, but you can obviously do whatever you enjoy that will provide the motivation you need to get the task done. Where possible have the reward reliant on someone else, and have them understand that you need to complete your task before you can receive it, thus taking away any temptation (see sensitivity below). If you have a GTD system in place, in addition to writing out next actions, work out what reward you want for each project on your list.
• Increase the challenge of the task. This may sound counter-productive but the harder the task, the more rewarding it is for the individual when they complete it. If something is too easy, where is the value?

The benefit of the approaches above is that they provide a reward (value) to completing a task that is practically guaranteed (expectancy) upon completion. Quite often the work you do doesn’t have that guarantee which can kill any intentions to get it done before you’ve even started.

Sensitivity (S)
This element revolves around your personal behavior and attitudes. How easily do you get distracted? How spontaneous are you? Are you likely to go do something else on a whim? Basically, how prone are you to actually procrastinate in the first place? Here are a few suggestions to reduce your procrastinating tendencies:

• Work to a schedule. Decide how you are going to use your time. Include those actions that would/could distract you from your work into your routine. Rather than putting off your work to go shopping, set up a schedule stating that you will work till lunchtime, then spend two hours out in the shops.
• Avoid,remove and get rid of the temptations in the first place. For instance, if you can’t resist going out in the evening make sure you do your work during the morning/afternoon so the two actions don’t conflict. Create a working environment with few distractions as possible. Have a clear desk, turn off your mobile, block time wasting websites…
• The author of this procrastination study states that people with low self-efficacy, or feelings of competence, are more likely to procrastinate. While this makes sense I also feel that the opposite can be true. Someone who is more confident could also procrastinate because they are too sure of their abilities to put tasks off. Depending on which side you fall on, you may want to make sure you are extra prepared, trained and prepped for a task as soon as possible, or you may want to increase the challenge of the task so you do not become too comfortable.

Breaking The Habit
To further decrease your personal sensitivity to procrastination it is important to bear in mind it is in many ways a habit and should be treated as such. I briefly covered this in a previous post. Essentially, you need to break the habit of putting things off and develop a new habit in its place where you do things punctually. The first few projects are understandably the hardest because you are going against your usual practice but the key thing to bear in mind is that by sticking to it, things quickly becomes easier, to the point where it becomes almost natural. Typically, it’s often said that habits are broken in thirty days (though there are naturally so many variables to this) so create a special habit building calendar and for each day you don’t procrastinate on a project and stick to the schedule, tick it off on the sheet. If you stick to it for just a few days you get a chain of ticks which is very motivational because you won’t want to break it.

Delay (D)
Delay is the last variable in the equation and represents how long the individual must wait to receive the reward from the task. If for instance, it’s a large project lasting a year, or a report that won’t get marked for six months, that’s a long time to wait for any payoff. How do we get around these situations?

• Break the tasks down into smaller steps and reward yourself for each individual bitesize task, rather than for the project as a whole. Getting rewards every week, rather than at the end of the year is actually much more satisfying and motivational.
• Ask yourself if you can decrease the delay before you get rewarded. If you do an extra few hours at work for a few weeks, will this mean your reward can be brought forward? Can new dates be arranged? Can you set personal deadlines with your manager/tutor?
• Let others know about your deadlines. No-one likes to promise something and then not deliver. It becomes an effective way of motivating yourself to get stuff done at a particular time, so you don’t let people down.

To sum up

• Its better to get a task done sooner rather than later.
• Reward yourself for completing the task, one way or another.
• Try and have the task challenge you.
• Work to a schedule.
• Create a working environment without temptations.
• If you are not confident, train and prepare yourself beforehand.
• Procrastination is a habit. Break it.
• Split tasks and reward yourself for doing each smaller chunk.
• Try bringing the time till you get rewarded closer.
• Set personal deadlines and let people know about it.

Related reading

• Smart Videos: What Is Procrastination?
• The Productivity Formula
• Organize IT Recap: Alternative Productivity, Uses For Binder Clip...
• Organize IT Recap: New Domain, Roadmap To GTD Failure
• Productivity Tip #02: Do The Crappy Stuff First