Procrastination or JIT?

     I tend to procrastinate. I wouldn’t say I am World Class at it. But, I can be quite good at it at times and am probably ranked as one of the top amateurs. When asked why I procrastinate, I never admit to it. I simply respond that, “It is not procrastination. I am a Professor of Operations Management and I am simply practicing Just-in-Time Management which is a discipline that I teach.”
     Just-in-Time? Forecasting and Planning is part of the discipline I teach. Just-in-Time (JIT) Management is part of the planning discipline. The basic principle is to minimize inventories and cycle-times by taking all the slack out of the system. This requires large amounts of process improvement to be able to make the reductions in time and inventory and still meet the production goals. The result, shortly stated, is to have the right amount of material or components arrive to where it is need just when it is needed, just-in-time for it to be used.
     Procrastination is considered a poor habit, a negative practice, and nothing to really tout. JIT management on the hand is a best practice, an acquired skill, even an art if you will. Art or affliction? Good or bad practice? Well, it’s really easy. I would rather say that I am a JIT aficionado and practitioner than a run of the mill, plain old, same as a whole lot of other people, procrastinator.
     What is the difference? The definition of procrastination does not really clear things up. The dictionary definitions are:

Procrastinate:

to put off intentionally and habitually (transitive verb)
to put off intentionally the doing of something that should be done (intransitive verb) ~ merriam-webster.com

ProcrastinationThe act or habit of procrastinating, or putting off or delaying, especially something requiring immediate attention. ~ dictionary.com

     My version of procrastination is simply that I postpone and delay doing things until the last possible minute I can start the task and work furiously to get it done on time. I believe I work better under pressure or most effectively when I am under pressure. I do it for everything that I can. So… I think I am fine with claiming I am simply a practicing JIT Management. These definitions justify it.
     Then I read the Psychology Today definition:

Everyone puts things off until the last minute sometimes, but procrastinators chronically avoid difficult tasks and deliberately look for distractions. Procrastination in large part reflects our perennial struggle with self-control as well as our inability to accurately predict how we'll feel tomorrow, or the next day. "I don't feel like it" takes precedence over goals; however, it then begets a downward spiral of negative emotions that deter future effort. Procrastinators may say they perform better under pressure, but more often than not that's their way of justifying putting things off.

     Those darned psychologists got me. When I am honest with myself, I do “chronically avoid difficult tasks and deliberately look for distractions.” My claiming to be a JIT practitioner is just another way of saying that I “perform better under pressure.” And yes, it is just camouflage for avoiding things I should be doing for meaningless diversions that provide some temporal pleasure.
     OK… I am out the procrastination closet. I have confessed and admitted to my problem. This is why I am always starting the diet tomorrow while eating whatever I want today. It is why I would rather watch TV or play sudoku on my phone instead of, well, things I should be doing. It is remarkable, when I

honestly think about it, that I have achieved whatever I have given this affliction.
     There are a lot of self-help articles and books out there. There are flow charts to help you diagnose if you are a thrill-seeking, indecisive, or an avoider. There are chronic and “normal” procrastinators. One study has shown chronic procrastination to have quadrupled in mental bombardment of diversion and social media that is the result of the internet age. Again, according to Psychology Today:

Procrastination plagues our work force. Between 20 to 40 percent of adults consider themselves to be chronic procrastinators. But according to one estimate, only 18 percent of procrastination could be attributed to "task aversiveness"—i.e. just not wanting to do something. In other words, most of us aren't procrastinating out of laziness.

     For the vast majority of procrastinator’s, apparently, there are deeper reasons including fear of failure and indecisiveness. Me? There seems to be three reasons that contribute:

• Pure and simple laziness
• Trading off what I should be doing for some short-term more pleasurable diversion
• Being subject to the Planning Fallacy: An underestimating of task-completion times.

     There are no shortage of advice, recipes, and processes to follow to help overcome this condition. There are three, four, five, and more step methods for dealing with procrastination. I do believe that in reading all of the advice and the various methods offered, people need to try those that resonate with them and then adopt those that actually work.
     My procrastination thrives on my work from home days i.e. days I have no classes. I have found that just starting is the most effective thing to do. Don’t delay. Get up, have breakfast, make a to-do list, and hit the first item. If I give myself a chance to think about diversions, the higher the probability that diversions will consume all my time. It really works. Even if I am not sure how to approach a task or exactly what to do, just getting started is huge. I truly believe in an old German proverb: Start to sew and God will provide the thread.

https://teambodyproject.com/uncategorized/procrastination/