Ep. 158 - The (Brain) Power of Procrastination

What if procrastination isn’t a sign of laziness or poor time management—but a signal from your emotions? In this episode, we unpack why your brain isn’t broken and your to-do list isn’t the enemy. Procrastination often points to fear, overwhelm, or the pressure to get it perfect. We will look at some (small) steps to take when we feel stuck and how to move gently instead of pushing hard. Progress doesn’t have to be big. It just has to begin.  

Transcript

We’ve all experienced the powerful pull of procrastination. It’s like having a guilty roommate in our brains, lounging around while our to-do list stares us down. And then there’s the secret shame when our old pal Perfectionism stops by and starts sniffing about.

But what if procrastination isn’t laziness? What if it’s actually an important signal — one we’ve been misinterpreting all along?

The Bottom Line on Top of this episode is that procrastination isn’t a productivity issue - it’s an emotional one. And your brain isn’t to blame. 

Let’s talk about why we put things off, what it means, and how to re-frame it to actually work for us when we’re in it.

We often think of procrastination as poor time management — but science tells a different story. Research from multiple psychology studies shows that we procrastinate because we’re trying to regulate emotions, not manage time.

Here’s how it works: When a task starts feeling uncomfortable — maybe it’s too big, too uncertain, or it’s triggering a fear of failure — your brain flags it as a threat. And threats kick the limbic system into gear. That’s your brain’s emotional command center. It doesn’t care about goals or deadlines — it’s job is about keeping you safe in the moment.

Meanwhile, the prefrontal cortex — the part of your brain responsible for long-term planning and logic — it has to fight to stay in control. And if you’re tired, stressed, or depleted, that logical voice is getting drowned out by all the emotional noise. That’s when we find ourselves reaching for distractions, or comfort tasks, or even nothing at all. In those times, the brain is seeking relief, not results.

There’s also something called temporal discounting, a fancy term for how we value rewards differently based on time. Your brain is wired to prioritize immediate gratification (like scrolling on social media or watching one more episode) over future rewards (like finishing a project or getting up and moving).

That’s not failure my friends — it’s biology.

Research also shows a link between procrastination and emotion regulation. This includes how we handle stress, criticism, and uncertainty. If the task ahead feels like it might make us feel inadequate or exposed, we often put it off as a way to protect ourselves from those emotions, especially if we are starting to feel like we are not in control. The delay is a defense — not a decision.

But here’s where it gets interesting. If we treat procrastination not as a flaw, but as a feedback loop, it becomes useful. It can show us where we feel stuck, scared, or uncertain. And that awareness can unlock solutions.

This is where habit science comes in. When we stop telling ourselves negative things about ourselves when we’re in that and we start thinking about what this signals, we can then put action (or at least rational thinking behind it).

Back to habit science, one of my favorite tools is called “Ridiculously Small Steps”--it’s a concept I talked about in Episode 33 and since then. This is about how micro actions can lead to big results. The smaller the better in fact, Ridiculously Small Steps works best when they take a minute or less to complete–that’s about how long it takes to put on your shoes in case you want to go for a walk. The beauty is that it’s a cognitive conditioning exercise that helps your brain trust that not every task is a threat. Starting small reduces the emotional friction.

Another tool is called implementation intention — which is just another way of saying make a specific plan. Instead of saying “I’ll work on that proposal tomorrow,” try “I’ll write the first paragraph of that proposal at 10 a.m. tomorrow while sitting at my desk with my favorite cup of coffee.” Your brain likes certainty, so make a date with it. Giving it a clear plan reduces stress and increases follow-through, especially when you pair it with something you enjoy like your favorite coffee or a favorite spot where you are going to do the work.

So what else helps reposition us when we feel that we’re starting to power down? 

One is to calm the chatter of the brain by quickly capturing the details. The key here is ‘quickly’ – this isn’t about making long lists or opening organizing apps. This can be as basic as using pen and paper (remember those?) and just writing down the nagging thoughts. 

Once you do that, a good companion could be to quickly jot down the Most Important Next Step for each of those things you wrote down. I first nerded up on this topic in episode 48 and sometimes that Most Important Next Step is also similar to a Ridiculously Small Step–it could be looking up a phone number for a website, resetting a password, or finding the latest draft of that document. To clarify, this isn’t about *doing* the next most important thing, only identifying it. 

Another effort when you are starting that slide is to do more and think less. Physical movement can help metabolize some of the adrenaline and cortisol coming at you from the mental stress. These are usually the times when I will go walk my dog, take the trash out, sort though mail, and any number of fairly mindless tasks that lets my body take over so my brain can tap out. 

Finally back to procrastination, one of my favorite sayings is: “The magic you are seeking is in the work you are avoiding.”

And sometimes that work is hard, not because we’re lazy, but because it’s meaningful. I have been putting off a video project for over 6 months because it meant so much to me, and avoiding it is sometimes a signpost — not of our own personal weakness, but of struggling with our personal worth.

The next time you find yourself scrolling instead of starting, try asking yourself: “What am I avoiding feeling right now?”

That question can turn procrastination into a compass — not pointing at the task itself, but toward what the task represents.

Your brain isn’t broken. It’s just looking for emotional safety. And you can build trust with yourself — one small, specific step at a time.

Productivity isn’t just about doing more. It’s about doing what matters most — with the energy and awareness that brings out the best of you to do what’s best for you.