This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "The Now Habit" by Neil A. Fiore. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading.
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Do you find it difficult to get yourself to sit down and do your work? Do you tend to put off work until the last minute and then end up scrambling?
According to Neil Fiore, the author of The Now Habit, avoiding work is a symptom of anxiety rather than laziness or lack of motivation. Therefore, discipline is not an enduring solution. To address the problem, you have to tackle the underlying psychological reasons that make you dread work.
Here’s why you’re avoiding work and just can’t get things done.
1. Perfectionism
Fiore argues that the most common reason we dread work is perfectionism—we set impossibly high standards for ourselves and tell ourselves there will be dire consequences for not meeting those standards. For example, a student might tell herself she has to get straight As or else she’s a failure who’ll never get a good job. Fiore points out that we often adopt these standards from others—parents, teachers, bosses, and so on. (Shortform note: The problem could also be socially prescribed perfectionism—the tendency to believe (often falsely) that other people expect us to be perfect. In other words, sometimes we attempt to live up to standards that nobody actually expects of us.)
According to Fiore, perfectionism makes it hard to even start working on something. If your goal is to be perfect, you’re all but guaranteed to fail—so why even put in the effort? Then, Fiore says, once we procrastinate, we typically feel bad and tell ourselves we’re lazy. That negative self-talk creates more anxiety, which in turn only makes it harder to get back to work by creating even more pressure. (Shortform note: Research shows that perfectionism causes problems beyond just procrastination. For example, as Brené Brown suggests in The Gifts of Imperfection, perfectionism can lead to shame, self-judgment, depression, and even an increased risk of suicide.)
2. Fear of Success
Whereas perfectionism makes us avoid working because we fear failure, Fiore says that it’s also possible to procrastinate because we fear success. Fear of success can occur for several reasons:
1) We fear that we’ll alienate our friends, colleagues, or family if we outperform them. For example, a straight-A student might deliberately reduce the effort she puts into her schoolwork for fear that her friends will brand her a “nerd” or “teacher’s pet.”
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Like what you just read? Read the rest of the world's best book summary and analysis of Neil A. Fiore's "The Now Habit" at Shortform.
Here's what you'll find in our full The Now Habit summary:
- Why people tend to put off the things that matter the most
- Where procrastination stems from, and why it doesn't mean you're lazy
- How to get more done while still maintaining a balanced life
