Procrastination and Blocking: A Novel, Practical Approach

by Robert Boice

Procrastination means putting off a difficult, delayable, important task in favor of something easier, quicker, and less anxiety-provoking. It also means delaying vital actions until the performance and result are less than they would have been if done in a timely manner. Similarly, blocking means that we stumble, delay, and panic in response to a demanding responsibility. Blocking typically occurs when we face public scrutiny (as in writing). In this revisionist and sometimes irreverent book, the author takes academic and professional psychologists to task for neglecting a pair of related problems that are often derided but that can be profoundly debilitating for individuals and economically devastating for schools, businesses, and communities.

144 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Kerynnisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not (merely) a book about how to beat procrastination, but rather a treatise on how the subject of procrastination and blocking (P&B) have been understudied in the field of psychology, despite the many harmful effects it can have on the individual suffering it (e.g. a less fulfilled life, many wasted moments, psychological pain and the resultant physical pain of stress) and the society within which P&B are rampant.

While it leans towards a more clinical approach, I did find this very enlightening. It explains clearly the science behind the malady that often plagues me: procrastination. While not as forthcoming as to ways to overcome it, knowing the mechanics that lead to procrastination has been extremely helpful to me.

Perhaps the biggest gift of this book to me is this: while much of literature paints procrastination in emotional terms, as a fear of failure among other things, Boice frames it in a very pragmatic way. Procrastination may be emotionally laden, yes, but at the heart of it is a lack of skills to do work. We procrastinate on our work because we are insufficiently equipped with the practical skills to do it when emotions and fears and doubts hamper us, which means that procrastination can be overcome, even avoided, once we learn the skills of working under pressure, fear, etc. I can get behind this, because I can understand that gaining skills requires only some instruction and then practice. I find it much more difficult if procrastination is all about overcoming fears, because I haven't been able to figure out how to do that.

[Ken Mack · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book - though I had to rethink judgments and re-evaluate narratives of self and social-worth that I brought with me when I started it.