• Working under pressure - "I still have time enough"

A person who keeps putting things off often carries out his/her obligations at the last moment. He/she can justify him- or herself stating that he/she works more effectively if working under pressure and that he/she really hates deadlines.

• The way of coping with everyday stress - "I ´d better devote my time to something more pleasant".

It is really difficult to stop putting things off if it is the method on how to cope with  everyday pressure. In fact it is a sort of escape. Should somebody get rid of it, others would usually load more work on him/her - and thus, it is simpler to make excuses, pretending other urgent business, to put a task off or to brush it off.

• Pretending to be fully occupied - "I have much more other, even more important things to do".

The procrastinator can make the impression to be fully occupied and thus to excuse his/her delay in carrying out his/her duties. He/she can spend a lot of time justifying this delay - instead of devoting it to his/her task.

• Low self-confidence - "I cannot manage it".

He/she can wrestle with his/her low self-confidence and self-respect. If his/her results are very good, he/she could find such appraisal undeserved.

• Obstinacy - "Do not think you can boss me about, I will start when I want to". Putting tasks off may be confused for obstinacy or pride.

• Manipulation - "They cannot start without me"

Procrastination may be used for manipulating others. Such delay drives the others mad.

• Frustrated victim - "I do not know where to start"

The procrastinator usually feels like a victim - he/she does not understand the reasons for his/her behaviour, he/she does not understand, why he/she cannot fulfill the tasks in the same way as the other do.

Procrastination and its positive aspects

Besides feelings of guilt, anxiety, stress and problems what good feelings does procrastination bring ? Procrastinating enables us come to tasks which usually rub us up the wrong way. Finally we force ourselves to remove useless things from our wardrobes, to clean the windows in the whole flat. Now it is the turn for activities which should have been done long before.

Another positive aspect is creative procrastinating: we write poems, paint pictures, create videotapes concerning procrastination. Also the time delay may have  positive importance as it enables us to think properly about the task, or maybe an astonishing idea on how to deal with the task will come to us.