I’ve always been a procrastinator but didn’t know I’m a strategic procrastinator. I allow thoughts and ideas to marinate, often writing them and letting them grow. When additional thoughts surface, I’ll add them. Then, when I’m ready to work on the project, content is already started. Sometimes I’m surprised by something I’ve written, glad I captured it when I did.
Allowing thoughts to marinate gives me time to view a topic from different angles. I make lots of quick decisions, of course, but some things benefit from deeper thinking.
In AWAKEN YOUR GENIUS: Escape Conformity, Ignite Creativity, and Become Extraordinary by Ozan Varol, he describes what he does as a “strategic type of procrastination.”
He wrote: “Here’s how it works. When I’m working on a new project…I jot down ideas and examples – anything that’s already on my mind that might be relevant. After I plant these seeds, I walk away and wait to see what blossoms. I resist planning everything out far in advance to prevent rigidifying my thinking and closing off creative possibilities.
“This waiting may look passive, but it’s not. When I start a project and deliberately stop after an initial period of focus, I ignite the thought factory in my brain. Even as I wait, the project is active in my subconscious, which is churning behind the scenes and cooking up insights. During this process, ideas mature, become richer, and pick up new associations, like wine aging in a barrel…
“If you stay focused for too long, your thinking will stagnate. So follow a period of focus with a state of unfocus.” You may chuckle at this because it’s difficult to stay focused on anything for too long with everything you’re juggling. But, Varol’s recommendations are tried and true. Let your mind wander by looking out a window, listening to music, meditating or, if you can, go for a walk or move around in a way that gets your blood flowing.
Varol was a rocket scientist so I’m feeling good about my strategic procrastinating now. Hope you’ll join me in doing some good strategic procrastinating this week.
