What Type of Procrastinator Are You ? The Five Main Procrastination Styles
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Did you know that there are different types of procrastinators? Each type has distinct motives, thought processes, and behavioral responses.
So, what type of procrastinator are you?
According to my research into different classification criteria, five primary categories emerge.
Knowing your type may be the first step towards overcoming procrastination.
I will walk you through the 5 categories of procrastination and provide you with some advice and suggestions about the appropriate remedy for each one.
If you wish to find out more, keep reading.
Classification of procrastination:
The majority of us experience procrastination at different points in our lives. It is a very complex emotional, cognitive, and behavioral phenomenon.
But for some people, procrastinating becomes a habit that affects every aspect of their lives.
This is why classifying procrastination into distinct categories may give you some insight about the kind of procrastinator you are.
Please note that this classification is not scientific or supported by thorough research.
It is mostly based on observations and analyses of emotional, cognitive, and behavioral factors that lead people to procrastination.
If you look around the Internet, you’ll find that different sources use different criteria for classification, and some divide procrastination into as many as six groups.
According to my research, most procrastinators and procrastinating styles fall into five main types.
This classification is based on a number of factors, such as the root cause of procrastination (e.g., fear of failure), the way the person thinks (e.g., “all or nothing thinking”), and the way the person acts (e.g., delay or avoidance).
Please keep in mind that you might fall into more than one category, because procrastinators usually present a variety of thinking and behavioral styles at the same time.
The five types of procrastinators
The five types of procrastinators are:
- the perfectionist,
- the dreamer,
- the worrier,
- the crisis maker
- the overdoer.
1. The perfectionist:
You usually set high standards for yourself and have a low tolerance for failure.
You are very detail-oriented; you want all aspects of your project or task to be perfect.
You are so stressed about details, and spend a ridiculous amount of time analyzing the task or project in hand. You often fall victim to what’s called “analysis paralysis”.
You are self-critical and have unreasonable expectations about how you should accomplish things. You have an all or nothing mentality. It’s either perfect or not worth doing.
You’re never ready to start the task, because you need to have all the conditions set up to start anything, which is a very difficult endeavor.
A good example of a perfectionist is someone who waits to launch their business until everything is organized and perfect. As the world is often messy and chaotic, these perfect conditions rarely exist.
❖ Your biggest challenges
Unrealistic expectations and fear of failure.
❖ Solution:
It is not easy to change your perfectionistic mindset, but you can start by setting small goals and making a plan, one step at a time.
➥ Use self-compassion
Talk to yourself kindly, and explain to your critical mind that it’s OK to not be perfect, that it’s OK to fail sometimes. It’s better to get something done imperfectly than not get it at all.
➥ Practice cognitive restructuring
For your all-or-nothing thinking pattern, you can replace unhelpful and unreasonable thoughts with more realistic ones. See more on cognitive restructuring here.
In response to a question about his missteps, Edison once said, “I have not failed 10,000 times—I’ve successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work.”
2. The dreamer:
You are creative and dreamy. You like to visualize big goals and daydream about success, but you rarely take the necessary steps to pursue your goals.
As opposed to the perfectionist who is very detail-focused, you seem to be more absorbed in the big picture and less in the actionable steps.
Your mind loves to wander about the nice Lamborghini you’ll drive, or how well you’ll perform in your next exam. You have many goals but no concrete plan.
Your mind is like a sailor without a compass.
You may also present some characteristics of novelty seekers or what is known as “Shiny Object Syndrome”. You may be constantly on the lookout for some new trends, ideas, and goals, but you drop them as soon as something new emerges.
Novelty seekers get bored easily. They have new ideas, some of them very creative and promising, but they don’t invest the time to see them through to completion.
We see this style in kids, who constantly want a new toy even though they already have a lot of them.
❖ Your biggest challenges
Lack of proactivity and actionable plans.
❖ Solution:
You will be better off if you turn your goals into a plan with a clear timeline.
➥ Set SMART goals
SMART stands for :
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Relevant
- Time-Bound
Keeping track of your progress will help you stay motivated and committed to your objectives.
Download this SMART Goal Worksheet.
“Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world”.
Joel A. Barker
3. The worrier:
Also known as the avoider, self-saboteur, and the anxious
You are an anxious person; you worry a lot about everything.
You have the ability to imagine everything that can go wrong, and you almost always expect the worst.
You have a distorted way of thinking about life in general. You tend to exaggerate the difficulty of tasks and overgeneralize bad experiences.
You prefer to be on the safe side and not take risks.
You have unreasonable fears and worries and usually choose avoid the activities that trigger your worries instead of confronting them.
❖ Your biggest challenges
Excessive rumination and avoidance.
❖ Solution:
To stop worrying and change the way you think, you need to simply face your fears.
➥ Exposure
You should confront the tasks ahead of you in the same way an arachnophobe is gradually exposed to spiders in order to reveal the irrationality of the thoughts and gradually reduce the associated fear and anxiety.
➥ behavioral experiment
You are anxious about an activity. Write down your negative thoughts, then engage in the activity. Later, review the negative thoughts once again, and you’ll gradually learn that most of these thoughts are irrational or exaggerated.
Gradual exposure and behavioral experiment are part of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, which is one of the most researched and effective forms of therapy for anxiety and avoidant behavior.
“Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.”
Walter Anderson.
4. The crisis-maker:
Also known as the “Plenty of Timer”
Are you the type who thinks he works better under pressure?
You feel more focused and motivated when you have very limited time to do the job.
You may well be a crisis-maker.
You keep putting things off until the very last minute in order to complete tasks. You might even be hooked on the rush of adrenaline that comes with pressure and stress of the last minute.
You are in constant need of something to push you to the edge. You are easily bored and have a low tolerance for frustration.
We all need a healthy dose of stress to spark motivation and keep us focused and on track, but this approach is not sustainable in the long run.
Overtime, it may lead to poor performance, missed deadlines, as well as psychological and health effects, such as stress and irritability.
This type of procrastination is very common among students, who sometimes wait until a few days before an exam to start studying.
❖ Your biggest challenges
Creating a schedule and getting started.
❖ Solution:
If you are this type of procrastinator, these tactics may work for you.
➥ Make your commitment public
You’re usually a lot more likely to accomplish an assignment and even carry it out properly if you set deadlines and make them known to the public.
So, consider informing your friends, family, and coworkers.
This method has been experimented on students and proved to be quite effective.
➥ Use the Pomodoro technique
Pomodoro consists of setting a specific time for work or study, usually in 25-minute chunks separated by five-minute breaks.
This method allows you to work in short, intense, and focused bursts, with some space and rest periods. You will have more time to get things done properly.
You can use the timer on your phone or a dedicated pomodoro tool.
“You can’t just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood.
What mood is that?
Last-minute panic.”
Bill Watterson
5. The overdoer:
Also known as the overbooker
Are you the kind of person who always say: “I am busy all the time”. You are always doing something and don’t seem to have time to do what really matters to you.
You have a lot on your plate, but you have a hard time prioritizing or delegating tasks.
You seem to function in autopilot mode. You are stuck in the loop of dealing with urgent things but yet neglect important stuff.
You have a hard time saying “No” when asked for help or to accomplish an assignment, even if it’s not your responsibility,
You often end up doing the job of others and putting off what is really important to you.
You are at a high risk of burnout.
❖ Your biggest challenges
Setting priorities and boundaries.
❖ Solution:
➥ Use the Eisenhower Matrix
You can use an Eisenhower Matrix board to prioritize your tasks. Learn to delegate unimportant tasks, and focus on accomplishing important ones that add value in the long run.
Stop putting your whole energy into dealing with emergencies. You’re not a “fire extinguisher”. You will regain more focus and control over your life.
➥ Say No
after setting your priorities, you need to set your boundaries. Learn to simply say “No.”
When your coworker asks for help, politely say “No”. It’s not your job to save the world.
A simple “No” may save you a lot of energy, time, and anxiety.
“Nobody is too busy. It’s just a matter of priority”
Alen Huskanović
Procrastination Type Quiz: What Type of Procrastinator Are You?
This procrastination-type test is a “Likert Quiz,” composed of a 30-item questionnaire. You need to answer each question with “strongly agree,” “agree,” “neutral,” “disagree,” or “strongly disagree.”
CLICK HERE TO TAKE THE QUIZ
Takeaways
Procrastinators exhibit distinct characteristics. Finding your procrastination style may be the first step in developing a strategy to overcome it.
There are five types of procrastinators: the perfectionist, the dreamer, the worrier, the crisis-maker, and the overdoer.
Many people may fit into several types at the same time, as these procrastination types are often interconnected and entangled.
Each form of procrastination can be dealt with using specific techniques and strategies depending on the thinking style and behavioral response of each type.
Although shifting your procrastination style may seem like a lot of work, by making daily small changes, you can train yourself to manage your life in a more proactive and productive way.
So, what type of procrastinator are you?
Tell us in the comment section below!
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About the author
My name is Sam David. I am the founder of "Proactivity Lab," a website that provides comprehensive strategies and resources for understanding and overcoming procrastination.
The website's resources are the culmination of more than 20 years of research and experience, during which I embarked on a long and gruelling journey of study and self-discovery.
Being a former procrastinator myself, it took me years of investigation and numerous trials and errors to gain a clear understanding of the underlying causes of procrastination and the most effective and scientifically supported strategies to permanently conquer the vicious cycle of procrastination.
I would like to share my knowledge with you, for free.
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