Have you ever put off a work email, a doctor’s appointment, a bill, a workout, or even a project you actually care about — and then wondered why you keep doing this to yourself?
A new book, Solving Procrastination: The Science of Why We Put Things Off and How to (Finally!) Stop, suggests that procrastination is not simply laziness, poor time management, or lack of willpower. Instead, people procrastinate for different reasons — and the best fix depends on what is driving the delay.
“We tend to think of procrastination as a simple problem, but in reality, it has many forms,” says the author Itamar Shatz, PhD, an affiliated lecturer at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and the creator of the website Solving Procrastination.
Dr. Shatz identifies nine procrastinator types, including the Worrier, the Dreamer, the Rebel, the Zigzagger, and the Burnout. Chances are you’ll recognize parts of yourself in more than one type, depending on the task or situation. What matters is not the label itself, but what it helps you see: why you’re stuck and what next step is most likely to help.
How to Know if You’re a Procrastinator
While procrastination isn’t a new problem, it has likely grown worse in the past decade, says Shatz. “Issues that can exacerbate it — like digital distractions that are relentlessly optimized to capture our attention for as long as possible — have grown more prevalent,” he says.
Some signs that you’re a procrastinator, according to Shatz:
- You say things like “I’ll do it later” or “I’ll do it tomorrow.”
- You take too long to finish things that you could just sit down and do.
- You promise yourself you’ll do things and then drag your feet.
- You struggle to get started even though you’re angry at yourself for it.
- You wait until the last minute to get started.
What Type of Procrastinator Are You? Learn the 9 Kinds
To find out what type of procrastinator you are, Shatz suggests reading through the different types and seeing which ones “jump out at you” and make you feel “seen.”
“The procrastination types are meant to serve as ‘sensemaking devices’ that help us intuitively understand why we procrastinate and what we can do to stop,” he says.
It can help to ask yourself why you procrastinate — and why sometimes you don’t. Reflect and write about your experience and the situations when you choose to take action instead, says Shatz.
“Just make sure that once you do get a ‘why,’ you dig deeper to make sure there’s not a deeper ‘why’ beneath the surface,” he says. For example, if the first answer is “social media,” dig deeper. You may be turning to your phone instead of tackling an item on your to-do list because a task feels frustrating, boring, overwhelming, or tied to fear of failure, he says.
1. The Worrier
The Worrier puts things off because taking action feels risky. What if you make the wrong choice, fail, look foolish, or create a new problem? To avoid that discomfort, you delay.
What may help: Shatz recommends “shining a light” on the fear instead of letting it stay vague. Write down what you’re afraid will happen, how likely it is, and what you would do if it did happen. You can try breaking the task into smaller steps to make it feel less threatening.
2. The Pessimist
The Pessimist delays because success does not feel likely enough to be worth the effort. This can sound like, “Why bother?” or “I’m probably not going to get it anyway.”
What may help: Build evidence that pushes back on those doubts. Shatz suggests looking at your past successes, current strengths, and reasons the task may be more doable than it feels. Write down a few reasons to try. This can make the next step feel less pointless.
3. The Perfectionist
The Perfectionist wants the work to be flawless, which can make starting feel unbearable. If the standard is impossible, delaying can feel safer than producing something imperfect.
What may help: Aim for “good enough.” Shatz recommends giving yourself permission to make mistakes, focusing on your own goals instead of other people’s standards, and softening the inner critic with self-compassion.
4. The Dreamer
The Dreamer loves the idea of the future but gets stuck imagining it instead of building it. You may picture the finished novel, business, fitness routine, or home project — while the next concrete step remains untouched.
What may help: Turn the fantasy into steps. In the book, Shatz describes a would-be entrepreneur who realizes he has spent years listening to inspiring founder interviews without moving forward. His next step is not to keep “getting inspired,” but to ask someone who has built the kind of business he wants to start for concrete guidance, then work through the first few steps of a checklist.
5. The Zigzagger
The Zigzagger type is exactly what it sounds like — you procrastinate by constantly switching from one thing to another. A message, idea, tab, chore, or new plan grabs your attention, and the original task never gets enough focus to move forward.
What may help: To improve focus, Shatz suggests adding structure, such as setting specific goals, writing down each step, reducing distractions, and getting support from someone who can help you stay accountable.
6. The Rebel
The Rebel procrastinates when a task feels like someone else’s demand. Delay becomes a way to push back, reclaim control, or resist an authority figure.
What may help: Find your own reason to act. Shatz recommends focusing on how the task benefits you, what standards actually matter to you, and where you can create more choice or autonomy. The goal is to make action feel like something you are choosing, not just something being forced on you.
7. The Thrill Seeker
The Thrill Seeker waits until the deadline is close because pressure feels energizing. This can work — until it doesn’t. Even if you pull it off, the cost may be stress, lost sleep, weaker work, or no option to course correct should something go wrong.
What may help: Shatz suggests gamifying tasks and creating smaller deadlines before the real one to make earlier action more interesting. In the book, he describes a Thrill Seeker who stops saving everything for the last minute and gives herself daily mini-deadlines, finishing and turning in small pieces of work each day. Tight but realistic time limits create enough urgency for her to focus without waiting for a crisis.
8. The Hedonist
Unlike most other procrastinators, goals and consequences aren’t a major consideration for Hedonists; they just want to feel good in the moment. It could be scrolling, snacking, gaming, napping, or anything more appealing than the task they keep putting off.
What may help: Make temptations less available and action more rewarding. Shatz recommends removing distractions from your environment, finding external sources of motivation, and checking whether another issue — such as low confidence — is feeding the delay.
9. The Burnout
The Burnout is not avoiding work because they do not care: They’re just exhausted. They regularly don’t have enough energy to do the things they need to do, and the unsustainable pace eventually takes a toll on productivity.
Shatz notes that this type often shows up in high achievers who have been doing too much for too long, especially when the work feels draining, stressful, meaningless, or underappreciated.
What may help: Rest and recovery shouldn’t be a reward for finishing everything; it needs to be part of the plan. Shatz recommends prioritizing real rest, sleep, exercise, diet, and support, while looking for ways to reduce work that is especially draining or unnecessary.
Aim to Give Yourself Grace Whatever Your Procrastination Style
“Self-compassion is crucial to facing your procrastination in a constructive way that’s both healthy and effective,” says Shatz.
One way to practice it is to ask how you would support a friend in the same situation, especially if you’re being too harsh with yourself, Shatz says. “It may also help to remind yourself that you’re not alone — procrastination is a tough challenge that many other people face, so it’s important to view it as part of the shared human experience, rather than something that isolates us,” he says.
Read the full article here
