Procrastination: The Quitter Mechanism

The illusion of laziness

You have likely been told that procrastination is a defect of character. You are told you lack discipline or time management skills.

This is false. You do not lack the energy to work. You have simply directed that energy toward avoidance. Procrastination is an active, intense defense mechanism. It is the ego working overtime to keep you safe.

The protection of potential

The mind loves potential. As long as the book is not written, it might be a bestseller. As long as the business is not launched, it might be a unicorn.

The moment you act, potential collapses into reality. Reality is imperfect. Reality can be judged. Reality can fail.

To the ego, a definitive failure is a death sentence. It prefers the vague, low grade misery of "not doing it" to the sharp, terrifying risk of "doing it and failing."

The safe harbor

Procrastination allows you to maintain a noble self image. You can tell yourself, "I am a genius, I just have trouble starting."

This is a safe harbor. It allows you to keep the identity of the capable person without ever having to test that capability in the real world. You are buying your immortality on credit.

The cost

The price of this safety is your life.

While you protect your potential, your actual existence evaporates. You trade the chance to be real for the comfort of remaining a fantasy. The Quitter keeps you safe, but it keeps you dead.

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