“Laziness was born before me. Since childhood, it has been very difficult for me to force myself to do something, especially something I don’t like. I often put things off until later, thinking that I will definitely do everything when I have more time and energy. After all, nothing terrible will happen, there is still time. Often I plan a bunch of things for the day, but end up doing nothing. But then I feel remorse for wasting time, not doing an important task, and spending the day uselessly. How do I fight laziness? I try different remedies, but so far she wins.
I put off writing my final work until the very last moment, and I felt afraid that I wouldn’t be able to submit it on time, but for some reason I couldn’t bring myself to sit down and do it. I was distracted by interesting videos, films, TV series, minor household chores - just to avoid doing work. I found a bunch of reasons and excuses: bad mood, lack of inspiration, other things to do, important meetings, poor health. I knew I was being irresponsible. I felt ashamed that I was letting everyone down, including myself. But I don't like being pressured. I need a special mood, inspiration, so that I get down to business. I don’t know how else to deal with my laziness and disorganization.”
— Alena, 24 years old
The story of our heroine is familiar to, perhaps, every person. We are all sometimes overcome by laziness: we put off important things, spend the whole day without doing anything useful. And this is normal - until this bad habit begins to spoil our life, as long as we are able to overcome it.
Sometimes such sabotaging of affairs can be very useful, because initially laziness is embedded in us as a psychological defense mechanism against overwork. And if in general you do not consider yourself a lazy person, you should listen to this important signal from the body and rest on time: this will protect you from serious illnesses that arise due to exhaustion - depression, heart disease, nervous disorders. But if you feel that your laziness has developed into a habit, perhaps this is not just the body’s reaction to fatigue, but a stable pattern of behavior. [1] In this article we will understand the psychology of laziness and tell you how to overcome laziness, which prevents you from living a full life.
Test: Do you have problems with laziness?
To find out if your laziness has become a habit, take this little test. Check the statements with which you agree:
- I put off completing a task until the last minute, even if a lot depends on it.
- I am often late for work, this is already part of the system.
- I make big plans for the weekend, but every time I decide to stay at home and watch TV series.
- Every night I promise myself to change.
- I prefer to overpay and order food at home rather than cook it myself.
- I can’t deny myself the pleasure of lying in bed in the morning, even if I’m late.
- I can go weeks without cleaning my apartment, simply because I’m lazy.
- I constantly plan to start working out, but I don’t know how to overcome laziness and start exercising.
- I refuse any offers to go somewhere or do something interesting - at home it’s much better.
- I rarely meet with friends and family because I don’t want to leave the house to meet.
An easy victory over laziness!
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If you agreed with most of the points, most likely, your laziness has moved to the stage where it is already interfering with your life and work. The consequences of such laziness can be very serious: health problems, dismissal from work, inability to build close relationships with people. This habit can really ruin your life. To prevent this from happening, you should pay attention to the problem and find out how to overcome laziness.
Reviews and comments
Tell us, what are the reasons for your laziness and how do you deal with them? Leave comments under this post or in our groups on social networks.
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Key words:1Psychoregulation
Pathological laziness: causes
In addition to fatigue, laziness can have many other reasons, which are based on internal conflicts or lack of motivation. After all, what is laziness from a psychological point of view? This is a reaction to the discrepancy between “need” and “want”, an imbalance between a person’s needs and his living conditions. Knowing the true causes of laziness, you can better understand how to overcome it.
Lack of interest in work
Unfortunately, not each of us is lucky enough to do what we love, for which we want to get up in the morning. It is not surprising that a person quickly loses interest in a job he doesn’t like; he simply loses the motivation to perform his tasks efficiently. After all, if you force yourself to do something that you don’t need for a long time, natural resistance arises - the brain simply doesn’t understand why waste so much energy on a useless activity. It is especially difficult when work contradicts a person’s values: this can develop into a serious internal conflict, and in especially severe cases it can even lead to mental disorders. Methods of dealing with laziness in this case are not simple: you need to either change your job or try to find meaning in your current one. [2]
Lack of goals in life
This reason is related to the previous one. Essentially, a lack of goals—both short-term and long-term—equals a lack of motivation. It is very important for a person to strive for something. Aimless actions naturally cause reluctance to perform them, even if they themselves arouse interest. In addition, if the necessary things are not consistent with our true goals, the reluctance to spend time on them is also completely natural. Therefore, when wondering how to “cure” laziness, you need to first ask yourself: why do I need to complete this or that task that I am currently sabotaging?
Fear
Sometimes laziness comes from fear of a voluminous project or an overly complex task. A person may be afraid that he will not cope, that the efforts expended will not be worth it, that he will be criticized. Moreover, the fear may not even be recognized - there will simply be a reluctance to start work. Fear can especially constrain eternal perfectionists, for whom it is important that everything is done perfectly, as well as people who lack self-confidence. In ordinary life they can be hardworking people, but increased responsibility scares them. How can an adult deal with laziness in this case? Realize that an imperfect result also has a right to exist.
Weakness
Laziness can be not only a protest against uninteresting or difficult work, but also a weakness of character. A person with weak will simply cannot bring himself to do something, even if he knows that it is important. Such a person strives exclusively for quick pleasures. He cannot overcome himself, get everything done and enjoy a well-deserved rest. It’s easier for him to have fun right now, postponing things for later.
We talked about how to cure weakness of will, and therefore overcome laziness and fatigue, in this article.
The habit of being lazy
Finally, the reason may simply be a habit of laziness that has been ingrained since childhood. Perhaps as a child you did not have any household responsibilities, your parents made decisions for you, and they simply turned a blind eye to your reluctance to study. In this case, you may have developed a certain pattern of behavior, and it was not easy to overcome it as an adult.
Learned helplessness
Another option is if you were regularly assigned overwhelming responsibilities. In this case, you have learned that you still won’t be able to complete the task, which means you shouldn’t even try. Under such conditions, learned helplessness develops, which manifests itself in chronic laziness. [3]
Mental disorders or physical illnesses
Let’s take a separate look at this reason for reluctance to do something. Chronic laziness that occurs suddenly can be a symptom of depression, as well as serious somatic diseases: from diseases of the cardiovascular system to cancer. If you understand that none of the above reasons are for you, perhaps you should pay attention to your mental and physical state. Knowing how to deal with laziness will not help here: to overcome it, you need to treat not the symptom, but the disease itself. Therefore, be sure to consult a doctor to determine the cause of pathological laziness and begin treatment.
Excessive energy savings
Scientists began to study the phenomenon of energy expenditure relatively recently, about forty years ago. Before this, a rare biologist expressed thoughts about the ability of animals to competently manage their internal resources. But in fact, it turned out that even tiny mice act extremely rationally and try not to waste much energy.
Almost all mammals, when obtaining food, try to develop a route that will not only be as safe as possible, but will also save the creatures the greatest amount of effort. Moreover, animals have learned to find a competent balance and sacrifice strength in exchange for relative calm and vice versa. The principle of saving resources is expressed in almost every action. Moreover, this is also true for birds and some other kingdoms.
“From a biological point of view, laziness is an excessive implementation of the principle of saving energy. All living organisms strive to optimize the ratio of the vital resources received and the energy expended for this, that is, they try to get more by spending less. This pattern is not just a speculative conclusion, but a conclusion made on the basis of measurements,” said Doctor of Biological Sciences Dmitry Zhukov.
Problems arise when laziness becomes an end rather than a means. This is only observed in humans.
How to deal with laziness: advice from psychologists
How to overcome laziness and force yourself to work and do other things? In some cases, you can successfully deal with the problem on your own if you really want to. Here are some tips on how you can overcome laziness at work and at home, gradually weaning yourself off laziness every day:
- The “by contradiction” method: do nothing. You need to stand in the center of the room and literally immerse yourself in doing nothing. You cannot move, listen to music or watch TV, talk, and ideally even think. After a few minutes, you will definitely want to do at least something - the body cannot remain in a passive state for a long time. This remedy is considered very effective.
- Work for a few minutes. If the hardest part of your job is getting started, try this method. Convince yourself to work for just five minutes. If this is too difficult, you can start with two. Set a timer and work for the set time. Most likely, you won’t want to stop - your brain has already started working, and switching requires a lot of resources. This recommendation will help if you have a complex or very large task that scares you.
- Find motivation. To the question of how to deal with laziness as an adult, psychology first of all gives this answer. And it is best to do this in writing. Take a piece of paper and write down a few reasons to do the work. For example, you will earn money and be able to spend it on something pleasant, improve your reputation, feel proud of yourself, be able to relax without thinking about work, improve your professional level... Or maybe some global goal motivates you. The reasons can be any, the main thing is that they force you to complete the task. You can hang this list in your workplace and re-read it every day. This simple action will help in the fight against reluctance to work.
- Plan your day. It's best in the evening. Sometimes it can be scary just the thought that there is so much to do and it is completely impossible to get it done. In this case, psychology considers planning to be one of the best ways to combat laziness. It will help you cope with anxiety and show that not everything is so scary. Plan only one most important thing for the day and several minor ones. Don't start doing the minor things until you've completed the main ones. Large tasks can be broken down into several simple steps - this will make it easier to get started. Give each stage a clear time frame and follow it using a timer.
- Find your work schedule. The previous tip will help you understand what times of the day you are more motivated. For example, if you are a night owl, you are unlikely to be productive at the beginning of the day. Find a time when you have the highest energy levels and schedule your most challenging work for that period.
- Praise yourself. Only you know how much work each step in the fight against laziness costs you. Therefore, do not wait for the approval of others, praise yourself. After each completed task, give yourself small pleasant breaks, at the end of the day reward yourself with your favorite delicacy or a trip to the cinema, and tell yourself encouraging words more often. [4]
- Remember the time. Finally, remember that you spend much more energy on resistance to work and remorse from your own laziness than on the work itself. So isn’t it easier to finally stop thinking about how to overcome laziness and start working, and just sit down and complete the task, and then calmly enjoy your vacation?
All means are good
Stopping being lazy is a kind of good habit, and according to some experts, it is formed within 21 days. This was first discussed by a plastic surgeon who noted that people need at least three weeks to get used to their new appearance. At the same time, everything depends on the individual characteristics of the person: for some, it takes a month for a habit to become a second “I”, and for others – much more. This must be understood and accepted. The main condition is consistency.
Some pretty simple ways to make laziness a thing of the past
- Don't try to complete the task in one sitting, divide it into small parts . For example, for 10-minute approaches. We set a timer and work strictly during this time. Then 2 minutes of rest. And we get to work again. And so 5 approaches. Only an hour will pass, and the work will be done decently.
- Encourage yourself ! Then any work will be easier, and the fight against the strongest laziness will seem like something pleasant. Praise yourself for every task you complete. Everyone has their own ways of doing this.
- Create the mood ! For example, decorate your workplace so that it evokes only positive emotions. Another option for boosting morale is to play your favorite music that will lift your spirits.
- Be patient ! Don't quit what you started halfway. Often the result is not immediately visible and you need to learn patience.
- Systematicity . Every day. You shouldn’t compromise with yourself: “I’ll rest today, I’m lazy, and I’ll finish it tomorrow.” Consistency is important.
Why are people lazy
People are lazy and procrastinate because:
- it’s just that a person is used to doing nothing;
- the brain does not see the goal;
- believes that the goal is unattainable;
- the goal is not needed for normal functioning;
- there are some inconsistencies;
- striving for ideal;
- feels afraid;
- the environment is also lazy;
- the brain does not understand the value of the goal.
In addition, people are lazy because the goal is so far in the future that a person does not associate himself today with a person who will achieve this goal in the future and additional reasons arise: a) the reward for achieving the goal is very distant b) in the future we see how- some other person, not like ourselves now. More about this in the article procrastination, rewards far in the future and disconnection from the future self.
