Thursday Thirteen #15: advantages of procrastination

Never put off till tomorrow what can be done today.
Procrastination is the thief of time.
A stitch in time saves nine.

Blah blah blah.

How come we never hear about the positive side of procrastination?

Thirteen Examples of How Procrastination Can Be Beneficial

1. I learned all about the benefits of procrastination in college. If I started working on a paper a week in advance, it would take me a week to write it. If I waited until the night before it was due, it would take me exactly however many hours I had until class started, minus a couple hours for sleep.

2. There were several examples of positive procrastination with my recent move. For example, our house in Iowa had a lovely sun room, and I always meant to find a comfy chair to put in that room but I never got around to it. I would have no use for that chair now.

3. I also never got around to getting an Iowa drivers license in the year an a half we lived there. I saved time, money, and my sanity since I didn't have to visit the DMV with three small children. (I do need to get my California license soon, though, so I can vote in November. I'll get around to it one of these days...)

4. Should you renew your car tags in advance? I say, wait until the last possible moment. What if you decide to move, get rid of your car, or it gets totaled before the deadline?

5. Several years ago, I sent a check in with a magazine subscription renewal instead of just marking the box that said “bill me.” Then the magazine went under, and I never got reimbursed, despite multiple conversations with customer service. (Yes, as a matter of fact I am still bitter, Walking Magazine!)

6. I love it when I’ve put off starting dinner, then my husband calls and suggests takeout.

7. Okay, so this doesn’t happen often, but have you ever meant to give away old clothes but never got around to it, then they came back in style?

8. Sometimes I procrastinate on something that one of my kids wants me to do for them, and after a while they either forget, or figure out how to do it themselves.

9. At our house we have days in which one or more of the kids never get dressed. At bedtime, it’s handy because they are already in their pajamas! Saves time, and laundry.

10. Occasionally when I’ve put off doing the dishes, my husband or a visiting family member does them. Normally though, the dishes just sit there getting crusty.

11. Speaking of dishes, have you ever broken a plate or glass right after you washed it? That makes me so mad. If I break a dirty dish, I think, well, at least that’s one less dish to wash.

12. I really hate washing dishes, can you tell? I think it’s because there is no end to the task. It depresses me a little.

13. That last one was not an Example of How Procrastination Can Be Beneficial. Well this one isn’t either. That’s because I’m out of ideas. Maybe if I had started this project earlier, I could have come up with a few more examples.


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