Procrastination, i.e. putting off tasks until later, is one of the surest ways of avoiding a successful life and is little more than self-sabotage. People who constantly put things off until tomorrow are putting obstacles in their own way. If you are one of these people, you should know the following.

20 per cent of society are self-proclaimed procrastinators. This means that they see procrastination as a lifestyle that determines their entire existence. They constantly miss opportunities and put off activities until the last second. This attitude can be a real problem that society does not recognise enough. Underlying the tendency to procrastinate is a deep problem of self-control.
Procrastination has its origins neither in poor time management nor in bad forward planning. People who generally postpone everything until later are just as good at estimating time as anyone else, but are more naïve and optimistic when it comes to executing their plan. For example, they firmly believe that they will actually complete the task "tomorrow", but when "tomorrow" arrives, their optimism fades. So there is no point in creating a diary, because the chronic procrastinator will not stick to their plan any more than a depressive can simply become cheerful.

You are not born a procrastinator. It is a learnt habit. It is often the reaction to an authoritarian parent. Controlling parents prevent children from becoming independent and make them rebellious. This also often leads to procrastinators drinking more alcohol because they lack self-control.

Procrastinators tend to lie to themselves. A typical sentence is "I can work better under pressure". In reality, the time pressure they have put themselves under by procrastinating means that they lack the motivation to complete the task. They also delude themselves into thinking that the time pressure makes them more creative, but unfortunately this is usually not the case at all.

A person who constantly delays their tasks is actively looking for distractions, especially those that require little effort. Fear of failure is often behind the deliberate procrastination.

There are basically three different reasons why people postpone. One reason is the addiction to the adrenaline rush that sometimes comes with working at the last minute under pressure. Another reason can be simple avoidance of unwanted tasks, fear of failure or fear of success. These people spend too much time worrying about what others think of them. They would rather that others think they lack drive than that they are incapable.
Finally, there are those who procrastinate because they are incapable of making decisions. Decisions mean responsibility and by avoiding a decision, they evade this responsibility.

Health often suffers from constant procrastination. Procrastination inevitably leads to problems, anger, time pressure and stress, thus weakening the immune system. Procrastinators also lose a lot of sleep thinking about unfinished tasks. In addition, these people shift their responsibilities onto others, who resent them for it. Procrastination is the enemy of teamwork, both at work and in relationships.

The most important thing to know is that you can change. Just as you have learnt to procrastinate, you can consciously unlearn it again. As relearning takes a lot of energy, which procrastinators in particular usually don't want to expend, you should seek counselling from a therapist.