Step back before stepping forward
Let’s say that you’re given an assignment with an established deadline or that you come up with a great concept for an endeavor that has to be ready-to-go by a specific date.
What’s the best way to move forward with it? Get an early jump on what needs to be done or hold off until its deadline is a loud demand for attention? Easy choice, right? Get to it and outline what needs to be done and then go from there, tackling each step along the way. Putting the work off, after all, is bound to cause unnecessary anxiety about how all the needed steps will get done in a shorter amount of time. Just thinking about the scenario probably makes your stomach turn.
But, wait. Maybe not.
A few years ago, Adam Grant, PhD, a bestselling author and psychology professor at Wharton University of Pennsylvania, conducted a TED talk where he spoke about procrastination’s role in original thinking. As it turns out, his studies confirmed that people who procrastinate in moderation are more original in thought than precrastinators are, that is, those who rush to an early start on a vision. Perhaps less surprising is that moderate procrastinators also tend to come up with more original thoughts than long-term procrastinators do – those who hold off on a project until the last moment before its due.
As Grant said, delaying work on a project provides time for the concept to incubate. It gives people the space to let their ideas branch out, often in surprising ways. Sure, procrastination can slow productivity, but, as Grant found, it also boosts creativity.
Makes sense to me. In fact, I’ve found that when time permits, postponing work for a bit on an assignment opens spaces for inspired ideas. I like to jot down beginning thoughts, let them sit for a few hours (or days), and then go back to them with fresh eyes. Almost always, I come away with a new perspective, awareness or direction, whether it’s slight, serious or something in the middle. It’s amazing how ideas that hadn’t occurred to me about a given venture suddenly emerge, providing a me with a new insight or pathways to other ideas. It’s exciting and motivating.
Stepping back from immediate action might be less comfortable than the assurance of taking concrete steps to move a project forward from the get-go. But considering possible ways that something could come together is movement, too, however intangible. So, take that step, but let it breathe before getting back into it. Give your ideas time to bloom and see where they take you. You might be surprised.
It’s something to think about, isn’t it?
Karen Maserjian Shan is a communications professional, editor and writer with an expertise in connecting people and businesses through written communications in print and digital platforms.
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