# We need a better word/term for this procrastination-like thing **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 17, 2011, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662 "2011-02-17T03:08:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/1 "2011-02-17T03:08:43Z")
In a neighbouring thread, I mentioned a phenomenon of human behaviour thusly: > [@Me](#): > > During those few months of unemployment, my house was a MESS. Between job searches and pounding the pavement looking for work, I had hours upon hours of time at my disposal. So why was my house such a mess? Because I knew that I had a surplus of free time to clean up. There was no urgency, no need to set a time to clean up. Paradoxically, because I COULD clean up my house at any time, I DIDN’T… because I was secure in the knowledge that I would be able to. To which **shiftless** said: “I wish there was a word for this.” Well, is there? Can we make one up? It’s a form of procrastination, but a specific type. I wasn’t postponing action to avoid the task, I simply didn’t feel compelled to act because I knew I could act anytime. As a result, I did nothing. It’s more a form of procrastination inspired by overconfidence in the ability to complete the task. We need a term like “The Can-Do Procrastination Paradox”. ---
**Author:** ![Lakai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lakai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lakai)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/2 "2011-02-17T03:46:13Z")
Procrastination has many rationalizations. One of the hallmarks of procrastination is lying to yourself about what you are going to do in the future: “I’ll have more time to do it later,” “I’ll feel better later, so that’s when I’ll do it,” etc… The key is that you thought cleaning your house was a good idea but you came up with an excuse not to do it. That’s simple procrastination. > [@](#): > > I wasn’t postponing action to avoid the task, I simply didn’t feel compelled to act because I knew I could act anytime. It’s the same thing. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/3 "2011-02-17T03:46:26Z")
procrastadox–sounds like a new subspecies of velociraptor paracrastination–sounds like a sexy medical disorder (a la paraphilia) procrastinoxidation–sounds sciencey! but kinda chemical ---
**Author:** ![KinkiNipponTourist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e9bcb4/32.png) [@KinkiNipponTourist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KinkiNipponTourist)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/4 "2011-02-17T04:12:52Z")
Hrm. You could name it after me, as I excel at it. How about “countdown procrastination”? You know you still have time on the clock, so…another game of Solitaire, sailor? ---
**Author:** ![Baal\_Houtham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baal_houtham/32/13604_2.png) [@Baal\_Houtham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baal_Houtham)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/5 "2011-02-17T04:26:37Z")
It could be covered by [Parkinson’s Law:](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinson%27s_Law) _Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion._ However you could say it’s a different phenomenon because the work doesn’t even begin. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/6 "2011-02-17T04:26:52Z")
Seems that the existing word most appropriate to the situation is apathy. ETA: > [@](#): > > Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion. Hmm. Finite work divided by infinite time = Work ≈ 0 ---
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/7 "2011-02-17T05:13:24Z")
I get my best work done when I’m procrastinating. Its time to clean out the freezer, but I don’t want to do that, so I’ll clean the oven. Oven is clean but I’ve noticed dust on the kitchen blinds. I’ll clean the blinds, but now sees that the windows are dirty. Now that the windows are clean, I clean the blinds and sills. Now the floor is needing to be cleaned… I often wish that I had just cleaned the freezer right away. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/8 "2011-02-17T05:56:17Z")
I’ll think up a word for it tomorrow. Or the next day. If I get around to it and nothing else comes up. Or not, if I just don’t feel like it. Is it really that important, anyway? And besides, it’s right around my nap time. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/9 "2011-02-17T06:07:12Z")
> [@Lakai](#): > > That’s simple procrastination. Yep, that’s what I think, too. The more I try to think about what distinction the OP is trying to make, the more I realise there’s none to be made. It’s finding any excuse to put something off until later, which is the very definition of _procrastination_. Maybe, at a stretch, you could call it “prolonged procrastination.” ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/10 "2011-02-17T13:07:30Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > It’s finding any excuse to put something off until later, which is the very definition of _procrastination_. But that’s exactly what it was NOT. I was not finding any excuse to put something off until later. “Looking for excuses” that implies a negative outlook and unwillingness to deal with the task and that unwillingness is completely absent in the scenario I’m trying to describe. It was a positive outlook due to the surplus of opportunity that somehow resulted in the procrastination. “Yay! I have all this time to get X done, which means I can do a great job of it.” Then X doesn’t get done at all due to the surplus of a good thing removing. The other example from the neighbouring thread: > [@](#): > > So secure in the knowledge that her new paycheck could now get her out of debt, my co-worker didn’t actively DO anything to free herself of that debt. She got enough money, so she said to herself: “Phew! I don’t have to worry about those payments anymore.” No longer desperate, she became uneasily comfortable with it just not changing, because “now she could manage.” So the debt was “managed”, not reduced. That’s what I’m looking for. Some term that means “I have a surplus of opportunity to do X, which is so awesome, that X doesn’t get done.” ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/11 "2011-02-17T13:50:22Z")
I’ve seen this same phenomenon in tourism. People who were born and raised in city X have never seen the sights in X unless dragged there by school. These same people have often seen the tourist sights in virtually every other town they visited. When asked, they say, “Oh, the sights in my hometown X? I’ll see those some day. When it rains, or something”. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/12 "2011-02-17T13:57:15Z")
Sounds distantly related to analysis paralysis. Maybe some pairing of satiate and shun… _satiashun?_ Okay, mebbe not. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/13 "2011-02-17T14:16:04Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > I’ve seen this same phenomenon in tourism. People who were born and raised in city X have never seen the sights in X unless dragged there by school. These same people have often seen the tourist sights in virtually every other town they visited. When asked, they say, “Oh, the sights in my hometown X? I’ll see those some day. When it rains, or something”. Yes, exactly! I thought of a simpler analogy: 1. I am worried about my mortgage payments. 2. I win a million dollars! I can pay off my mortgage all at once right now! 3. I don’t pay off my mortage right away, because I’m no longer worried about it. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/14 "2011-02-17T14:28:48Z")
> [@Eats\_Crayons](#): > > That’s what I’m looking for. Some term that means “I have a surplus of opportunity to do X, which is so awesome, that X doesn’t get done.” This reminds me of how I never listen to music once I have purchased it. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/15 "2011-02-17T14:34:07Z")
I’d go for lazy. You saw something that needed doing and adopted the principle, “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can put off until the day after tomorrow.” Lazy. Just do it. ---
**Author:** ![KinkiNipponTourist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e9bcb4/32.png) [@KinkiNipponTourist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KinkiNipponTourist)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/16 "2011-02-17T16:13:31Z")
> [@Eats\_Crayons](#): > > Yes, exactly! > > I thought of a simpler analogy: > > 1. I am worried about my mortgage payments. > 2. I win a million dollars! I can pay off my mortgage all at once right now! > 3. I don’t pay off my mortage right away, because I’m no longer worried about it. Another analogy I was thinking of was the whole leaky roof phenomenon. You know, when it rains you think ‘yep, must fix that roof! can’t do it in the rain, but the next sunny day I’ll get right on it!’ Then that sunny day comes and fixing your roof–why? it ain’t even raining, man!–is not even a concern. How about ‘leaky roof procrastination’? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Deegeea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Deegeea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deegeea)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/17 "2011-02-17T16:29:04Z")
The more I think about it, the more I think that it’s very related to the thing that makes “For a Limited Time Only!” increase sales. It sounds like you’d (the OP) had been used to cleaning when you had a chance, because you didn’t have much time to do it. So rather than a habit (something you would’ve continued to do at the same rate whether employed or not), cleaning had become a “Limited Time Only!” opportunity to grab. When that no longer applied, your normal impetus to clean was gone, so you didn’t do it. Tourism is a great example of something similar that is common to a lot of people. “Make hay while the sun shines” is a saying that refers to this principle of motivation - those who are in sales are keenly aware of it. If a salesperson gives the impression that the offer is only available for a limited time, customers are more likely to take it while it’s available. It’s probably also related to how scarcity implies value. Value is rarely perceived at actual benefit - it has more to do with difficulty to obtain. We should all value air more highly than anything if it were otherwise. Without air, we’d die very very quickly… nothing else would be meaningful at all! But instead, air is so readily available and common that it does not get much value at all, people would often trade some air for something of much less intrinsic value, but more scarcity. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/18 "2011-02-17T17:08:05Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > You saw something that needed doing and adopted the principle, “Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can put off until the day after tomorrow.” > > Lazy. Just do it. That made me laugh out loud. Clearly you don’t know the crayon-eater IRL (a crazy busy, schedule-juggling freakazoid). Anyhoo, I just came in to drop my experience of this phenomenon—BEER! When I was underage, scoring beer was a Big Deal. It was a rare commodity that took effort to get. When my buddies and I drank beer it was to excess! _Spilling_ any beer beer while drinking with your buddies resulted in cries of “Beer crime! Beer crime!” Then I moved to Canada where the drinking age was 19 and, meh, if I wanted a beer I could just open the fridge. It was more like **Deegea’s** “limited time only” observation. When we were underage dumbasses and there was a “Get it while you can!” thing happening, my buddies and I would suck back a case if we could. Once I could have a beer whenever I felt like it, a six pack could last in my fridge for a month or more. Not “procrastinating” or “lazy”… “Taking for granted” maybe? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/19 "2011-02-17T17:12:13Z")
The “unforbidden fruit”, maybe? Not so tasty and tempting if you can just go buy some… ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662/20 "2011-02-17T18:19:56Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > The “unforbidden fruit”, maybe? Not so tasty and tempting if you can just go buy some… Sounds like a book title: _The Cremation of Sam McGee The Count of Monte Cristo The Procrastination of Unforbidden Beer_ ETA: A romance, clearly. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-need-a-better-word-term-for-this-procrastination-like-thing/571662.md?page=2)