SEtalk: Procrastination Isn't About Laziness

Okay, I want to start with a confession.

好，我想先坦白一件事。

I wrote most of this talk last night.

這場演講大部分的內容，是我昨晚才寫的。

At two o'clock in the morning.

凌晨2點。

And I had six weeks to prepare it!

而我明明有6週的時間可以準備！

So you could say I'm an expert on procrastination.

所以可以說，我是拖延症專家。

For years, I believed I was just lazy.

好多年來，我一直以為自己只是懶。

But that never really made sense.

但這一直說不通。

When I was avoiding work, I wasn't resting.

我逃避工作的時候，並沒有在休息。

I was cleaning the fridge. Reorganising my bookshelf.

我在清冰箱。重新整理書架。

I was doing everything except the thing!

除了正事，我什麼都做了！

Then I came across some research that changed my mind.

後來，我偶然看到一些研究，改變了我的想法。

Psychologists who study procrastination say it isn't a time problem.

研究拖延的心理學家說，這不是時間的問題。

It's an emotion problem.

這是情緒的問題。

We don't avoid the task. We avoid a feeling.

我們不是在逃避任務。我們是在逃避一種感受。

Boredom, anxiety, the fear of not being good enough.

無聊、焦慮，還有害怕自己不夠好。

Think about the task you're avoiding right now.

想一想你們現在正在逃避的那件事。

Yes, you know the one.

對，你們心裡都很清楚是哪一件。

What feeling does it give you?

它讓你們有什麼感覺？

For me... it was always the same fear.

對我來說……一直都是同一種恐懼。

What if I try my best, and it's still not good enough?

萬一我盡了全力，結果還是不夠好呢？

So I stopped waiting for motivation.

於是我不再等待動力。

Instead, I made the first step ridiculously small.

相反地，我把第一步設得小到可笑。

Not "write the report", but "open the document".

不是「寫報告」，而是「打開文件」。

Just two minutes. That's the deal.

就2分鐘。說好了。

And nine times out of ten, I keep going.

結果10次裡有9次，我都會繼續做下去。

Here's one more surprising finding.

還有一個令人意外的發現。

Students who forgave themselves for procrastinating before one exam

那些原諒自己在某次考試前拖延的學生，

actually procrastinated less before the next one!

在下一次考試前，反而比較不拖延了！

Guilt doesn't fix procrastination. Kindness does.

罪惡感治不好拖延。溫柔才可以。

So tonight, when you feel like avoiding something,

所以今晚，當你們想逃避某件事的時候，

don't call yourself lazy.

別說自己懶。

Ask yourself what you're afraid of,

問問自己在害怕什麼，

and then take one tiny step anyway!

然後不管怎樣，跨出一小步！

Thank you. And yes, I'll start my next talk earlier.

謝謝大家。還有，對，下一場演講我會早點開始準備。