Stop Paying the Hidden Tax of Procrastination
What’s the hidden cost your brain pays every time you procrastinate?
For a year, I procrastinated on building shelves in my wife's closet. Each time she asked about the shelves, I made some excuse and kept putting it off. In those moments, I felt immediate relief from the task, but I didn't realize I was paying for it with something far more valuable: my mental energy.
Today, I want to explore the phenomenon called “mental tax”, the hidden cost our brains pay every time we think about a task, worry about it, decide to do it…and then don’t.
Let's go back to my shelf example to see how, over the course of a year, the mental tax added up and weighed me down:
My cognitive load increased because it took up valuable space in my mind
The tension and anxiety of not doing the task added background stress
My self-criticism increased as I beat myself up for not having built the shelves
My repeated internal debate over whether to start or not led to decision fatigue
The long wait led to losing the momentum I had gained, which made it hard to pick up where I left off
The delay made the task feel much bigger and scarier in my head with each delay, which made me overestimate the effort needed to build the shelves
The longer a task remains in our minds, the bigger and more complicated it becomes. The mental bandwidth occupied by this process exhausts us and takes up space in our brains, which could have been used for more creative work, problem-solving, or, better yet, for relaxation.
How can we reduce the mental tax?
Here are a few strategies to keep from paying the high tax rates of procrastination:
Break the seal - do the smallest possible step so it becomes an "in-progress" task instead of a task for the future
Shrink the scope - reduce the scope of your task to achieve "done" faster
Park it properly - get the task out of your head and schedule it on a calendar so it doesn't take up unnecessary space in your head
Be intentional - tell yourself you are choosing to do the task now instead of having to eventually do it.
In the short run, we feel relief from not having to do a task, but the decision can adversely affect both our mental health and well-being.
Every step toward action rewires your brain for success, so take small, consistent steps forward to develop your resilience.
Stop paying the mental tax on unfinished tasks so you can use your energy on more creative and impactful tasks!
May curiosity be your guide ✊🏽
