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It's About Time!: The Six Styles of Procrastination and How to Overcome Them
Are you a procrastinator?
Do you think a lot about things you want to accomplish, but rarely get them off the ground? Do you have difficulty completing projects because your own standards haven’t been met? Do you sometimes paralyze yourself before starting something, worrying about the “what ifs”? Do you become sulky, irritable, or argumentative when asked to do a task you don’t want to do? Do you have difficulty saying “no” to people’s requests, then feel resentful when it’s time to do them? Do you ignore important assignments, then at the last minute work frantically to get them done?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may have a problem. Learn how to identify which of the six types of procrastinator you are—the Perfectionist, the Dreamer, the Worrier, the Defier, the Crisis-maker, and the Overdoer—by using quizzes and case studies, and then begin psychologist Linda Sapadin’s clear three-prong program for change.
“This practical book walks us through the proven steps of procrastination recovery and helps the reader feel inspired and empowered to reclaim their energy for life and love.”—Dr. Ellen McGrath, author of When Feeling Bad is Good
Do you think a lot about things you want to accomplish, but rarely get them off the ground? Do you have difficulty completing projects because your own standards haven’t been met? Do you sometimes paralyze yourself before starting something, worrying about the “what ifs”? Do you become sulky, irritable, or argumentative when asked to do a task you don’t want to do? Do you have difficulty saying “no” to people’s requests, then feel resentful when it’s time to do them? Do you ignore important assignments, then at the last minute work frantically to get them done?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may have a problem. Learn how to identify which of the six types of procrastinator you are—the Perfectionist, the Dreamer, the Worrier, the Defier, the Crisis-maker, and the Overdoer—by using quizzes and case studies, and then begin psychologist Linda Sapadin’s clear three-prong program for change.
“This practical book walks us through the proven steps of procrastination recovery and helps the reader feel inspired and empowered to reclaim their energy for life and love.”—Dr. Ellen McGrath, author of When Feeling Bad is Good
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
7 people are currently reading
247 people want to read
About the author
Linda Sapadin
11 books16 followersDr. Sapadin is a psychologist, author and coach who specializes in helping people become the best they can be!
She is the author of 6 self-help books, including How to Beat Procrastination in the Digital Age: 6 Change Programs for 6 Personality Styles.
Contact her at LSapadin@DrSapadin.com.
To subscribe to her free E-newsletter, PsychWisdom, go to http://www.PsychWisdom.com.
Dr. Sapadin has been honored with Fellow status by the American Psychological Association, an indication that her work has had a national impact on the field of psychology.
She has been on many TV and radio shows, including the Today Show, Good Morning America, the Voice of America and National Public Radio.
Reporters seek out her expertise on a variety of psychological and relationship topics. Her work has been featured in hundreds of print publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, Psychology Today, Men’s Health, Cosmopolitan, Prevention, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, Men’s Health, Lifetime TV.com, WedMD.com and more.
Pam Weyman, program director of the Smithsonian Associates, calls Dr. Sapadin an example of “the best standard of instructors here at the Smithsonian, an institution that seeks out only the most qualified in their field.”
She is the author of 6 self-help books, including How to Beat Procrastination in the Digital Age: 6 Change Programs for 6 Personality Styles.
Contact her at LSapadin@DrSapadin.com.
To subscribe to her free E-newsletter, PsychWisdom, go to http://www.PsychWisdom.com.
Dr. Sapadin has been honored with Fellow status by the American Psychological Association, an indication that her work has had a national impact on the field of psychology.
She has been on many TV and radio shows, including the Today Show, Good Morning America, the Voice of America and National Public Radio.
Reporters seek out her expertise on a variety of psychological and relationship topics. Her work has been featured in hundreds of print publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, Psychology Today, Men’s Health, Cosmopolitan, Prevention, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, Men’s Health, Lifetime TV.com, WedMD.com and more.
Pam Weyman, program director of the Smithsonian Associates, calls Dr. Sapadin an example of “the best standard of instructors here at the Smithsonian, an institution that seeks out only the most qualified in their field.”
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 14, 2011
I read this as well as Ferrari's Still Procrasting--this is a much better book. Ferrari covers all the science done on procrastination, but Sapadin gets right down to profiling what sort of procrastinator you are, and focused tips on how to improve.
The book's outline:
- intro
- a quiz to help you see what kind of procrastinator you are
- a chapter on each procrastination style
-- each of those chapters describes the style
-- then gives you tips on how to
--- THINK differently (including a visualization exercise)
--- SPEAK differently
--- and ACT differently, in order to change
- and a last chapter on the process of creating change.
You're left with a lot of ideas to work on, something's bound to stick. ;-) And it's a short read, which is what procrastinators need.
The book's outline:
- intro
- a quiz to help you see what kind of procrastinator you are
- a chapter on each procrastination style
-- each of those chapters describes the style
-- then gives you tips on how to
--- THINK differently (including a visualization exercise)
--- SPEAK differently
--- and ACT differently, in order to change
- and a last chapter on the process of creating change.
You're left with a lot of ideas to work on, something's bound to stick. ;-) And it's a short read, which is what procrastinators need.
January 10, 2020
Nicely explains how we procrastinate without even realizing. This book really has good content related to procrastination styles.
November 26, 2015
Sapadin distinguishes between six different ways a person can procrastinate. In the order they appear in her book, you might be a: Perfectionist, Dreamer, Worrier, Defier, Crisis-Maker, or Overdoer. You might also be more than one. You might have a big problem with being a Dreamer and a little problem with being a Perfectionist. There are self-assessments in the first chapter to help you determine if you're a procrastinator, and if so, which kind. Each quiz addresses one type of procrastinator and has up to 20 points. If you score 0-9 points, that’s a “minor” style of procrastination. (0-4 points isn’t really a concern; 5-9 points needs work.) If you score 10-20 points, that’s a “major” style of procrastination. In the order they appear in her book, I scored 16, 18, 18, 6, 6, and 8 points. 3 major styles, 3 minor styles, and 0 “not a concern”s. Goody.
The rest of the book addresses how to change your behavior (specifically, how you think, speak, and act) so you don’t procrastinate so much. Will the chapters I read help me? Probably not. Is that the book’s fault? Probably not. The suggested changes were all decent (if kind of hokey). But each style of procrastination has (in the order they appear in the book) 18, 16, 16, 16, 12, and 17 proposed modifications to your behavior. That’s 95 changes. That’s more than I will ever be able to remember. Even if I just focus on the changes for my “major styles,” that’s still 50 different tips and tricks. And if I whittle it down to the few that seem most useful? Already do them. Don’t really help. So, my overall reaction was somewhere between “It was OK” and “I liked it.” I can’t really say “I liked it” since I don’t think it’ll be helping me much, but it was better than “OK” because I think Sapadin really was rather thoughtful and insightful with the whole “different way to procrastinate” and “you might use more than one type” prelude to her book. I would have liked some changes that address more than one style. But overall, I mostly just feel overwhelmed even thinking of trying to change my behavior. So instead, I’m going to think about what book to read next. (Because that will help, right?)
The rest of the book addresses how to change your behavior (specifically, how you think, speak, and act) so you don’t procrastinate so much. Will the chapters I read help me? Probably not. Is that the book’s fault? Probably not. The suggested changes were all decent (if kind of hokey). But each style of procrastination has (in the order they appear in the book) 18, 16, 16, 16, 12, and 17 proposed modifications to your behavior. That’s 95 changes. That’s more than I will ever be able to remember. Even if I just focus on the changes for my “major styles,” that’s still 50 different tips and tricks. And if I whittle it down to the few that seem most useful? Already do them. Don’t really help. So, my overall reaction was somewhere between “It was OK” and “I liked it.” I can’t really say “I liked it” since I don’t think it’ll be helping me much, but it was better than “OK” because I think Sapadin really was rather thoughtful and insightful with the whole “different way to procrastinate” and “you might use more than one type” prelude to her book. I would have liked some changes that address more than one style. But overall, I mostly just feel overwhelmed even thinking of trying to change my behavior. So instead, I’m going to think about what book to read next. (Because that will help, right?)
December 26, 2014
I have more than occasional problems with procrastination, though not nearly as bad as most of the people profiled in this book, which made it difficult to relate to at times. What I did like is the author's insistence that in order to conquer procrastination, you have to understand why you procrastinate in the first place. Her suggestions on how to think about and tackle these problems were immensely helpful to me.
October 19, 2007
This book is the only book out of six or seven books I read that finally stopped my procastinating ways. It didn't just teach you about time management, it gave you reasons why you might be such a procrastinator.
May 11, 2014
A great book indeed, one that will come in handy when the time cones to face your own issues. The one issue I noticed is
that the book seems to focus a lot on what to do, but not on how to do it and, especially, how to keep doing it...
that the book seems to focus a lot on what to do, but not on how to do it and, especially, how to keep doing it...
July 2, 2015
I enjoyed the descriptions of the different types, enjoyed the quizzes, but completely lost interest in the individual chapters, even the ones that applied directly to me. Too many case studies, too much meditation recommended.
August 25, 2008
Incredibly helpful suggestions. Without trying too hard to change, I already have a little, because it helped me recognize what I was doing. Love it!
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June 18, 2010Oh the irony. I put off reading it, then had to return it. Clearly, I'm not yet cured.
August 15, 2010
So I procrastinate due to fear of failure...well, now I have some tools to deal with that: visualizations and better organization. Here's to a new me.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews