Procrastination Can Be Destructive To A Relationship

At work and at home, people form relationships in which they depend upon one another. Family life can be rocky or smooth depending on the ability of spouses and family members to divide the necessary home duties and follow through on their individual responsibilities. Relationships between co-workers also involve a level of trust that each member of the business team will contribute an adequate amount of work to a given assignment. In both of these circumstances, one person’s failure to do a fair share of the work can be devastating to the effectiveness of the family or work group and can also hinder people from trusting one another. Therefore, when procrastination becomes a significant influence in a person’s habits, both the practical and the emotional sides of the person’s family and work relationships will suffer.

In home relationships, there is always a largish quantity of work that needs to be accomplished in order for the family to run smoothly. Periodic tasks might include maintenance on a home or on appliances, work in the yard, laundry, cleaning, washing dishes, cooking, keeping a vehicle or vehicles in working order, and child care. Whenever any of these chores are neglected for a significant amount of time, the household will be incapable to function effectively. In cases where one family member gets behind in chores, especially due to a reasonable situation like an illness or the need to work extra hours at a job, other family members will probably be happy to work around the slowdown and even pick up the excess chores temporarily. However, while a family member habitually procrastinates for prolonged periods of time and leaves his or her contribution of house work undone, other family members may begin to resent the chores being left unfinished and being weighted down with the added work. The situation can be especially tense if the procrastinator uses entertainment or games as a procrastination device, watching television or playing computer games while the other members of the household struggle with more than their share of chores. Regardless of whether the procrastinator is a spouse, parent, youngster, sibling or in-law, only an end to the procrastination and a responsible quantity of work will remedy the strain that procrastinating can cause in a family.

In a business environment, procrastination can be similarly destructive. People who work regularly spend a majority of their time during the day with their co-workers, and the relationships between business team members are a crucial part of the social lives of professionals. When one member of a business team is a chronic procrastinator, the other team members often need to shoulder the procrastinator’s share of work to meet deadlines. And once members of the team each have a precise field of work, one person’s procrastination can leave the others unable to get the information they need to complete their own assignments. Resentments, distrust and hostility may result, particularly in cases where the entire team misses out on a bonus or other reward due to one member’s procrastination habits. And as in the case of procrastination in the family, the only true technique to improve the situation is for the procrastinator to consider whatever organizational and time management steps are necessary to accomplish a fair amount of work.

Related Entries

• How To Bring Meaning Into Your Living By Stopping Procrastination
• How Procrastination Can Be Symptomatic Of Deeper Fundamental Troubles
• Procrastination Emerges As A Problem For Many People

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