Dealing with a Procrastinator

How to get the job done when you are working with people who work for themselves

Hi, I am Gerhi and I am a procrastinator.

(Just a note that I am writing this article from an insider perspective and you can see it as a confession of serial procrastination if you want to.)

When I worked for the Tatham Art Gallery one thing that baffled us, and we discussed this frequently at staff meetings, was why people who worked for themselves just could not seem to get the job done.

You would phone contractor to come in to give a quote and they would not reply to any of the numerous messages you left.

Or you got hold of them and they make promises to come by and never pitch, repeatedly. People that you do get to quote would not manage to get the job started. You waited months to see the first signs of progress.

Or jobs would get started and then get hung up at some muddling point, just never getting finished. And if the job got finished people never get around to invoicing for work done. So you could not pay them, get on with life, and get on to the next thing that needs doing.

Procrastination baffles me and you

When I left the gallery I started doing some freelance website work in addition to my own writing. And what baffled me after a couple of months was that I was doing exactly the same thing that baffled us at the gallery. I told people I would quote and I never got around to it. I'd start a job and just don't seem to get going on it. I'd finish a job but not quite, a small aspect just never gets done. Or I finish a job and then I neglect to invoice for it.

Why do I do that?

I am still working on an answer to that question but before that, this question: If you have to deal with me, or somebody like me, how do you get the job done?

Start with positive assumptions about procrastinators

Let me answer by giving you a couple of very big assumptions that you need to make. If you can't make these assumptions about people who work for themselves then let's just part ways. You will never find any joy in working with people who work for themselves.

Firstly, you have to assume that I want to do the job you gave me and want to a good job of it while I am at it. If you do not believe that I will give you the best job at the best price why did you ask me to do it in the first place? You have to assume this about me (and I do about myself and others who in turn work for me) because it works out better to think the best of people. It keeps me civil and positive and that puts everybody in better frame of mind.
Secondly, you have to assume that I am not deliberately trying to sabotage your job or myself. That if we work together then I want to solve the problem as much as you want to and that there is no ill intent in my non-performance, no matter how irritating or inconvenient the result may be to you.

You have to accept that my intentions are honorable. That I want to do a good job. That I would like to finish what I started and I would like to get honest pay for honest work in a reasonable time frame.

But we know this does not happen. So what can you do?

Know the reality of working for yourself

A big problem with people who work with themselves is that they need to plan and manage their own lives. And shockingly I have to admit that I am not so good at it. To be honest, I stink, and so do many other freelancers.

I have numerous irons in the fire and I am constantly playing a balancing act. Frequently what is wailing the loudest gets the most attention. I know, it is bad planning on my part but there you have it. The reality is that your project either becomes an out of sight out of mind casualty or it is relegated to some point on the to do list. Normally somewhere between point 3 and point 7.

The second reality is that even though I do many things, I cannot multitask. And ignore anybody who say they can. They are bullshitting you. I normally only get numbers 1 and 2 on the to do list done. That is if I remember to check the list after I have checked my emails, had my coffee, fetched the kids from school and opened the post. I get distracted and the big jobs, the easy jobs, or the one on top of the pile get the attention. Face it, there is not much of a system going (it's on to to do list).

It seems as if you are screwed at this point. I am never going to do your job.

Please do not despair. Here's the answer to your pain:

What you need to do is to keep your project at the front of my mind without laying on the guilt too heavily (guilt will completely paralyze me). Trust me, I worry more about what I don't get to do than what you do. Even if I only pick it up as subconscious stress.

How do you make me keep your project in mind?

Here are five strategies:

Keep in contact:
Do not think that I appreciate to be left alone to get on with the job. Even if I promise I will work on it today you can't take my word for it. I am easily distracted. Drop me a line and check up on me: "Did you get the specs done?", "How's the drawings coming along?", "Hope you had a good week (in other words worked on my project)?" By keeping in contact you make sure that you and your project stay in my sight and in my mind.
Offer your own incomptent advice and assistance:
No, I do not expect you to do the job that you got me to do in the first place. But you think about the job. You get ideas. Share them in an approachable way: "What do you think of this colour?", "Can we use this picture?"
What if you do not have any ideas on the project? Act stupid and ask questions or come up with stupid solutions. Don't be afraid to make yourself vulnerable. Why? Because I see how clueless you are, how much you need my help and my inner hero jumps on a white horse and charges to your rescue. Trust me, I will do a lot if I get to feel like a hero.
Ask me a stupid question:
Email me for instance and say: "I can't remember if we said we wanted it in white or black in that last meeting. What do you remember?" Even if you remember exactly wat we said and have the specs on paper in front of you still as ask a question. Why? In order to answer your question I have to open the file in my brain where I store your project. And while I have the file open I might just as well do something about it.
Give me more work:
What? Don't be ridiculous! You aren't even doing what I already gave you to do!
I know. That's the idea. One reason I do not finish jobs is the fear that if I am done what then? I will have nothing to do. I have a great fear of the unknown. Knowing there is more work coming after this is done pushes me onwards. But do not make it too big a job. If it is something small I might finish it before finishing the big projetct. Do not let this worry you. I know it is wrong way round. But it forces the file open and presto, while I have it open I might just as well do something about it.
Give me a because deadline:
With lots of leeway. But make sure that your deadline has a because. I work best on reasons, not on abstract deadlines.
What is a because and what is not? This is not a because: "I need it on Monday because I say so." Nor is this: "I need it by the end of the month because you said you could do it by then."
But this is an example of a because: "Could you get it done by Monday because I would like to show it to the board." Or: "My mother is swinging by for a visit and it would make the place really look spiffy." (I really don't want to dissapoint anybody's mom). And I don't care if you lie to me. Any reason will do except: "because I say so."

Each of these 5 anti-procrastination strategies will not get the job done by itself. You need to alternate between the strategies and keep at it. Do not be worried that you will pester me. Unless you are contacting me more than once a day I do not feel you are being a pest. Contact me less than once a week and you are out of sight and out of mind.

Why should you bother fixing my procrastination problem?

First you need to know why this would work? It works because it is a win-win solution. You get your project finished, I get my job done, and we both feel good about it. We have a working relationship because we have a constant conversation about (and around) the work. And a working relationship is what business is about.

Remember that I am working for myself, most probably alone for the bulk of the time. The loneliness gets tedious. The isolation eats you up. Work with me on this and my working will be so much better.

Just a final warning on what you shouldn't do

Do not make a nuisance of yourself. Once a day is more than enough. More and I will start to resent you and tune you out on purpose. No, I am not malicious. It is probably due to guilt but it won't solve the problem when you are pestering me.
Don't put a blank ball in my court. Do not leave messages that just say: "Call me." It only puts pressure on. It does not open a file. Rather say: "I was thinking about the project and had this idea...What do you think? Can you call me?"
Don't threaten me. "Get it done or else..." will not move mountains and it won't move me. The only time you should threaten is if you mean it and you really want to end the relationship. Trust me, ending a relationship will be hard but it will be better for both of us if it is what you need to do.
But if you don't intend to end the relationship then threats become empty and won't get the job done. Threats destroy the relationship. If there is no relationship your anger or frustration won't move me. Work on the relationship and there is no need for idle threats.

This then is how you get your job done despite my procrastination. Just don't start procrastinating on your side now. The last thing we both need is a compound problem.

But now you need to excuse me. I need to go find that sneaky to do list of mine.

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Gerhi Janse van Vuuren is a writer. Read more of his articles at 2 Write a Book.com or visit his personal site at Gerhi.com