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本文選自專(zhuān)欄《謀生的工具》(Tools of the Trade)。在這個(gè)每周更新一次的專(zhuān)欄中,各領(lǐng)域的專(zhuān)家會(huì)提供可行建議,幫助你在工作效率到募資等方面迅速且高效地見(jiàn)到成果。本周,渥太華卡爾頓大學(xué)心理學(xué)教授提摩西·皮奇樂(lè)為我們解釋為什么會(huì)有拖延癥,并提供了一些解決拖延癥的方法。 作為一名研究拖延癥長(zhǎng)達(dá)二十多年的心理學(xué)家,我思考了很多關(guān)于效率的問(wèn)題,以及我們效率低下的原因。人們普遍把拖延癥歸因于糟糕的時(shí)間管理。這種觀點(diǎn)認(rèn)為,無(wú)法達(dá)成目標(biāo)是因?yàn)椴簧朴诎才艜r(shí)間。 但多年的研究讓我相信,拖延癥的根源不在于此:歸根結(jié)底,拖延與情緒有關(guān)。我們會(huì)回避消極情緒,努力讓自己感覺(jué)良好。 想想你上次是怎樣毫無(wú)必要地去推遲某件你知道自己得去做的事情。當(dāng)時(shí),你的腦海里可能有“我不喜歡它”,“我不想去做”,“我明天再做”等想法。產(chǎn)生這種抗拒的原因是,你此時(shí)此刻不愿去體驗(yàn)消極情緒。 我們的研究發(fā)現(xiàn),我們拖延的往往是那些被定義為枯燥無(wú)味、令人沮喪或困難的任務(wù)。它們會(huì)喚起恐懼、焦慮和煩躁的情緒。減輕這種情緒的辦法很簡(jiǎn)單:拖延。讓未來(lái)的自己來(lái)做吧!然而,就如荷馬·辛普森曾對(duì)未來(lái)的自己說(shuō)的那樣:“嘿,我一點(diǎn)都不羨慕這小子?!?/p> 換句話說(shuō),拖延癥不是時(shí)間管理的問(wèn)題,而是情緒管理的問(wèn)題,后者往往會(huì)再次困擾我們。盡管逃避能帶來(lái)一時(shí)的快感,但研究表明,這種刺激轉(zhuǎn)瞬即逝。拖延不僅會(huì)給未來(lái)的自己帶來(lái)時(shí)間壓力,而且在你意識(shí)到自己拖延必要的工作是多么不理性之后,還會(huì)導(dǎo)致愧疚,自我價(jià)值感降低。 以下是解決方法。 對(duì)付拖延癥有許多辦法,不過(guò)最關(guān)鍵的是學(xué)會(huì)控制我們的情緒。這并不簡(jiǎn)單。從生物學(xué)的角度來(lái)看,拜大腦邊緣系統(tǒng)(最古老的神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)結(jié)構(gòu)之一,大腦的情緒控制中心)所賜,感受總是先一步襲來(lái)。 相反,我們的前額皮質(zhì)——大腦進(jìn)行“執(zhí)行功能”的關(guān)鍵區(qū)域,也就是我們計(jì)劃、組織、必要時(shí)抑制沖動(dòng)的能力——會(huì)晚一步產(chǎn)生作用。 佛教僧侶對(duì)神經(jīng)科學(xué)所知甚少,但他們充分理解迅速的情緒反應(yīng)與緩慢、更加艱辛、往往讓人筋疲力盡的沖動(dòng)抑制和思想控制過(guò)程之前的沖突,并把這種沖突比喻為“猿心”。若要成功,就得給猿猴安排它可以應(yīng)對(duì)的任務(wù)。 所以,下一次你感到內(nèi)心的抵觸,覺(jué)得“我不喜歡它”或僅僅是“我不想做”,想拖延時(shí),要知道這只是你的大腦邊緣系統(tǒng)在起作用。你不必推遲整個(gè)復(fù)雜的項(xiàng)目,而應(yīng)當(dāng)把它拆成很多小的、可以控制的步驟,這樣不會(huì)嚇到你的“猿心”。要問(wèn)自己,這個(gè)任務(wù)我接下來(lái)可以怎么做? 把任務(wù)拆成小而具體的步驟。把門(mén)檻降低。下一步做什么?知道了嗎?現(xiàn)在開(kāi)始這個(gè)步驟,只關(guān)注這一步。從情感上看,開(kāi)始從事任務(wù)的門(mén)檻要低得多。不要向前看得太遠(yuǎn)。低下頭來(lái),專(zhuān)注于這一小步,而不是完成整個(gè)任務(wù)。這樣一來(lái),你就進(jìn)入了任務(wù),變得有效率起來(lái)。 早在十多年前,社會(huì)心理學(xué)家就已經(jīng)證明,在目標(biāo)上取得進(jìn)展,即便是微小的進(jìn)展,也會(huì)讓人感到幸福。他們將此稱(chēng)為“幸福的螺旋式上升”。這也會(huì)帶來(lái)效率的螺旋式上升。邁出第一步,感到投入其中,而不是逃避任務(wù)、陷入愧疚和焦慮的螺旋,會(huì)增加我們的幸福感,幫助我們積極地采取下一步行動(dòng)。過(guò)不了不久,我們就能充分投入,效率十足了。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)) 譯者:嚴(yán)匡正 審校:任文科 |
This article is part of Tools of the Trade, a weekly series in which a variety of experts share actionable tips for achieving fast and effective results on everything from productivity to fundraising. This week Timothy Pychyl explains why we procrastinate, and what we can do about it. Pychyl is a psychology professor at Carleton University, in Ottawa. As a psychological scientist who has researched procrastination for over 20 years, I think a lot about productivity and the reasons we fail to achieve it. A common belief is that procrastination stems from poor time management — we fall short of accomplishing our goals, this line of thinking goes, because we’re bad at budgeting our hours. But my research has led me to believe the root cause is different: At its core, procrastination is about emotions. We use avoidance to deal with negative feelings — we give in to feel good. Think about the last time you needlessly put off something you knew you needed to get done. Chances are, thoughts like “I don’t feel like it,” “I don’t want to,”or “I’ll feel more like it tomorrow,” ran through your head. This resistance is coming from your present-self’s desire not to experience negative emotions. Our research shows we typically characterize tasks on which we procrastinate as boring, frustrating, or difficult. They inspire feelings of dread, anxiety, and annoyance. There’s an easy solution to mitigate these feelings, however: Simply put the task off. Future self can do it! And, as Homer Simpson once remarked about his own future self, “Man, I don’t envy that guy!” In other words, procrastination is not a time-management problem; it’s an emotion-regulation problem, one that comes back to haunt us. While avoidance can feel good in the moment, studies have shown this emotional boost is fleeting. In addition to the time pressure it creates down the line,procrastination causes feelings of guilt and a diminished sense of self as we recognize how irrational we’ve been in delaying a necessary action. Here’s what to do about it. There are many strategies for fighting procrastination, but the most essential is learning to regulate our emotions. This isn’t easy. Biologically, thanks to our limbic system, one of the oldest neurological structures and the brain’s emotional center, we’re primed to feel first. In contrast, the prefrontal cortex — the part of our brain that plays a key role in performing “executive functions,” i.e. our ability to plan, organize and inhibit impulses as necessary — developed later. Buddhist monks knew little about neuroscience, butthey understood the internal battle between quick, emotional reactions and the slower, more laborious,often exhausting processes of inhibition and thought control. They sum up this tension by saying that we humans have “monkey mind.” To be successful, it helps if you give the monkey a task it can handle. So, the next time you feel that internal resistance and think, “I don’t feel like it,” or, simply, “I don’t want to” along with the temptation to procrastinate, understand that it’s just your limbic system acting out. Instead of putting off a complex project entirely, start by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable steps that won’t scare your monkey mind. Ask yourself, what is the next action I could take on this task? Make it a small action. Make it a concrete action. Keep the threshold low. What’s the next action? Got it? Now just get started on that action, and that action alone.Getting started is a much lower threshold emotionally. Don’t look too far ahead. Keep your head down and focus on the work, not the finish line. Do that, and you’re on task. Do that, and you’re being productive. For over a decade ago now, social psychologists have demonstrated that achieving progress on our goals, even a little progress, fuels well-being. They called it an upward spiral of happiness. It’s also an upward spiral of productivity. Feeling engaged after taking that first step, as opposed to avoiding the task and descending into a spiral of shame and anxiety, increases our well-being and helps motivate us to take the next step. It doesn’t take long before we’re fully engaged and productive. |