Swimming With Sharks

A story from Slothzero's founder and CEO proves that laziness does not underly your procrastination.

It's a common thought: I'm procrastinating on my work because I'm being lazy. It's easy to feel guilty about not doing tasks you should be doing. It's also easy to assume that this means there's something inherently wrong with you or your work ethic. But the truth is, often it is not laziness that underlies your procrastination; putting off tasks does not signify that something is wrong with you. The following story from our founder and CEO, Peter Freed M.D., illustrates that fear underlies procrastination:

A couple of years ago, I took a beach vacation with my family. The highlight was supposed to be swimming in the beautiful ocean. My son and wife immediately jumped into the water and started enjoying themselves. My daughter, however—who normally loves swimming—suddenly announced she "didn't feel like it."

"I don't have enough energy," she insisted from the shoreline. "It's nice here! Swimming is too much work." I called to her once more, wading into the surf, and she responded with: "Why are you pestering me? Just leave me alone!" After about an hour of this, I finally scooped her up in my arms and began walking us both toward the water—at which point she started screaming and crying hysterically.

"But if you don't have enough energy, and I'm carrying you in, I'm doing all the work for you. What's the problem?" I asked, genuinely confused. With wide eyes, she looked at me like I was completely clueless:

"Because the sharks are going to eat me!"

And there it was—the real issue. Not laziness. Not lack of energy. Not boredom. Fear.

We can learn a lot from Peter's story. His daughter's fear about the ocean directly parallels the fear many experience around completing tasks. When you feel "too lazy" to start that important project, to have that difficult conversation, or to even start the dishes, like his daughter, you're actually not lazy—you're afraid.

The real life "sharks" are embarrassment, shame, envy, or even success. You may be scared to write a paper because you won't be proud of the final product, so you don't even start. You might be ashamed of your abilities, afraid to even test them out. The accomplished and masterful work of others might intimidate you. Your envy can convince you that because you'll never be as good as these other people, you shouldn't even try. It's possible you are even scared of the success your work may bring, of making others envious or resentful, or of taking up too much space. We're afraid of jumping into work not because we don't have the motivation, but because we're scared of what might happen when we do do it.

There is a way to reclaim this "lazy" label, however. Our spirit animal, the sloth, exemplifies this very principal. Though they are often misunderstood as lazy, sloths are actually just masters of conserving energy. Instead of just burning out in one, intense go, sloths move deliberately and with purpose. They make no excessive movements, only those which bring them slowly but surely to their goal. And they eventually reach the highest tree tops, where they're safe from predators.

Like the sloth, your "laziness" is an instinctual response. Your sharks swim circles in the water, so you naturally refuse to jump in. However, your so-called laziness is similar to the sloths in the fact that it can actually translate into a tactful and sustainable method of progressing towards your goals. Perhaps the key is not to make yourself to rush all the way in, but is to learn how to make small, deliberate steps toward the shore. Eventually, you will be swimming comfortably with the sharks.