Are you a procrastinator? If so, Cyril N. Parkinson’s essay for “The Economist” in 1995 says that you just have too much time on your hands.

Parkinson’s Law states, “…work expands to fill the time available for its completion.”

If you give yourself a week to complete a task that you can finish in half a day, you will likely extend the time needed to complete it. Conversely, if you have a short deadline, you will focus much more on the same task and take less time to complete it. 

So, drastically limiting time is the secret to reducing procrastination and getting a long-term project done in record time.

The Psychology Behind Time Constraints

Looming deadlines are highly motivating. Fast approaching end dates force you to prioritize what is needed to accomplish a goal or project.

A deadline that gives a lot of time to complete a project might be counterproductive. A project can grow in scope and complexity when you have more hours or days than you need. So, a quick task might turn into something that takes far more time than it should. 

Let’s look at the example Parkinson gave.

The task of writing a postcard for a busy man would, on average, take only 3 minutes to complete. He would find the notecard in a snap, take a minute to write it, and another minute to send it out.

But an elderly woman with a lot of leisure time on her hands could spend an entire day writing and dispatching that postcard. First, she may waste an hour finding a postcard and another hour hunting for her glasses. Next, she may need 30 minutes more to find the address and another half hour and fifteen minutes to write the letter. After that, she could take another 20 minutes deciding whether to take an umbrella to post the mail.

The businessman doesn’t have much time; so, he gets his writing done with as few necessary actions as possible. The woman with all the time fills it with time-wasting behavior, so the task takes longer to complete.

The Objections to Time Constraints

Cutting time may force completion, but it may also sacrifice quality. Perhaps that is the case at first- but focusing on volume work with a deadline forces you to learn, improve, and deliver better quality work in the end.

Critics also say that perpetual short deadlines will burn you out. That is true. So limit the time only for vital tasks or projects.

Remember, a far-off deadline tempts people to fill the time with more work than necessary. To finish something fast, create urgency by cutting deadlines closer. This way you can drastically reduce procrastination, improve focus, and increase productivity.

Photo Credit: Emelinaah