【TED演讲】为何拖延症难以消除——即使它令人感到糟糕？

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It's 5 p.m.

现在是下午5点。

And you've just realized that report you've been putting off is due tomorrow.

你刚刚意识到，那篇你一直拖着没有完成的报告明天必须提交。

It's time to buckle down, open your computer... and check your phone.

现在该开始努力工作了,于是你打开电脑……又刷了刷手机。

Maybe catch up on your favorite YouTube channel?

要不再补看几段你最钟爱的YouTube视频？

Actually, you should probably make dinner first.

说实话，你也许应该先准备晚餐。

You usually like cooking, though it's hard to enjoy with this work hanging over your head, and oh— it's actually pretty late!

你一向喜欢烹饪，但是有这项工作压在心上，你很难享受其中的乐趣，哎——其实时候已经不早了！

Maybe you should just try again in the morning?

也许应该等到明天再说？

This is the cycle of procrastination, and I promise you, we have all been there.

这就是拖延症的自我循环，我保证，咱们都有过这样的经历。

But why do we keep procrastinating even when we know it's bad for us?

但是，即使我们知道这对我们不好，为什么我们还要一直拖延呢？

To be clear, putting something off isn't always procrastinating.

需要明确一点，推迟行动并不总是拖延症。

Responsible time management requires deciding which tasks are important and which ones can wait.

可靠有效的时间管理要求我们判断出哪些事是当务之急，哪些事可以稍后处理。

Procrastination is when we avoid a task we said we would do, for no good reason, despite expecting our behavior to bring negative consequences.

如果我们承诺完成某项任务，也知道不完成任务会带来负面影响，但还是无缘无故地避开这项任务，此时的表现才是拖延症。

Obviously, it's irrational to do something you expect to harm you.

去做那些明知于己无益的事显然是不合理的。

But ironically, procrastination is the result of our bodies trying to protect us, specifically by avoiding a task we see as threatening.

然而出乎意料的是，拖延症正是由身体的自我保护机制造成的，避开那些自认为具有威胁性的任务是其特有的保护方式。

When you realize you need to write that report, your brain responds like it would to any incoming threat.

你意识到自己需要动手写那份报告，而此时，你大脑的反应就如同应对一个即将到来的威胁。

Your amygdala, a set of neurons involved in emotional processing and threat identification,

大脑中有一组称为杏仁体的神经原，这组神经元与管理情绪，识别威胁等功能相关联。

releases hormones including adrenaline that kick off a fear response.

杏仁体会释放多种荷尔蒙，其中包括了能够引发恐慌反应的肾上腺素。

This stress-induced panic can overpower the impulses from your prefrontal cortex,

由压力引发的恐慌感覆盖了大脑前额皮层发出的脉冲，

which typically help you think long term and regulate your emotions.

而这些脉冲通常有助于长期性思维，帮助人们控制调节情绪。

And it's in the midst of this fight, flight,

在战斗、逃离、僵住这三种反应的胶着中，

or freeze response that you decide to handle the threat by avoiding it in favor of some less stressful task.

你决定做些压力较小的事情，以回避的方式来应对威胁。

This response might seem extreme— after all, it's just a deadline, not a bear attack.

这种应对方式看起来也许很极端，你面对的毕竟只是一个截稿期限，而非遭到熊的攻击。

But we're most likely to procrastinate tasks that evoke negative feelings, such as dread, incompetence, and insecurity.

然而，我们最有可能拖延的工作正是那些引发负面情绪的工作，比如恐惧、无力、缺乏安全感等。

Studies of procrastinating university students have found participants were more likely to put off tasks they perceived as stressful or challenging.

研究显示，患有拖延症的大学生更易推迟完成那些给他们带来压力，或者具有挑战性的学习任务。

And the perception of how difficult the task is increases while you're putting it off.

然而你越是拖延，就越会觉得这些任务难以完成。

In one experiment, students were given reminders to study throughout the day.

有一项实验，学生在一天中不断收到提醒他们学习的提示信息。

While they were studying, most reported that it wasn't so bad.

学习过程中，大部分学生反映情况并不是很糟糕。

But when they were procrastinating, they consistently rated the idea of studying as very stressful, making it difficult to get started.

但是他们一旦拖延起来，就会坚持认为，学习这个念头让他们感到很有压力，因此，开始着手学习就变得非常困难。

Because procrastination is motivated by our negative feelings, some individuals are more susceptible to it than others.

因为拖延症是由负面情绪促成的，所以有些人就更易受其影响。

People who have difficulty regulating their emotions and those who struggle with low self-esteem are much more likely to procrastinate,

对于那些在调节情绪方面有困难，或者自我评价较低的人来说，

regardless of how good they are at time management.

不论他们有多么强的时间管理能力，都更易患上拖延症。

However, it's a common misconception that all procrastinators are lazy.

然而，认为患有拖延症的人都很懒惰，则是一种常见的错误共识。

In the body and brain, laziness is marked by low energy and general apathy.

懒惰在身体和大脑中呈现的特点是缺乏精力和总体懈怠。

When you're feeling lazy, you're more likely to sit around doing nothing than distract yourself with unimportant tasks.

当你感到懒惰的时候，你可能会坐下来，什么也不做，而不会分心去做一些无足轻重的事。

In fact, many people procrastinate because they care too much.

事实上，很多人做事拖拉，是因为他们忧心过重。

Procrastinators often report a high fear of failure, putting things off because they're afraid their work won't live up to their high standards.

拖延症患者常常表示，自己对失败感到极度恐慌，拖拉是因为害怕，工作质量无法达到自己设定的高标准。

Whatever the reason for procrastination, the results are often the same.

不论拖延症的成因是什么，其结果往往都是一样的。

Frequent procrastinators are likely to suffer from anxiety and depression, ongoing feelings of shame,

经常拖延的人很可能会饱受焦虑抑郁之苦，忍受持续不断的羞耻感，

higher stress levels and physical ailments associated with high stress.

还要承受比别人更大的压力，以及各种因压力而引起的身体不适。

Worst of all, while procrastination hurts us in the long run, it does temporarily reduce our stress level,

最糟糕的是，拖延症虽然会给我们造成长期伤害，但可以暂时减轻我们的压力，

reinforcing it as a bodily response for coping with stressful tasks.

这就更加强化了身体在应对高压工作时的拖延反应。

So, how can we break the cycle of procrastination?

那么，我们该怎样摆脱拖延症的恶性循环呢？

Traditionally, people thought procrastinators needed to cultivate discipline and practice strict time management.

传统观念认为，患有拖延症的人需要培养自我控制能力，执行严格的时间管理计划。

But today, many researchers feel the exact opposite.

但如今，许多研究人员认为，情况恰恰相反。

Being too hard on yourself can layer additional bad emotions onto a task, making the threat even more intense.

对自己要求太苛刻会增添任务带来的不良情绪，从而使任务的威胁性显得更加强烈。

To short circuit this stress response, we need to address and reduce these negative emotions.

为了能够绕过这种抗压反应，我们需要应付并减少这些负面情绪。

Some simple strategies include breaking a task into smaller elements or journaling about why it's stressing you out and addressing those underlying concerns.

这里有一些简单的策略，比如将任务化整为零，或者记录下焦虑的原因，然后着手解决那些深层顾虑。

Try removing nearby distractions that make it easy to impulsively procrastinate.

尽力消除身边容易引起冲动性拖延的各种干扰。

And more than anything, it helps to cultivate an attitude of self-compassion, forgiving yourself, and making a plan to do better next time.

更有助益的方法是培养自悯心态，原谅自己，为下一次取得进步作出规划。

Because a culture that perpetuates this cycle of stress and procrastination hurts all of us in the long term.

那种将压力与拖延之间的循环关系固化的文化观念，会对所有人造成长远的伤害。