Supplements for Procrastination

Are you always putting off vital tasks for no valid reason? Sadly, procrastination can have a snowball effect that makes it chronic. If you are guilty of struggling to stay productive, you might need to address that before it affects other aspects of your life.

Keep reading to know what procrastination is and why it is a problem. We also include details on procrastination supplements we recommend to stay ahead instead of snoozing tasks.

Key Takeaways

• Procrastination is needlessly and willingly postponing decisions or tasks despite knowing that there are dire consequences. 
• Procrastination becomes a problem when you keep looking and finding reasons to justify it. It could manifest from self-handicapping, the fear of making mistakes, thrill-seeking, and low self-efficacy.
• Procrastination supplements are natural substances taken to reduce procrastination by enhancing your cognitive function. They improve your attention, motivation, memory, and creativity. 

What is Procrastination?

Procrastination is needlessly and willingly delaying decisions or actions despite knowing that the consequences of the same are dire. People who procrastinate delay doing tasks or decisions until it is too close to the deadline, if any. They prefer to do more enjoyable tasks until time and consequences catch up.

An example would be how people at work spend so much time leisurely scrolling away on social media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp, and Twitter, yet they have work to do at their desks. Or a college student choosing to sleep when they need to study for an upcoming exam.

However, procrastination in itself is not entirely a bad thing. We all procrastinate in various ways. Still, procrastination becomes a problem when it has a negative effect on your productivity and overall quality of life.

Why do we Procrastinate?

People procrastinate for varied reasons. The main reason, however, is that their urge to put things off is higher than that to act on a decision or task. Psychologists have different schools of thought as to why we procrastinate as we elaborate below:

Personal Traits

This school of thought holds personal traits influence the extent to which people procrastinate. According to it, very conscientious individuals are less likely to procrastinate since they are usually self-disciplined, persistent, dutiful, and diligent. They also possess admirable time management skills and a high sense of responsibility.

Contrarily, impulsive individuals are more likely to procrastinate since such people act on timely impulses that often work as distractions. They avoid taking on 'stressful' tasks at that time, leading to procrastination.

Temporal Discounting

This theory holds that people tend to trivialize tasks whose deadlines are still far. It means that they work on the urgency of those tasks that require immediate completion. Such creates a habit where they will not do a task unless the deadline is so near that they cannot postpone it.

The Natural Hedonistic Habits of Humans

According to this school of thought, humans are hedonistic beings by nature. They tend to dislike less pleasurable tasks. Most humans put off these tasks until they think they are ready to do them.

Research also holds that there are two types of procrastinators: active and passive procrastinators. 

Active procrastinators (positive procrastinators) deliberately procrastinate since they know they perform best under pressure. Conversely, passive procrastinators (negative procrastinators) are ones that battle with indecisiveness and poor confidence, making them postpone a task or decision.

The reason why we procrastinate then includes the need to control everything, perfectionism, and seeing a task as a big project. Others worry about failure, underestimating time commitments, poor self-control, failing to prioritize, being overwhelmed by tasks, numerous distractions, and laziness.

Procrastination vs. Delay

People often confuse the two. However, procrastination and delay are dissimilar and cannot be used interchangeably. The difference between procrastination and delay lies in the association.

Procrastination involves delaying doing something that you should be doing. An example would be delaying cleaning your room when you planned to do it. Therefore, putting off cleaning your room has a negative connotation as it portrays you as incapable of committing to such a needful task.

Contrarily, delay involves postponing a task or decision until it is practical. For example, if you are a manager and need to fire someone, you could delay it to see if the employee redeems themselves before committing to the decision. Another example is when coaches delay a football match due to bad weather. Hence, the delay has a neutral connotation.

Therefore, a delay is similar to postponing. Delay becomes procrastination when it becomes habitual or when it involves vital things. For instance, if you postpone washing your clothes because you are tired, that is a delay. Such becomes procrastination when you keep feeling tired every time you need to do your laundry, leading you to push it forward over and over.

Why is Procrastination a Problem?

Let us clarify and say that not all procrastination is problematic. It only becomes a problem when you keep looking (and finding) reasons to justify it. Below are tell-tale signs of procrastination becoming a problem:

Self-handicapping

Self-handicapping is disrupting your chance of succeeding by creating or choosing obstacles ahead of time. It is justifying your inability to succed even without trying.

An example is to imagine you as a college student with an exam in two weeks. It presents you with an equal chance to pass or fail. The ideal situation would be to plan on how to ace it, which could involve you analyzing the syllabus and planning how you will study. Such a rational approach also means that you will have to accept that there is a chance to fail.

However, a self-handicapping person will see no point in trying to study when they could fail. They then postpone studying until it is too late and accept their inadequacies. For instance, this person could say that there was not enough time prior.

A self-handicapping situation then involves an internalized preservation of one's self-esteem at a high cost. In this case, they will create excuses as to why they failed.

It is typical for people to self-handicap when it involves success. The Control Master theory holds that some individuals fail since passing, where other family members who have failed may portray them negatively. 

Such is common where children with less educated parents or guardians become less likely to join university. To these children, acquiring higher education would portray their parents as incapable or inadequate.

Fear of Making Mistakes

It is typical for perfectionists to detest making mistakes. As a result, they tend to shelve tasks until they have no choice but to finish and submit them alike to less conscientious individuals. Such is why you will often find perfectionists submitting work late.

Perfectionist procrastination results from wanting to have the best results. It then promotes overthinking, making them focus on all the things that could go wrong when they could focus on the task.

Thrill-seeking

Some people love to live life on the edge, and they take it quite literally with everything, including tasks. They love the thrill that stems from the excitement about having no choice but to complete the assignment during injury time.

We term such people 'last minuters' or 'best at working under pressure.' So, they see no point in doing the 'boring' task now when they can wait till the last minute to do it with the adrenaline rush.

Low Self-efficacy

Such happens when one convinces themselves that they are incapable of successfully completing a task. It is the tendency to see strenous tasks as threats they ought to avoid. Such people would procrastinate on handling a task just because they think they cannot do it.

It is typical for negative procrastinators to express difficulty in organizing and developing strategies that help them finish vital assignments. Such then fuels their low self-efficacy and overall performance.

What are Procrastination Supplements?

First, let us clarify that procrastination is not an illness but a symptom of challenges affecting your capacity to focus on tasks. Besides, it results from a conglomerate of factors and not just one.

Hence, procrastination supplements are natural substances taken to reduce procrastination by enhancing your cognitive function. They improve your attention, motivation, memory, and creativity. 

Nootropics are those supplements that address the symptoms causing procrastination by improving mental performance in healthy people.

Best Nootropics for Combating Procrastination

Here are the best nootropics for combating varied symptoms of procrastination, including mental opacity and lack of energy;

Nootropics for Mental Clarity

Brain fog can make you confused, indecisive, and forgetful, and cause you to lack focus. Nootropics like Noopept, L-theanine, and Vinpocetine aid with mental clarity as we explain below:

Noopept

Noopept is a nootropic and synthetic smart drug that enhances the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) that improves brain cell growth. Such improves the neuro-synapse function of the brain. In addition, Noopept promotes acetylcholine levels in your brain, improving learning and information retention capacity.

Most love it as a procrastination supplement since its effects are felt faster, usually within minutes but last extended periods, usually for hours. Noopept leads to improved memory, mental focus and energy, and enhanced verbal fluency. It also lets you stay on a task for extended periods while being productive.

L-theanine

Also known as Y-glutamyl-ethyl amide, L-theanine is an amino acid found in green tea that possesses calming properties which soothe your nerves in stressful situations. It crosses the blood-brain barrier and increases GABA production in your brain, stopping excessive neuron activity.

Additionally, L-theanine improves dopamine (feel-good hormone) production in your brain. Such leads to stress relief, improved focus, typical sleep maintenance, and improved mood. Feel free to pair L-theanine with caffeine if you seek stress relief and an energy boost, especially for a packed learning-related schedule.

Vinpocetine

Vinpocetine is people's favorite procrastination supplement that increases blood circulation to the underperforming brain cells. In addition, it enhances glucose and oxygen uptake in your brain, improving concentration and focus.

Note that Vinpocetine works well with serotonin, dopamine, and acetylcholine in uplifting your mood, enhancing pleasure, and improving sleep. It results in a boost in mental energy that enhances your learning capacity.

Best Nootropic for Energy

Have you ever been psyched about going for a run only to start panting barely one kilometer into it? Or, did you end up performing poorly in your weightlifting? Nootropics like Acetyl L-carnitine, seaweed, roots, nettle, and Oatstraw are ideal for an energy spur as we discuss below:

Acetyl L-carnitine

Have you ever sat down to study only to feel light-headed minutes later? Such could result from fatigue or lethargy.

Acetyl-L-carnitine (ALCAR) is one form of L-carnitine amino acid that reduces fatigue and boosts energy by converting fat into energy. It also heightens the activities of specific nerve cells in your central nervous system and improves blood flow to your brain, increasing oxygen uptake. As a result, ALCAR intake leads to better focus, improved concentration, and improved memory.

We recommend ALCAR if you have ever felt lethargic to a level that compromises your energy levels, memory, and overall productivity. Besides, you can add it to your pre-workout regimen to aid with fat-burning and weight loss.

Seaweed

Most types of seaweed boost your energy by nourishing your hormonal and immune systems. These are rich in dietary fiber, letting you enjoy a slow energy release as you go about your day.

Additionally, seaweed consumption keeps your blood sugar intact without making you feel tired or lazy. For instance, the micro-mineral chromium present in seaweed promotes the effective body use of glucose, leading to improved energy levels.

The low-glycemic sugar in seaweed known as mannitol creates sweetness without raising your blood sugar levels. Such makes them ideal for diabetic people or health-conscious individuals that need an energy boost without compromising their blood sugar levels.

Red seaweed is an ideal procrastination supplement for chronic tiredness and fatigue. It contains iron that helps in transporting oxygen in your body. As a result, intaking red seaweed makes you less fatigue and more energetic. Seaweed is also high in vitamin C, which boosts iron absorption from food.

Roots

Tinctures of root products like ginseng, dandelion, or yellow dock prove to counter the feeling of tiredness and reduced productivity.

For instance, Rhodiola root extract boosts energy, stamina, and alertness and reduces fatigue and anxiety. It also improves memory and learning, making it ideal for students too. We recommend it for those under chronic stress who need support for their mental performance under high-intensity and stressful energy-consuming situations.

Another typical root procrastination supplement is Panax ginseng, a known ancient medicinal plant ideal for boosting brain function. Panax ginseng intake improves performance on strenuous tasks while reducing brain fatigue. However, some studies discourage prolonged use of ginseng root extract since your body is said to adapt to it.

Nettle

Nettle is a natural procrastination supplement that boosts your energy without overburdening your nerves. It toughens your adrenals, improves stress tolerance, and improves your immune system.

Nettle intake also makes you cheerful and helps you get excited over tasks. Such procrastination supplements keep you ahead of the game and keep you productive.

Oatstraw

Also known as green oat grass or Avena sativa, Oatstraw is a nootropic supplement extracted from the oat plant when in its milky stage. It may reduce inflammation and improve mood and brain function.

Its nootropic benefits were first publicized in the middle ages in Europe. During this time, people recommended it for restoring the nervous system and improving mental health. 

Oatstraw is now used for inflammation relief as it has bioactive compounds with anti-inflammatory properties. These protect against heart diseases, neurodegeneration, and skin irritation.

Additionally, oatstraw promotes cerebral circulation by dilating blood vessels, thanks to the boost in nitric oxide and the inhibition of PDE4. Such enhances blood flow and optimal brain function by improving the delivery of oxygen and vital nutrients.

Oatstraw also promotes anxiety and stress relief by increasing the dopamine levels in your brain. It improves the feeling of pleasure, sexual pleasure, libido, and cognition boost.

We recommend oatstraw to those seeking to improve their energy reserves for future days since it reduces anxiety, fosters nerves, and improves your endurance levels to uncertainties.

Best Supplements for Procrastination

If you are guilty of constantly shelving tasks, we recommend you try our TUNE IN powdered drink. This performance supplement contains a comprehensive blend of nootropics and adaptogens to supercharge your brain and peak your productivity. 

With just one delicious scoop of our fruit-flavored game-changer, you achieve immediate focus, energy boost, and recall.

TUNE IN comes in two yummy fruity flavors: Pink Lemonade and Tropical Punch. Each tab weighs 300g and gives you 20 servings. They are ideal for those looking to evade dependency, anxiety, and poor sleep from over-caffeination.

Mixing a scoop of VYU’s TUNE IN to your water or drink is all you need to focus deeper and get more done. Try VYU now and beat procrastination for good.

Final Thoughts

Chronic procrastination can have effects like poor productivity and performance, high anxiety levels, low self-esteem, stress, and poor impulse control. While coffee boosts mood, energy, and productivity, it has undesirable side effects like dependency, anxiety, and poor sleep.

Nootropics are ideal procrastination supplements since they provide a steady energy release customizable to your desired results. For instance, nootropics like Noopept, L-theanine, and Vinpocetine are vital for mental clarity, while Acetyl L-carnitine, seaweed, roots, nettle, and oatstraw work for an energy boost. 

Still, do your research beforehand the get the most from these procrastination supplements.