When I work with busy professionals and students, they have often tried and failed at many methods to overcome procrastination. Today, I want to highlight a strategy that teaches you how to avoid procrastination by combining the activity you are procrastinating on with something you want to do, making it easier to do the task you have been putting off.
Usually, the tasks you procrastinate on are difficult and not urgent, so there are about a million other things you would prefer to do than the thing you should be doing. This is something that Professor Katy Milkman of the University of Pennsylvania experienced first-hand. In a podcast entitled "When Willpower isn't enough," she remarked, "I struggle at the end of a long day to get myself to the gym even though I know that I should go. And at the end of a long day, I also struggle with the desire to watch my favorite TV shows instead of getting work done. And so I actually realized that those two temptations, those two struggles I faced, could be combined to solve both problems."
With this realization, an experiment was conducted that looked at the impact of bundling instantly gratifying but guilt-inducing "want" experiences with valuable "should" behaviors.
In other words, you can plan to simultaneously do something you should do and something that you would normally feel a little guilty about. For example,
On the subject of audio novels, an experiment was conducted where, cleverly, the group of participants were given gym-only access to tempting audio novels to see whether this would change their commitment to exercise. Another group were given access to the audiobook but encouraged to restrict their audiobook listening to the gym.
The results proved to be interesting indeed. Those with gym-only access visited the gym 51% more frequently than the control group. Those who simply were encouraged to restrict their listening attended 29% more frequently than the control group.
Why it works?
Temptation bundling makes the less appealing task more appealing. It does this by pairing the task you are procrastinating on (e.g. exercise) with something that you genuinely enjoy (e.g. listening to your favorite podcast).
By only listening to my favorite podcast when I go for a run, I am creating this powerful psychological link that makes my brain's reward system work for me rather than fighting against my desire to avoid going for a run. To be clear, I am not relying on willpower alone but rather using the power of pleasure to motivate behavior.
This suggests that for many people, their motivation lies with the immortal words of Mary Poppins "A little bit of sugar helps the medicine go down."
Planning and initial commitment are required for temptation bundling to work best. The idea is to know what your triggers of procrastination are and then to build and pair compelling rewards with it. The stronger the reward, the stronger is the temptation bundle. Here is a step-by-step approach.
Step 1: Create two lists. The first list down the left-hand side are the tasks that you procrastinate on. On the second list, down the right-hand side, write down the indulgences or things that you find inherently enjoyable.
Step 2: Create natural pairings. What I mean by this is to find pairings between the two lists that are logical or easy to apply. For example, on the left side of my list was running (the activity I procrastinated on), and this paired with something I inherently enjoy, such as listening to a podcast.
Step 3: Only allow yourself to indulge in that inherently enjoyable activity (e.g. listening to a podcast) when you are doing the activity that you procrastinate on (e.g. running). This can transform my running experience into something that is pleasant and rewarding.
Step 4: Review and reflect. Is the pairing that I have made working? Is it something that is simple and sustainable for me?
For me, using temptation bundling has reduced procrastination on running, but perhaps equally importantly, I no longer feel guilty or indulgent about listening to a podcast. It is though temptation bundling has provided a framework for my linking immediate enjoyment but also achieving long-term goals.
It is important to be realistic when implementing temptation bundling. Don't create bundles that are difficult to maintain -remember that it takes time to develop a new habit. The goal is to make your life easier, not more challenging. Temptation bundling works well with the following strategies to overcome procrastination (the 3D approach and the 10 minute rule).
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