We often view procrastination as a hindrance to productivity. Yet history shows it has sparked profound innovations and cultural shifts.
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Journalist Don Marquis quipped, "Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday." While he highlighted its drag on progress, he overlooked procrastination's monumental positive—and negative—impacts on the future.
The term originates from the late 16th-century Latin procrastinare, meaning "postponed until tomorrow." Procrastination doesn't just delay actions; it reshapes outcomes with lasting, world-altering consequences.
We owe both gratitude and regret to procrastinators. They've caused untold suffering and birthed literary masterpieces, technological breakthroughs, and industry transformations. Their stories of delay and indecision reveal procrastination's undeniable influence.
In 1755, Samuel Johnson published his monumental A Dictionary of the English Language—a project promised in three years but delivered four years late. His entry for "procrastination"? Simply "Delay; delinquency."
Johnson, a notorious procrastinator, often wrote at the last minute, including his essays on the topic. Without his delays, his enduring legacy in literature might not exist.
Johnson's definition was basic. Procrastination expert Timothy Pychyl notes, "All delay is delay, but not all delay is procrastination." The Oxford English Dictionary refines it as "delay, often with a sense of deferral or indecision, when earlier action would have been preferable." I'll use this nuanced view throughout.
The first clickable web ad sold in 1993 to law firm Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe, launching online advertising. By 2002, Google's Pay-Per-Click (PPC) model revolutionized it further.
Publishers thrived, but intrusive banner ads, pop-ups, and slow load times frustrated users, cluttering the web.
That year, Danish student Henrik Aasted Sørensen dodged exam prep by coding browser extensions for the Phoenix browser (precursor to Firefox). The result? Adblock.
Adblock restored clean browsing by hiding—later blocking—ads. It exploded in popularity.
By 2015, 200 million users cost publishers $22 billion annually. Growth persists, sparking debates on sustainable models. As Sørensen told Business Insider, it forced publishers toward alternatives like 4 Alternative Models to Advertising That Are Working Now.
Procrastination birthed a tool reshaping digital media.
Ironically, Google loses billions to ad blockers—yet owes much of its dominance to procrastination-like policies.
In their 2002 IPO letter, Larry Page and Sergey Brin wrote: "We encourage our engineers to work on side projects for 20% of their time." This fostered Gmail, Google Maps, and AdSense ($14B+ revenue in 2014).
Though a stretch on pure procrastination, it mirrors prioritizing curiosity over routine tasks—echoing The 3-Strike System: How to Prioritize Your To-Do List.
Google X Labs applied this to moonshots: self-driving cars, space elevators, and more. Without that 20% freedom, Google might remain just a search engine.
Procrastination fuels more than tech; it's woven into literature's fabric.
Shakespeare captured it in Measure for Measure: "And oftentimes, to win us to our harm, / The instruments of darkness tell us truths..."
Victor Hugo locked himself naked in his study to finish Les Misérables. Samuel Johnson's criticism shaped literary analysis.
Margaret Atwood writes afternoons after anxious mornings. Herman Melville chained himself to complete Moby-Dick. Philosopher Marcus Aurelius advised in Meditations: "Never allow yourself to think you'll do it tomorrow."
Douglas Adams quipped, "I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by." His procrastinated Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy inspired Red Dwarf and more, as noted by Marcus O'Dair and Stephen Fry. See The Hitchhiker's Guide to Changing Stories Through Media.
Even religion bears procrastination's mark. In Buddhism, disciple Ananda delayed asking Buddha about vows; now all are observed 2,500 years later.
The Dalai Lama admitted youthful procrastination, overcome via practice: "Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand." His influence boosts meditation apps like Headspace. Tools like Mindfulness Bell or StayFocusd help; deeper practices like Urge Surfing combat it.
Procrastination alters wars. In 1776, British commander Johann Rall ignored a warning note during cards, unread in his pocket when killed at Trenton. Washington's victory boosted morale, aiding independence.
Civil War's George B. McClellan overprepared, delaying battles. Marcus Aurelius overcame it: "Do what is necessary... at once."
Leonardo da Vinci epitomized productive delay. Unreliable with commissions (e.g., 25 years for Madonna of the Rocks), his distractions birthed visionary ideas.
Curiosity drove inventions like ball bearings, parachutes, bicycles, machine guns, scissors, self-propelled carts, disease-free cities, aerial screws, and geological time—centuries ahead. His anatomy work advanced medicine. See 7 Easy Ways to Quickly Automate Your Learning with IFTTT and Read the World's Best Books for Free with Harvard Classics.
Modern advice demonizes procrastination—studies focus on cures like Laterbox, 6 Tips to Avoid Internet Procrastination, Pomodoro, or Stop Procrastinating. Yet productivity isn't inherently good or bad; see The Powerful Truth About Productivity from 11 Months on the Road.
Unintended delays yield world-changing results (e.g., Adblock). Structured procrastination channels it productively (da Vinci). Not to encourage, but recognize its role—positive, negative, or evolving, like adblock debates (Publishers Need to Stop Crying About Adblock).
Would the world be better or worse without procrastination? Should we eradicate it?
