Today is the first workday of the year. I confess that it was hardly awake. Peni went to the office a bit late, but she had no problem getting there. She has her schedule full of activities for today. On the other hand, I don't have anything obligatory to do. I have to revise and rewrite a book I'm concluding and continue researching cholera in New York, but it's okay if I don't do any of that today.
I imagine that a job like this is the dream of many people, but it is not. Not having an immediate deadline causes, very often, the academic work to be left for later.
I don't want to say that academic work causes procrastination but that it facilitates it. Experts know that procrastination has numerous causes. I read in the newspaper that people who procrastinate may be afraid of failure, of being responsible for the consequences of their decisions, and may even have health problems such as insomnia, gastric disorders, and all those derived from stress --not to mention depression.
I haven't been especially good at fighting procrastination. I have tried everything. One way to troubleshoot is to share the work. Whenever I have worked in a team, things are going better. The people with whom I carry out a collective project expect constant progress, forcing me to work regularly.
When the projects are individual, it is a bit more complicated. I usually share my partial results with colleagues, but few have time for constant follow-up.
Today I will write and correct my book to give it to Peni to read. It won't be long, but from now on, I know she's going to read to me. So I'm going to work now.