Brett Terpstra, creator of the magical nvALT:
I’ve learned to reframe “procrastination” as “marination.” I used to feel guilty about putting off large tasks, but the fact is that I’m constantly thinking about and examining those tasks while I avoid working on them. Deadline pressure helps me focus, and by the time I’m ready to start working on it, I find I’ve already planned it out, mostly subconsciously, during my marination time. Again, that might not work for anyone but me, but seeing it that way has saved me a lot of guilt. I actually feel good about the time I spend planning and brainstorming in the back of my mind while I do something I enjoy.
– Working from home can be magical
This reminded me of what Marc Andreessen of A16Z wrote thirteen years ago:
The gist of Structured Procrastination is that you should never fight the tendency to procrastinate — instead, you should use it to your advantage in order to get other things done… Generally in the course of a day, there is something you have to do that you are not doing because you are procrastinating… While you’re procrastinating, just do lots of other stuff instead.
– the Pmarca Guide to Personal Productivity
He quotes John Perry of Stanford, who came up with the term:
“The list of tasks one has in mind will be ordered by importance. Tasks that seem most urgent and important are on top. But there are also worthwhile tasks to perform lower down on the list. Doing these tasks becomes a way of not doing the things higher up on the list. With this sort of appropriate task structure, the procrastinator becomes a useful citizen. Indeed, the procrastinator can even acquire, as I have, a reputation for getting a lot done.”