My life as a precrastinator
It was Christmas Eve and the excitement of enjoying the traditional noche buena or midnight feast could be felt in the air. It was my first time hosting such a special meal as a single girl living on her own in her apartment.
This was many years ago. At 7 p.m., I started laying out the ham, turkey, queso de bola, grapes, macaroni salad, fruitcake, and other yummy treats. My friend Alice was perplexed. “Why are you setting up the food this early?” I convinced her that it was best, “so we don’t have to worry about it later. We would be all set when the clock strikes 12 a.m.” Which, by the way, was five hours away. To my horror, by 9 p.m., ants had inhabited my table, devouring the holiday spread before us humans could even enjoy it.
Welcome to my life as a precrastinator—which is sometimes a resounding win, sometimes a total fail. There are many mental states out there, and this is mine. I don’t know when it began and why. It has always been this way for me. Precrastination has saved me from difficult situations because I am always “10 steps ahead,” which makes me ultra-efficient at tasks and projects, as I always think in advance of every eventuality to provide solutions. People think I am calm and composed. The truth is, I am always wound up inside, planning and preparing for every little thing. I am a ball of nervous energy waiting to implement her plans prematurely. I have a notebook with daily tasks, long-term ventures, and endless to-dos. When I tick a task as done, there is a rush, a dopamine high that is so satisfying. But you know what? This state of endless anticipation drains me. I so long to be cool. I wish to wing it at times. Do things at the last minute. Laugh with the wind on my face (ha ha ha), and be breathlessly carefree.
Some things are meant to unfold slowly—like midnight feasts, or laughter with friends, or simply sitting still.
Precrastination is defined as “the psychological tendency to complete tasks as soon as possible, even if it requires expending more effort or reduces the quality of the outcome.” It is the opposite of procrastination. Psychologists first identified the phenomenon in a 2014 study by David Rosenbaum at Penn State University. He observed that people would often choose to carry a heavy bucket sooner rather than later, even when it meant more effort. Why? As Rosenbaum explained, “People seem to have an urge to get things done just to get them off their plate, even if it costs them.” In other words, the brain loves the relief of checking the box more than it fears the cost of doing it too soon.
Dr. Fuschia Sirois, a psychology professor at Durham University, notes that precrastination shares the same emotional underpinnings as procrastination: “Both behaviors are linked to anxiety management. Where procrastinators delay to avoid discomfort, precrastinators act quickly to relieve it.”The upside? Studies show that precrastinators are often highly reliable in the workplace, seen as dependable planners who rarely miss deadlines. The downside? That constant “get it done now” drive can increase stress and lead to burnout. A 2018 paper in the journal Psychological Science found that precrastinators expend more cognitive resources than necessary, essentially burning mental energy too early.
And then there’s the comedy of it. I am the type to pack for a trip two weeks in advance, only to unpack and repack three more times because I think I might have forgotten something. When I travel, I have an OOTD (outfit of the day) guide on my mobile phone, complete with photos of me wearing the daily outfits, but it’s not always followed because of weather changes. Precrastinators are the ones who submit an assignment a week early and then discover the deadline got extended. Or worse, we show up for a party at 6:59 p.m. sharp—while the host is still in a towel.
So, is there a cure? Probably not. However,awareness is half the battle. If you know you’re a precrastinator, you can learn to pause and ask: Does this really need to be done right now? Am I just trying to quiet my nerves? Am I seeking my dopamine hit? Or am I just being impatient?
For now, I try to live with my condition. Precrastination has its quirks, but it also reminds me that life doesn’t need to be rushed through like a checklist. I’m learning to give myself grace. Some things are meant to unfold slowly—like midnight feasts, or laughter with friends, or simply sitting still. Perhaps, the real work is learning to wait, and not just to finish.
