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Looking for procrastination quotes to beat laziness?
Want motivational quotes for overcoming procrastination?
Oops, you did it again. You waited to get started on an important assignment and now you’re panicking to get it done. Perhaps you always find yourself wasting time when you should be getting things done.
We all procrastinate differently and for many reasons. It’s not as simple as saying you’re just being lazy. There’s a bit more to your procrastinating than that.
There is an emotional reason or a lack of value that drives our tendency to delay getting started. You could be bored, stressed, anxious, overwhelmed, or even afraid of failure. So what happens is instead of doing the task, you do what helps you feel better instead.
How do you procrastinate? Do you clean, watch TV, go on YouTube, scroll on Instagram, or maybe even get a snack? There are so many ways we delay, and sometimes it’s with busy work, like working on other, not as important tasks. Or maybe you’re a perfectionist.
To help you overcome procrastination in all it’s forms, here are 159 procrastination quotes that motivate you to take action today. Stop waiting, stop wasting, and make the most of the moments in your life you have today.
Motivational Quotes to Get Started Today
Ready to overcome procrastination and get started? Need some motivation to begin? This first collection of procrastination quotes encourages you to just do it today, to begin without delay. What are you waiting for?
“Just get started.” ― Timothy A. Pychyl
2. “You cannot begin, until you begin.” ― Tony Cleaver
3. “If you want to get anywhere, you have to start somewhere.” ― Frank Sonnenberg
“A year from now you may wish you had started today.” ― Karen Lamb
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5. “Begin things today so that they can finish tomorrow.” ― Moonish Sood
“In ten years time will you look back at your past week and be glad how you chose to spend it?” ― Freequill
7. “Don’t let procrastination take over your life. Be brave and take risks. Your life is happening right now.” ― Roy Bennett
8. “No task is a long one but the task on which one dare not start. It becomes a nightmare.” ― Charles Baudelaire
“Most people master the art of postponing the start.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana
10. “Don’t procrastinate, start building yourself now!” ― Sunday Adelaja
Stop Waiting for Someday to Start Quotes
Are you always putting things off? Saying you’ll do it tomorrow or someday? Stop! The following motivational overcoming procrastination quotes expose the myth of someday for what it is: an excuse. Quit pushing things to the proverbial someday, do it today instead.
“Someday is not a day of the week.” ― Janet Dailey
12. “One of these days, is none of these days.” ― Proverb
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13. “Someday’ is disease that will take your dreams to the grave with you.” ― Timothy Ferriss
14. “If and When were planted, and Nothing grew.” ― Proverb
“Someday’ isn’t a real day like Monday or Tuesday; it’s just another word for ‘never.” ― Robert Herjavec
16. “By one delay after another they spin out their whole lives, till there’s no more future left for them.” ― Robert L’Estrange
17. “Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” ― Don Marquis
“Procrastination is a way of living in the past instead of the present moment.” ― Debasish Mridha
19. “How soon not now, becomes never.” ― Martin Luther
20. “Never procrastinate. Never say you’ll do it tomorrow or the next day. Slow workers never fill their barns. Neither do procrastinators. Diligence does the job.” ― Hesiod
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21. “What may be done at any time will be done at no time.” ― Scottish Proverb
“Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the week.” ― Spanish Proverb
23. “Yesterday is a cancelled check. Tomorrow is a promissory note. Today is the only cash you have, so spend it wisely.” ― Kim Lyons
Quit Saying You’ll Do It Tomorrow Quotes
Are you always waiting for tomorrow to start? Do you keep pushing things off to another day? Quit it! This collection of motivational overcoming procrastination quotes encourage us to stop waiting, stop saying we’ll do it tomorrow. The truth is tomorrow just means never.
“Never leave till tomorrow that which you can do today.” ― Benjamin Franklin
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25. “Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” ― Pablo Picasso
26. “The duty of planning the morrow’s work is today’s duty…” ― C.S. Lewis
27. “The man who has the disease of tomorrow is the most unfortunate man in the world.”― G.I. Gurdjieff
“One of the greatest labor-saving inventions of today is tomorrow.” ― Vincent T. Foss
29. “Never put off till tomorrow the book you can read today.” ― Holbrook Jackson
30. “Whatever you want to do, do it now! There are only so many tomorrows.”― Michael Landon
31. “If you are always saying I’ll do it to tomorrow, than your tomorrow will than turn into another day and so on, and so, etc. etc.” ― Victoria Addino
32. “Tomorrow is like infinity, it doesn’t really exist.” ― Ali Asad
33. “Don’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today because if you enjoy it today, you can do it again tomorrow.” ― James A. Michener
“If you want to get ahead in life, I’ve found that perhaps the most useless word in the world is “tomorrow.” ― José N. Harris
35. “My advice is, never do to-morrow what you can do today. Procrastination is the thief of time. Collar him!” ― Charles Dickens
Don’t Waste Time Procrastinating Quotes
Do you delay getting started? Find yourself wasting time every day? The following procrastinating quotes warn us about wasting time every day on things that don’t matter. Focus and take control of your time each day.
36. “You may delay, but time will not.” ― Benjamin Franklin
37. “The most finite, limited resource in our lives is time. We only have a finite amount of time to live. Why waste it?” ― Timothy A. Pychyl
“Until you value yourself, you will not value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.” ― M. Scott Peck
39. “Stop killing and wasting time. Get something done today.” ― Sunday Adelaja
40. “By what right do I, who have wasted this day, make claims on tomorrow?” ― Alain-Fournier
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41. “Do not defer it. What is right to be done cannot be done too soon.” ― Jane Austen
42. “Time is an equal opportunity employer. Each human being has exactly the same number of hours and minutes every day. Rich people can’t buy more hours. Scientists can’t invent new minutes. And you can’t save time to spend it on another day. Even so, time is amazingly fair and forgiving. No matter how much time you’ve wasted in the past, you still have an entire tomorrow.” ― Denis Waitley
“Time wasted is existence; used is life.” ― Edward Young
44. “Today and tomorrow is an illusion, days are all joined together, and if you are waiting for your time, you are wasting your time.” ― Michael Bassey Johnson
“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.” ― Abraham Lincoln
46. “Do something instead of killing time. Because time is killing you.” ― Paulo Coelho
Quotes About Panicking at the Last Minute
Do you need the last minute panic to get things done? Do you have a panic monster? The following stop procrastinating quotes are all about what happens to us when we leave things to the last minute. Do you need the thrill of a deadline to get things done?
“A day can really slip by when you’re deliberately avoiding what you’re supposed to do.” ― Bill Watterson
48. “If it weren’t for the last minute, nothing would get done.” ― Rita Mae Brown
49. “Delay is as dangerous as the wrong answer.” ― Frank Herbert, Dune
50. “He who hesitates is a damned fool.” ― Mae West
“Nothing says work efficiency like panic mode.” ― Don Roff
52. “A perfect method for adding drama to life is to wait until the deadline looms large.” ― Alyce P. Cornyn-Selby
53. “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” ― Abraham Lincoln
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54. “I have an advanced degree in procrastination and another one in paranoia.” ― Joanne Harris
55. “Procrastination has become its own solution – a tool I can use to push myself so close to disaster that I become terrified and flee towards success.” ― Allie Brosh
“You can’t just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood. What mood is that? Last-minute panic.” ― Bill Watterson
57. “Much of the stress that people feel doesn’t come from having too much to do. It comes from not finishing what they started.” ― David Allen
58. “Doing things at the last minute reminds us of the importance of doing things at the first minute.” ― Matshona Dhliwayo
Stop Putting Things Off Quotes
Be honest, do you always put things off? Can’t stop hitting the snooze button on life? You’re not the only one! The following motivational overcoming procrastination quotes warn us about the dangers of putting things off. Stop procrastinating the start!
“If you want to make an easy job seem mighty hard, just keep putting off doing it.” ― Olin Miller
60. “I can’t think about that right now. If I do, I’ll go crazy. I’ll think about that tomorrow.” ― Margaret Mitchell
“What is deferred is not avoided.” ― Sir Thomas More
62. “Putting off an easy thing makes it hard, and putting off a hard one makes it impossible.” ― George Lorimer
63. “Procrastination usually results in sorrowful regret. Today’s duties put off until tomorrow give us a double burden to bear; the best way is to do them in their proper time.” ― Ida Scott Taylor
64. “Procrastinate now, don’t put it off.” ― Ellen DeGeneres
“If you put off everything till you’re sure of it, you’ll never get anything done.” ― Norman Vincent Peale
66. “Do you know what happens when you give a procrastinator a good idea? Nothing!” ― Donald Gardner
67. “Kill the darlings in your life. Laziness, wishful thinking, procrastination; kill them” ― Bangambiki Habyarimana
68. “Nothing is so fatiguing as the eternal hanging on of an uncompleted task.” ― William James
“How does a project get to be a year behind schedule? One day at a time.” ― Fred Brooks
70. “Life, as it is called, is for most of us one long postponement.” ― Henry Miller
71. “Never put things off…you will wake up and find them gone.” ― James Jones
Funny Quotes for Procrastination
Are you in favor of procrastination? Still, think it’s a good idea to delay getting started? This selection of funny procrastination quotes is written from the perspective of the procrastinator. Do you agree with them?
72. “My mother always told me I wouldn’t amount to anything because I procrastinate. I said, ‘Just wait.” ― Judy Tenuta
“I’m a big believer in putting things off, In fact, I even put off procrastinating.” ― Ella Varner
74. “Never put off till tomorrow what may be done day after tomorrow just as well.” ― Mark Twain
75. “Procrastination gives you time to consider divergent ideas, to think in nonlinear ways, to make unexpected leaps.” ― Adam Grant
76. “Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” ― Marthe Troly-Curtin
“I never put off till tomorrow what I can possibly do – the day after.” ― Oscar Wilde
78. “I try to procrastinate, if I can, productively, like I’ll work on something else as procrastination. Or I take a walk. Because often I find, if you get out, more things come to you.” ― Noah Baumbach
79. “Never postpone until tomorrow what you can postpone until the day after.” ― Raoul Wallenberg
“There’s nothing wrong with procrastination. Or is there? I’ll leave it to you to decide, but only if you have the time.” ― Craig Brown
81. “Imagination only comes when you privilege the subconscious, when you make delay and procrastination work for you.” ― Hilary Mantel
82. “Procrastination is my sin. It brings me naught but sorrow. I know that I should stop it. In fact, I will–tomorrow.” ― Gloria Pitzer
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83. “Sometimes procrastination has a purpose.” ― Adrienne Posey
84. “Anything is better than doing what I’m supposed to be doing.” ― Maureen Johnson
Quotes About Why We Procrastinate
Do you know why you procrastinate? Why do you delay getting started? There’s so much more to procrastination than just being lazy. This collection of overcoming procrastination quotes explores the hidden causes of procrastination.
“Procrastination isn’t task management, it’s feeling management.” ― Scott Ginsberg
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86. “We are so scared of being judged that we look for every excuse to procrastinate.” ― Erica Jong
“Procrastination is the lazy cousin of fear. When we feel anxiety around an activity, we postpone it.” ― Noelle Hancock
88. “Procrastination is not Laziness”, I tell him. “It is fear. Call it by its right name, and forgive yourself.” ― Julia Cameron
89. “We are so scared of being judged that we look for every excuse to procrastinate.” ― Erica Jong
90. “Procrastination is the fear of success. People procrastinate because they are afraid of the success that they know will result if they move ahead now. Because success is heavy, carries a responsibility with it, it is much easier to procrastinate and live on the ‘someday I’ll’ philosophy.” ― Denis Waitley
91. “Procrastination comes in two types. Some of us procrastinate in order to pursue restful activities – spending time in bed, watching TV – while others delay difficult or unpleasant tasks in favor of those that are more fun.” ― Daniel Levitin
92. “When it comes to procrastination and overthinking, we have to overcome our self-doubt.” ― Jay Shetty
93. “The essence of procrastination lies in not doing what you think you should be doing, a mental contortion that surely accounts for the great psychic toll the habit takes on people. This is the perplexing thing about procrastination: although it seems to involve avoiding unpleasant tasks, indulging in it generally doesn’t make people happy.” ― James Surowiecki
More Causes of Procrastination Quotes
Looking for more reasons you procrastinate? There are so many. This selection of procrastination quotes sheds more light on the truth behind this behavior. Think back, why did you start procrastinating? Is it just a bad habit you’ve developed?
94. “Too much freedom can lead to the development of indiscipline.” ― Neeraj Agnihotri
95. “The more time you have to do things, the less you are able to get done.” ― Joyce Rachelle
“Clutter is the physical manifestation of unmade decisions fueled by procrastination.” ― Christina Scalise
97. “A procrastinators willpower lies in the fact that he keeps work pending because he strongly feels he wants to do the same – keep it pending.” ― Dr. Amit Abraham
“Don’t put off until tomorrow what can be done today. Procrastination is a sign of weak character.” ― Carol Cox
99. “There is nothing so fatal to character as half finished tasks.” ― David Lloyd George
100. Vagueness and procrastination are ever a comfort to the frail in spirit.” ― John Updike
101. “When you procrastinate, you also postpone happiness.” ― Charles F Glassman
102. “The really happy people are those who have broken the chains of procrastination, those who find satisfaction in doing the job at hand. They’re full of eagerness, zest, productivity. You can be, too.” ― Norman Vincent
Procrastination is Just Being Busy Quotes
Are you being productive or just being busy? There’s a difference. These motivational stop procrastinating quotes remind us that sometimes we put things off by occupying ourselves with tasks that do not matter. Are you guilty of this?
103. “Just because we’re busy doesn’t mean we’re being productive. Working is one of the most dangerous forms of procrastination.” ― Gretchen Rubin
“Continuous learning is the new procrastination.” ― Maciej Aniserowicz
105. “The least productive people are usually the ones who are most in favor of holding meetings.” ― Thomas Sowell
106. “I believe that 99 percent of what anyone does can effectively be postponed.” ― Amy Hempel
107. “Those who are wise won’t be busy, and those who are too busy can’t be wise.” ― Lin Yutang
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108. “I wanted to figure out why I was so busy, but I couldn’t find the time to do it.” ― Todd Stocker
“It is not enough to be busy; so are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?” ― Henry David Thoreau
110. “One of the very worst uses of time is to do something very well that need not to be done at all.” ― Brian Tracy
111. “I see procrastination and research as part of my artistic process.” ― Lynn Nottage
Short Procrastination Is… Quotes
So, what is procrastination? The following motivational overcoming procrastination quotes define the behavior, explain what it is and why it’s a problem. How would you define procrastination?
112. “Procrastination is like going to a fancy restaurant and filling up on bread and not leaving enough room for dinner.” ― Richie Norton
“Procrastination causes pressure that zaps creativity and excellence.” ― Todd Stocker
114. “The problem with procrastination is it’s been around since the beginning of time it seems.” ― Stephen Richards
115. “Procrastination is the greatest enemy or barrier that needs to be overcome.” ― Steven Redhead
116. “Procrastination is not the expression of patience!” ― Tendai Kasusu
117. “It’s never procrastination when you owe someone else.” ― Jeffrey G. Duarte
118. “Procrastination is like a credit card: it’s a lot of fun until you get the bill.” ― Christopher Parker
119. “Procrastination: as endemic to and dreaded by writers as writers’ block.” ― Jenna Blum
“My biggest regret could be summed up in one word, and that’s procrastination.” ― Ron Cooper
Procrastination Is Dangerous Quotes
How bad is procrastination? Why should you not do it? This selection of procrastination quotes illustrates just how bad putting things off can be for you and your life. It’s not just about panicking and adding unnecessary stress to your life, it can lead to real disasters.
121.“Procrastination is indeed the real enemy of success. Kill it, and you will see rapid growth.” ― Vincent Okeke
“Procrastination threatens to rob us of those things that are most important in our lives.” ― Richie Norton
123. “The real enemy of genius is the router in the hallway.”― A.O. Monk
124. “Procrastination is the seed of self-destruction.” ― Matthew Burton
125. “Procrastination is the foundation of all disasters.” ― Pandora Poikilos
126. “The most pernicious aspect of procrastination is that it can become a habit. We don’t just put off our lives today; we put them off till our deathbed.” ― Steven Pressfield
“Procrastination is a form of punishment.” ― Jill Badonsky
128. “Procrastination is opportunity’s natural assassin.” ― Victor Kiam
Perfectionism Is Just Procrastination Quotes
Are you a perfectionist? Are you always waiting for the perfect time and place to start? Stop it. These motivational overcoming procrastination quotes expose perfectionism for what it really is: just procrastination in disguise.
“Perfectionism is a disease. Procrastination is a disease. ACTION is the cure.” ― Richie Norton
130. “Striving for perfection can get in the way during the early stages of the creative process.” ― David Kelley
131. “Don’t wait. The time will never be just right.” ― Napoleon Hill
132. “The quest for perfection leads down the dangerous path of procrastination.” ― Dr. Salma Farook
133. “The search for the perfect venture can turn into procrastination. Your idea may or may not have merit. The key is to get started.” ― Unknown
134. “The most dangerous way we sabotage ourselves is by waiting for the perfect moment to begin. Nothing works perfectly the first time, or the first fifty times. Everything has a learning curve. The beginning is just that – a beginning. Surrender your desire to do it flawlessly on the first try. It’s not possible. Learn to learn. Learn to fail. Learn to learn from failing. And begin today. Begin now. Stop waiting.” ― Vironika Tugaleva
“Instead of waiting for the right moment, BE the right moment. You won’t be ready for anything if you aren’t ready to be you.” ― Kaiden Blake
How to Stop Procrastinating
So, how do you overcome procrastination? How do you stop putting things off? Let’s take action with these procrastination quotes that show us how to finally get started and get things done. Focus on what you can do now, don’t worry about anything else.
136. “Do first what you don’t want to do most.” ― Clifford Cohen
“Let’s take care of the little things while they’re still little.” ― John G. Miller
138. “No one is coming to save you; no one is coming to make life right for you; no one is coming to solve your problems. If you don’t do something, nothing is going to get better.” ― Nathaniel Branden
139. “If you procrastinate when faced with a big difficult problem… break the problem into parts, and handle one part at a time.” ― Robert Collier
140. “Set a timer and compete to beat the clock to conquer procrastination.” ― Monika Kristofferson
141. “He who every morning plans the transactions of that day and follows that plan carries a thread that will guide him through the labyrinth of the most busy life.” ― Victor Hugo
“I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.” ― Pearl S. Buck
143. “It is better to act too quickly than it is to wait too long.” ― Jack Welch
144. “It is easier to resist at the beginning than at the end.” ― Leonardo da Vinci
145. “Try making a good attempt not a good excuse.” ― Amit Kalantri
“Let’s make progress, not excuses.” ― Justin Cotillard
147. “In your actions, don’t procrastinate. In your conversations, don’t confuse. In your thoughts, don’t wander. In your soul, don’t be passive or aggressive. In your life, don’t be all about business.” ― Marcus Aurelius
Quotes About Taking Action Today
Ready to get started and take action in your life? This final collection of overcoming procrastination quotes is here to encourage you to get up and get going. No more waiting, just take action.
148. “Begin while others are procrastinating. Work while others are wishing.” ― William Arthur Ward
“Remember, action today can prevent a crisis tomorrow.” ― Steve Shallenberger
150. “Take time to deliberate; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.” ― Napoleon Bonaparte
151. “Stop talking. Start walking.” ― L.M. Heroux
152. “The man who waits to know everything is the man who never does anything.” ― Craig D. Lounsbrough
153. “To think too long about doing a thing often becomes its undoing.” ― Eva Young
“Begin doing what you want to do now. We are not living in eternity. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand—and melting like a snowflake.” ― Francis Bacon
155. “The men who will act today and the men who will act tomorrow get beaten by the men who acts now.” ― Amit Kalantri
“Getting an idea should be like sitting on a pin; it should make you jump up and do something. ― E. L. Simpson
157. “Often greater risk is involved in postponement than in making a wrong decision.” ― Harry A. Hopf
158. “In a moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing to do, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” ― Theodore Roosevelt
159. “The only difference between success and failure is the ability to take action.” ― Alexander Graham Bell
Overcome Procrastination, Slay Your Goals Instead
Are you feeling stuck and unable to get started? You need a goal, a plan to achieve it, and the motivation to get going. To help you with all that and more, get your FREE printable Slay Your Goals Guide with the ten steps to reaching your goals.
Start training yourself to take action today, take a deep breath, and just begin. You don’t need to know all the steps, you just have to take the very first one.
Time waits for no one, grab hold of every moment you have in the now.
Don’t let procrastination stand in your way, push past it today!
What’s your favorite procrastination quote?
Last Updated on July 11, 2021