The Hidden Cost of Procrastination: Research on Knowledge Worker Delay

This study on procrastination focus on the following research question: What part of knowledge workers procrastinates on average? It’s a simple question. But until now, no one provided an answer.

Research has only focused on the procrastination behavior of college students. It doesn’t require much research to answer that question. I know from personal experience that students are notorious for procrastinating—which is fine.

The real issue with current research is that students don’t represent the workforce. That’s why I set out to discover how many professionals procrastinate. I conducted a survey on my newsletter and 2,219 people participated. Here are the results.

If you want check the raw data, here’s the Excel file.

Tips To Overcome Procrastination

With 88% of the workforce admitting that they procrastinate at least one hour a day, it’s safe to say this is a widespread issue. A person who “only” procrastinates 1-2 hours a day is not better than someone who does it for 5+ hours. Procrastination is procrastination. 

I’m speaking from experience. In college, I procrastinated for weeks. Years later, when I had a job, I procrastinated 1-2 hours a day (sometimes more). In both cases, I didn’t achieve my full potential. That’s the bottom line.

The good news about the causes is that we can overcome them all. Here are a few articles with proven tips:

1. What Is Procrastination? Why We Do It & How To Stop
2. How I Beat Procrastination: Do It Today, Not Tomorrow
3. The Science Behind Procrastination And How You Can Beat It
4. Disconnecting From The Internet Improves Your Focus
5. Procrastination Study: 88% Of The Workforce Procrastinates

I firmly believe we can all procrastinate less. We can be more productive We can get our work done without wasting time. And we can also make more time for things that matter to us.

That will improve the quality of work and life. But it all starts with overcoming procrastination. Not just for a day. But every day.

Want to learn more about this procrastination study? On my podcast episode, I discuss the findings in more detail.