Stop Making Excuses and See Your Productivity Rise

The science behind why we make excuses.

You’ve set your alarm to wake up early, eat breakfast, make some phone calls, send a few e-mails, and then run to the store.

The reality: You woke up on the wrong foot and fell behind in your schedule. Your response to the situation: “Screw that, tomorrow I’ll do better.” So you postpone things that you were supposed to get done today until tomorrow.

In your mind, you say things like: “I woke up late and don’t have time to do things I planned” or “I had a bad dream and woke up on the wrong foot” or “I feel more tired than usual this morning.” The list goes on and on.

Sounds familiar? I’m sure it does.

Your mindset played a trick on you and you rationalized your behavior by making an excuse.

I know people who make excuses every single time, whether it’s for not following up on their work or responsibilities, procrastinating essential tasks, etc. And I admit that sometimes I fall into the same trap. Making excuses for things we’re supposed to do is part of human nature. It’s part of the psychology of our brains, and, as humans, we’re not infallible.

Making excuses is like giving yourself green light for taking a day off and evading responsibilities. And it can take many forms. But here is the thing. You may think tomorrow is fine — after all, you’re still alive and full of energy. But when tomorrow does come, it’ll be filled with other chores and responsibilities that will require your attention.

So the next day you realize you have to double up on the amount of work you have to do because you made excuses for not doing things the first day. Now you have more on your plate, which will make you not only more stressed, but also less productive in the end.

Psychology Behind Excuses

According to psychologists, when we fail to do something, we use strategies to justify our behavior in the form of excuses. They serve to protect us and reduce dissonance and emotional distress. We use all kinds of excuses to rationalize our behaviors or choices we make.

As humans, we make excuses all the time. It’s part of our subconscious coping mechanism that protects our ego. But excuses stand in the way of our success and can affect every facet of our lives. The excuses we make don’t work in our favor — they hurt us. They can affect our performance and motivation.

For example, if you do poorly on the test, to protect your ego, you may say the reason was that the exam was structured unfairly. Or say you skipped your workouts for few days in a row and you jump to blame the weather for not being able to exercise. Making an excuse helps you get off the hook and feel less anxious. And you will in fact feel better and less stressed in the short-term. But few days later, you may blame yourself for not having done something you should’ve done earlier.

We Use Rationalization As a Defense Mechanism

According to Good Therapy,

“Rationalization is an attempt to logically justify immoral, deviant, or generally unacceptable behavior. In Freud’s classic psychoanalytic theory, rationalization is a defense mechanism, an unconscious attempt to avoid addressing the underlying reasons for behavior.”

When we rationalize, we invent a reason to justify a particular attitude, decision, or action that we take. And the way we do it is by making excuses. From here it follows that excuses serve a protective role. The question is: Do they help or hurt your progress? In most cases, they don’t help in bringing you closer to your goals. That’s why you have to be aware of when you make excuses. Having a reality check will help you redirect yourself on the right path.

What you should do

Everyone has a bad day. Things can go wrong and against our plan. But those are the days when you need to keep your eyes open and on the target. Don’t wait until the next day to do the things you were supposed to get done today. Instead you should refocus and readjust.

First, acknowledge the situation. In the case of “I woke up late” you can ask yourself: “What can I do with all the remaining time on my hands?” Maybe there is no time for X and Y, but there is time for Z. So get at least Z done and check it off your to-do list. Out of sight, out of mind.

Maybe instead of getting all “X, Y, and Z” done, you can exchange them with a few easier tasks that won’t require much of your time.

I do this all the time. Being flexible and adaptable will help you to stay productive. For me, when my days don’t go according to plan, I try to work around the situation and see how much I can still get done with whatever time I have. I improvise, I move things around, and I get creative with what I can do with the amount of time at my disposal.

So when you make excuses — for anything — step back and ask yourself: “Is it going to help or hurt your progress?” Will setting aside a task for a later time help you focus better on it? If the results would be the same, then there’s no reason you should postpone it. Staying true to yourself and your values and beliefs will help you stay focused and productive.

Believe that change will happen once you stop making excuses. Once you set yourself on a path of making ‘no’ excuses, you’ll see an instant transformation. Ultimately, you’ll feel good and proud of yourself for having accomplished something which you wouldn’t have otherwise done if you had stuck to making your excuses.

The Bottom Line

Making excuses and rationalizing your behavior can impede your progress. Each time you make an excuse, pause for a second and think about why you’re doing this.

Every person can take responsibility for his or her choices. You need to be true to yourself and realize that making excuses won’t help you progress and move you closer to your goals. Excuses are nothing more than a game we play with ourselves to lessen our discomfort and make us feel happier in the short-term but not in the long-term.

To succeed, stop rationalizing your choices, stay true to yourself, and act responsibly. Taking action rather than choosing a path of less resistance will pay off in the long-term.

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