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Biologically lazy?

I'm not lazy (at least not at work) but I am a chronic procrastinator.

I cook at a busy restaurant-- a job that requires quickness, stamina, and a certain degree of mental acuity. My coworkers, most of whom are much younger than me, often compliment me on being a hard worker. I enjoy my job.

However, at home I am lazy. Especially when it comes to housecleaning. My house is a cluttered mess (not nasty like with stinky garbage or dirty dishes piling up) but with everything in disarray and lots of junk I don't need just lying around. I keep intending to tidy up, but I never do. It's procrastination to the point of pathology. I hate it, but I don't do anything about it. I have no idea why.
 
Nurse Ratched said:
Touche
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I was kinda waiting on that or the like. Ha!
Yes... I procrastinate, cancel, re-schedule, sleep and the rest of what this thread is about.
But make no mistake; when it is time to do something it gets done swiftly, thoroughly and to perfection.
I am not scared of work but would rather meditate all day/night in the silece.
Always been this way.
works-for-me-sounds-good-to-me.gif
 
Neuroprotection said:
A rigid and timed structure imposed by others can be really beneficial for us, both in terms of productivity but also stress reduction
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Oh this would backfire in my case and has many times.
I am anti authority since birth as it always brings a trauma and mostimes corruption and hypocrisy.
Not saying I am a militant but it is a small part of who I am as a whole.
And yes the stress as we do not stay acclimated to surroundings since we don't wanna be bothered, is my take.
 
Furry mouth said:
Sounds like you’re an intelligent, knowledgeable, savvy guy living life to your best ability and not trying to overcompensate or taking part in “presenteeism” culture that I used to get sucked into. You probably won’t believe this but I envy you and how you are disciplined in making sure you do what makes you happy while staying in boundaries of your job etc. I’ve been awake since 4am so I’m starting to fade. I hope my message makes sense.

I got so sick from a connective tissue disorder, bipolar, psychosis, more than likely ADHD that I would work in multinational job from 6am until 2am the next day. Nobody gave a shit about me. Every job I left following headhunting offer meant that on average 5 people would replace me in my old job. I always say work is like a whorehouse, the harder you work the more they screw you.

You are great, have the right mentality and are way smarter than me. You know what I have a lot of admiration for your attitude towards life. It’s cool, it’s nice to know we are in similar situations in different parts of this globe. I’m lucky now that I don’t have to work anymore and I don’t miss it 1 single iota.
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Thank you so much again. You are great to and you’re clearly a very compassionate and loving person. I am very happy for you that you don’t have to work anymore and I hope you can live your life to the fullest, pursuing all your hobbies and interests. I can’t believe you once worked such crazy hours, I think this is why the idea of smart working has become so popular. unlike hard-working, smart working is where you find an easier or more efficient way of doing something. but you are right, working too hard can cause managers and colleagues around you to take advantage and dump extra work on you without acknowledging it.

Actually, one of the reasons I’m hoping not to have children in future is so that I can save up enough money for early retirement whilst investing some of it so that it becomes self generating. I’m not an extravagant person and I don’t need much to keep me going. if I do remain a childfree man and have the opportunity for early retirement, I would love to travel around the world to attend scientific conferences and put forward my ideas.
 
SpiralusSancti said:
You do understand that “biologically lazy” to whichever extent is real isn’t most likely explanation for being lazy or having tendency to procrastinate. As personality traces and behaviour that can be even considered to be highly dependant on biological factors and is even linked to specific genes is still just a part of the story. Good example being tendency toward addictive behaviour and yet even when someone is in a family where addiction runs for generations and even with epigenetic factors caused by drug use by parents social and other environmental factors seem to have stronger correlation or at very best it isn’t very clear. Look at it as genes that increase chances of lung cancer, they usually wont express if person doesn’t smoke and live otherwise cancerogens free and healthy. And plus you just named something that isn’t connected to biology, rigid structure as something that’s enough to stop you being lazy.
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Oh yes, I am aware of that. while some elements of laziness can be biologically wired, procrastination is a little different. I’m aware that work/education related procrastination is a set of behaviours that usually arise from unpleasant or mildly traumatic events ranging from gloomy days at school at the mild end to chronic unacknowledged student effort, Psychological abuse from teachers or academic failure at the more extreme end. when I say biologically lazy, what I mean is that people like me and many of my classmates just can’t seem to generate internal drive/motivation for anything and instead need rigid structures and support group to keep us going. what makes us different is the fact that if left alone, we simply return to our lazy state and would probably do nothing requiring hard work for the rest of our lives. meanwhile, our non-lazy counterparts would be driven crazy by The mere thought of doing nothing
 
someguyontheinternet said:
I'm lazy as fuck but I still like accomplishing things, that's why I try to work smarter not harder. I love automating pieces of my work with computers
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I have to respect that, i’m guess I’m similar to you. I’ve never been able to automate my work but I do love finding easy ways of doing things that are supposed to be harder. of course, I also love achieving and accomplishing things, and I want to be A useful member of society, just don’t want to put in the extreme effort that is sometimes deemed necessary by society.
 
was just doing a bit of self reflection and discovered something about myself which might apply to other chronic procrastinators. basically, once I’ve got into a rhythm of work with a daily schedule, I still have a strong tendency to procrastinate. however, it becomes much easier to get back on track. sometimes, this transforms into reverse procrastination, where I tried to complete tasks much earlier than necessary so I can relax later on. furthermore, despite it feeling like it’s literally in my DNA, i’ve noticed that long breaks which I love are detrimental to my work ethic and caused me to lose all the psychological resilience I had developed over the year. This was always the case throughout my education. for people like me coming out of education, I would advise that you find a job straight away especially if it’s an office job as you’re less likely to fall into the bad habits and extreme emotional connection to procrastination. last but not least, going from a harder to an easier work environment with less cognitive demand could make us appreciate our work since it’s much easier. maybe it’s like the equivalent of athletes who train in low oxygen or other harsh environments before coming back to the easier environment to play for real.
 
I admit I’m very lazy. If the house is free I do absolutely nothing and love it. Although it gets annoying to do everything at the last minute before everyone gets back.

I’ve always been this way, if anything stressful comes up I procrastinate like hell until I do it or attend something.
 
Old Appalachian saying about a ne'er-do-well:

That boy was born tired and raised lazy.
(sometimes includes a reference to hookworm or pellagra)
 
Neuroprotection said:
since childhood, I’ve always attempted to avoid hard work and if I had the choice would almost always take the low effort option.
Does anyone suggest there may be a biological reason for this?
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I've read your first 2 posts and some of the other posts in this thread, and from what you've said it sounds a lot like it could be ADHD.

Procrastinating, and being unable to do mentally demanding work without the anxiety or stress of an impending deadline to fuel the mind with adrenalin or cortisol is a key characteristic, and one that I have also experienced many times, especially in education.

ADHD also has an 'interest based' nervous system, which could explain why you thrived during lockdown while you were free to follow your interests. Many people have these traits to some extent, but in ADHD it's more extreme and all pervading across all domains of life. ADHD people find it more difficult to do the things they should do, even if they are important. If there's no interest in that task it's going to be difficult.

Have you looked into ADHD and considered it as a possibility?

I'm not a professional diagnostician, and no one could be diagnosed from a couple of posts, but it is something that I've been looking into a lot since last year, as I believe that I may have it. When something ticks my 'special interest' box, my level of interest tends to be pretty all consuming, to the point of obsession. I have no doubt that this trait is explained by my already diagnosed Autism, as having 'special interests' is a known trait or characteristic of Autism, but it's also linked with ADHD, and the 2 conditions are very commonly co-occurring. There's also a lot of overlapping symptoms.

It seems to me that in many cases, there may not be any such thing as lazyness, and many characteristics and people judged as being so, may have various different possible biological / medical / neurologigal / neurodivergent causes for this. (Not all of them being potential ADHD, some might be physical health conditions or disabilities.)

The good news about ADHD is that it responds very well to medication, in most cases.
 
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jasperkent said:
I'm not lazy (at least not at work) but I am a chronic procrastinator.

I cook at a busy restaurant-- a job that requires quickness, stamina, and a certain degree of mental acuity. My coworkers, most of whom are much younger than me, often compliment me on being a hard worker. I enjoy my job.

However, at home I am lazy. Especially when it comes to housecleaning. My house is a cluttered mess (not nasty like with stinky garbage or dirty dishes piling up) but with everything in disarray and lots of junk I don't need just lying around. I keep intending to tidy up, but I never do. It's procrastination to the point of pathology. I hate it, but I don't do anything about it. I have no idea why.
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This was me as well when I worked. Started bussing tables when I was 14 and pretty much was never out of work until I retired a couple years ago. Enjoyed almost all of my jobs and gave them my all and would get home and totally not want to tidy up. Like you said we keep the dishes done and there is no filth involved but there's stuff out of place and piles of things that we want to get at but never do. I look at some of my closets or junk drawers or other places I throw things and I just can't seem to get off my ass and attend to it. I make a to do list and maybe do 1 chore on it. I kept the lawn mowed this summer but no trimming and no weeding and no garden. I was bummed that I didn't even put in a small batch of tomatoes or bell peppers or something. I tend to the important stuff and am letting the stuff I don't feel like doing get the best of me and I don't like it.
 
Bleaney said:
I've read your first 2 posts and some of the other posts in this thread, and from what you've said it sounds a lot like it could be ADHD.

Procrastinating, and being unable to do mentally demanding work without the anxiety or stress of an impending deadline to fuel the mind with adrenalin or cortisol is a key characteristic, and one that I have also experienced many times, especially in education.

ADHD also has an 'interest based' nervous system, which could explain why you thrived during lockdown while you were free to follow your interests. Many people have these traits to some extent, but in ADHD it's more extreme and all pervading across all domains of life. ADHD people find it more difficult to do the things they should do, even if they are important. If there's no interest in that task it's going to be difficult.

Have you looked into ADHD and considered it as a possibility?

I'm not a professional diagnostician, and no one could be diagnosed from a couple of posts, but it is something that I've been looking into a lot since last year, as I believe that I may have it. When something ticks my 'special interest' box, my level of interest tends to be pretty all consuming, to the point of obsession. I have no doubt that this trait is explained by my already diagnosed Autism, as having 'special interests' is a known trait or characteristic of Autism, but it's also linked with ADHD, and the 2 conditions are very commonly co-occurring. There's also a lot of overlapping symptoms.

It seems to me that in many cases, there may not be any such thing as lazyness, and many characteristics and people judged as being so, may have various different possible biological / medical / neurologigal / neurodivergent causes for this. (Not all of them being potential ADHD, some might be physical health conditions or disabilities.)

The good news about ADHD is that it responds very well to medication, in most cases.
Click to expand...


Thanks for that. I strongly suspect ADHD/ADD and others have mentioned this to me. maybe we’re similar, if not identical in terms of symptoms. like you, I also develop very strong obsessions if I get interested in something, it will literally be on my mind and I could be researching it for weeks or even months and years. aside from difficulties concentrating and the obsessive symptoms I’ve just mentioned, there’s one symptom i’ve never told anyone about before. basically, since childhood, I’ve always had an overwhelming urge to walk around, move my arms and even sometimes jump around. of course, I only do this when alone but the urge becomes especially strong if I’m excited about something. there’s a few reasons why getting an ADHD diagnosis and medication is difficult at the moment. firstly, I rely on and live with my family Who are strongly against the use of psychoactive substances in medicine especially ADHD. secondly, my unusual fascination with psychoactive substances, starting in very early childhood has already made my family very suspicious of me. this is to the extent that my parents actually allowed my brother to take a few hits of a tobacco pipe but they never offered this for me. another major obstacle would be trying to get my family to even believe I had ADHD symptoms. The fact that I achieve top grades at university and the illusion of being a hard worker I have created over the years would give my family much less reason to believe me. once I become financially independent, i’m thinking of first trying to find a job/income that’s more interesting to me. if that fails, I’ll make my own appointment for an ADHD assessment and would very likely meet the criteria and receive medication.
 
Nurse Ratched said:
Started bussing tables when I was 14
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Me too!
Also, I am semi-retired. I work 3 or 4 days a week.

I did manage to mow grass and tend a small garden (tomatoes & hot peppers) but I'm letting a lot of my property go wild. I actually prefer it that way and so does the wildlife-- I see squirrels, rabbits, opossums, raccoons, deer, coyotes, and a wide assortment of birds, including hawks and owls.

But I really wish I could get motivated to throw out a lot of junk, tidy up, sweep, mop, etc. I'm just lazy as fuck when it comes to housework.

In every relationship I've been in I did all the cooking, dishes, kitchen cleaning, laundry, and outside chores. My partner did the other cleaning chores. Every woman I've been with loved that arrangement (I am a good cook and most people hate doing laundry), but alas, I am alone right now. So I live in a horrible dump that has a lovely kitchen.
 
jasperkent said:
Me too!
Also, I am semi-retired. I work 3 or 4 days a week.

I did manage to mow grass and tend a small garden (tomatoes & hot peppers) but I'm letting a lot of my property go wild. I actually prefer it that way and so does the wildlife-- I see squirrels, rabbits, opossums, raccoons, deer, coyotes, and a wide assortment of birds, including hawks and owls.

But I really wish I could get motivated to throw out a lot of junk, tidy up, sweep, mop, etc. I'm just lazy as fuck when it comes to housework.

In every relationship I've been in I did all the cooking, dishes, kitchen cleaning, laundry, and outside chores. My partner did the other cleaning chores. Every woman I've been with loved that arrangement (I am a good cook and most people hate doing laundry), but alas, I am alone right now. So I live in a horrible dump that has a lovely kitchen.
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We seem to be a lot alike in many ways. You aren't a Gemini are you?

I also live in an area where I see all the above animals that you mentioned. It is so cool to have my coffee in the AM and listen to the owls ( I have one that is very noisy every morning ) and when daylight breaks I have 3 deer that wander around the back end of my property. Which has also gone wild. About 40 miles from here they caught a bear on their trail cam but luckily I haven't seen one around these parts.

Yeah, the conundrum of housework. Funny how living alone does that to us. I wonder if it's because it's just us living by ourselves so stuff gets undone as nobody is around to help.........or complain ! It's nice that you did all that in your relationships. I'm sure it was appreciated.

Have a good Monday.
 
In general, on a species level, we're geared to be 'lazy' to a certain extent. The reason being energy conservation. If you can't be sure where your next meal is coming from, as our ancestors couldn't, you don't waste energy for anything you don't have to.

If you look at people still living a traditional tribal life, once all the survival necessities are taken care of - shelters have been built or mended, food has been gathered / hunted and prepared etc, people spend most of their time lounging around and talking. Makes perfect sense.
In some individuals that trait is just more pronounced and obviously if it goes so far that you can't motivate yourself even to do the things you HAVE to, there's a problem.
 
TheUltimateFixx said:
In general, on a species level, we're geared to be 'lazy' to a certain extent. The reason being energy conservation. If you can't be sure where your next meal is coming from, as our ancestors couldn't, you don't waste energy for anything you don't have to.

If you look at people still living a traditional tribal life, once all the survival necessities are taken care of - shelters have been built or mended, food has been gathered / hunted and prepared etc, people spend most of their time lounging around and talking. Makes perfect sense.
In some individuals that trait is just more pronounced and obviously if it goes so far that you can't motivate yourself even to do the things you HAVE to, there's a problem.
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Yes i’ve heard a lot about the energy conservation hypothesis and it makes sense. I guess in our time, people with high intrinsic motivation, probably those with high dopamine levels are at an advantage as they always have to be doing something. when I heard about people complaining that they didn’t have work to do, despite the fact that their employers were paying them to do nothing in lockdown, I couldn’t believe it and it’s still a foreign concept to me now. I guess such people find a sense of attachment/purpose when doing hard work or being productive and maybe this gives them pleasure or relief. that’s just my theory, but there could be many other factors involved.
 
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