I read Stanford philosopher John Perry’s piece on structured procrastination a few months ago and have been using it to justify my existence.

Structured procrastination means shaping the structure of the tasks one has to do in a way that exploits this fact. The list of tasks one has in mind will be ordered by importance. Tasks that seem most urgent and important are on top. But there are also worthwhile tasks to perform lower down on the list. Doing these tasks becomes a way of not doing the things higher up on the list. With this sort of appropriate task structure, the procrastinator becomes a useful citizen. Indeed, the procrastinator can even acquire, as I have, a reputation for getting a lot done.

It’s a great way to make friends feel better too when they tell me about how badly they’re procrastinating. Most of us get everything done on time anyway but we take a few side trips along the way. You’re not alone. Join the structured procrastination Facebook group!