Bill Gallagher explains why we procrastinate: when a decision feels risky, like choosing accounting software that could anger your boss or fail an audit, deferring it feels safer. The example of Joey shows how kicking the can down the road becomes the default move.
So first of all, maybe he picks the wrong accounting software, recommends it to his boss, and his boss thinks that's bad idea. And now he looks stupid in front of his boss. Maybe he buys accounting software and the end users in the accounting department hate it. And then he's like, everybody in the accounting department hates his guts. Maybe he picks the wrong accounting software, they fail the audit. That's very bad for the business. Maybe he gets passed up for promotion. Heck, maybe he even gets fired. Fired. So what is the lowest risk? Easiest decision for Joey to make in this moment is to do the same thing I did with the toilet is to come in and say, go to his boss and say, you know what? Now's not a good time. Now's not a good time. We're in the middle of the audit. This is bad. You know, just let's. Let's do it next year. Like, you know, there's lots of things out there. The thing we're using now, we don't love it, but it's okay. And so we'll just kick the can down the road for another year.
