Ideas worth spreading

Inside the mind of a master procrastinator

69,321,969 views |

Tim Urban |

TED2016

• February 2016

Tim Urban knows that procrastination doesn't make sense, but he's never been able to shake his habit of waiting until the last minute to get things done. In this hilarious and insightful talk, Urban takes us on a journey through YouTube binges, Wikipedia rabbit holes and bouts of staring out the window -- and encourages us to think harder about what we're really procrastinating on, before we run out of time.

Tim Urban knows that procrastination doesn't make sense, but he's never been able to shake his habit of waiting until the last minute to get things done. In this hilarious and insightful talk, Urban takes us on a journey through YouTube binges, Wikipedia rabbit holes and bouts of staring out the window -- and encourages us to think harder about what we're really procrastinating on, before we run out of time.

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

If you liked this talk, try the Wait But Why email list. Tim describes it as follows: "It's very un-annoying — I just email you each new post I write, but I only write 1-3 posts a month, so I won't be up in your grill, I promise."

About the speaker

Tim Urban

Writer, illustrator

See speaker profile

With Wait But Why, Tim Urban demonstrates that complex and long-form writing can stand out in an online wilderness choked with listicles and clickbait.

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This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

If you liked this talk, try the Wait But Why email list. Tim describes it as follows: "It's very un-annoying — I just email you each new post I write, but I only write 1-3 posts a month, so I won't be up in your grill, I promise."