Procrastination is ...

I'd been meaning to write a blog post about procrastination for quite some time, but just never got around to it.

(That's not entirely true, but I thought it would make a good opening.)

Actually, I started this post a few weeks ago, made some notes, wrote a few sentences, saved the draft, published a few other posts, and have only just come back to it now. There's a theory that procrastination and perfectionism are closely linked; I'm a little like that.

Edward Young, an English poet, said that "procrastination is the thief of time". That may be true sometimes. However, I've had several occasions lately where procrastination has actually saved me a lot of money. On all three occasions, I have made considerable savings on items I was planning to purchase anyway.

I have been looking around for a cupcake carousel for quite a while. When I bake large batches of cupcakes to take to parties, it can be challenging finding enough containers that are suitable for carrying 24 cupcakes at a time. I found one on a cake supply website for $80. It looked great but there's no way I could justify spending $80 to carry cupcakes around. I found a similar model at a gift shop for $60. I decided to splurge. However, on the day I was due to go shopping, the weather packed in and I decided to stay at home where it was warm and cosy. Just as well, because the very next day the shop had a half-price sale and I got my carousel for just $30. They have now sold out completely, but not before a couple of workmates also went out and bought discounted stock. I saved $50 just by staying at home!

Then there was my laptop. I've needed to buy one for a while and eventually started shopping around for a basic model at a good price. I chose one, a clearance model that was reduced from around $1100 to $777, but put off the moment of purchase. (I'm a terrible shopper and useless at spending money.) Just as well; my laptop went down the next day a further $32, costing just $745 all up. Once again, procrastination saved me some money.

At Zumba the other week, I noticed they had started offering 10-trip concession cards for $40, bringing the cost of each session down from $5 to $4. I thought it would be a good idea to buy one but didn't have enough cash on me; never mind, I could get one another time. This morning,  today's 1-dayout deal was 10 Zumba sessions at the same place that I go to for just $25 - half price! Once again, procrastination saved me some cash.

Has procrastination ever paid off for you?