Having excuses is a seductive way to get out of doing something you want, but are too afraid to act on. If you want to procrastinate, it’s never the right time to start something new—like a job search, asking for a promotion and raise, or getting involved with a gig-economy side hustle. There will always be a convenient reason why now is not a good time.

Most times, the logic supports your hesitance. You can point to the tensions over war, inflation, the stock market cratering and companies starting to slowly downsize. Your family and friends may say, “With everything going on, maybe you should wait a while.”

The problem with this well-intentioned advice is that you say you’ll start looking for a job in the summer, but “it’s notoriously slow, so I might as well enjoy my summer on the beach.” The time goes by and then it’s November. The excuse is now, “No one is hiring during the holidays, it makes sense to wait until the New Year when companies have their budgets and headcounts.”

Having excuses is a seductive way to get out of doing something you want, but are too afraid to act on. If you want to procrastinate, it’s never the right time to start something new—like a job search, asking for a promotion and raise, or getting involved with a gig-economy side hustle. There will always be a convenient reason why now is not a good time.

Most times, the logic supports your hesitance. You can point to the tensions over war, inflation, the stock market cratering and companies starting to slowly downsize. Your family and friends may say, “With everything going on, maybe you should wait a while.”

The problem with this well-intentioned advice is that you say you’ll start looking for a job in the summer, but “it’s notoriously slow, so I might as well enjoy my summer on the beach.” The time goes by and then it’s November. The excuse is now, “No one is hiring during the holidays, it makes sense to wait until the New Year when companies have their budgets and headcounts.”