Is that procrastination in your eye?

The eyes are the windows to the soul, or so they say.  But what on earth do our eyes have to do with time management?

Image by Claire Bloomfield

An interesting study from Orebro University reveals facets of our personality are as deep seated as our very biology.

The study in question was performed using 428 test subjects who were assessed for factors including warm heartedness and impulsiveness.   These results were observed: the presence of ‘crypts’ or ‘pits’, and contraction furrows (lines curving around the outer edge of the iris), which are formed when pupils dilate.  

The findings revealed the following.  The more crypts we have, the higher the likelihood of us being tender hearted, warm and trusting, while those of us with more furrows were more likely to be “…impulsive and give in to cravings".

Psychology tells us that the more impulsive a person’s nature, the more likely they are to procrastinate.  Think about it, if you are governed by a need for instant gratification, odds are you will not get much done.

I bet you are all reaching for mirrors right now as you read this, hoping to find more crypts than furrows!  Firstly, let me just state it is not that easy to identify those damning furrows: they are best observed in low light when your pupils are dilated.  It is therefore quite difficult to self-diagnose.

If characteristics such as impulsiveness are programmed in our very DNA, then how can we expect to overcome the problems this presents?  Are we victims of our biology, or do we have the ability to rise above our programming?

The good news is we definitely do have the ability to change.  Neural plasticity is a term that refers to the brain’s ability to ‘rewire itself’.  The more you repeat a behaviour, the more your brain changes to ensure we can perform that behaviour automatically in future by developing ‘habits’. We tend to forget that not all habits are bad!

Even if you have been allocated a higher dose of impulsiveness than most folk, by practising restraint coupled with strategies to overcome procrastination, there is no reason why you cannot reach your full potential.

I do confess I will be looking for those telltale warm hearted ‘crypts’ the next time I gaze into someone’s eyes!

References:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/6375381.stm

Image by Clare Bloomfield

http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=862