ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Tim Urban - Blogger
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.

Why you should listen

Tim Urban has become one of the Internet’s most popular writers. With wry stick-figure illustrations and occasionally epic prose on everything from procrastination to artificial intelligence, Urban's blog, Wait But Why, has garnered millions of unique page views, thousands of patrons and famous fans like Elon Musk.

More profile about the speaker
Tim Urban | Speaker | TED.com
TED2016

Tim Urban: Inside the mind of a master procrastinator

Tim Urban: Na mente dun mestre da procrastinación

Filmed:
36,567,611 views

Tim Urban sabe que non ten sentido procrastinar, pero nunca foi quen de librarse do hábito de esperar ata o último minuto para facer as cousas. Nesta charla hilarante e reveladora, Urban lévanos de viaxe polas enchentas de YouTube, os tobos de coellos e os episodios de contemplación a través da ventá... e anímanos a meditar sobre que estamos aprazando realmente, antes de quedar sen tempo.
- Blogger
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. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
So in college,
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Na universidade,
00:15
I was a government major,
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estudei Ciencias Políticas,
00:16
which means I had to write
a lot of papers.
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iso significa que tiven que escribir
moitos artigos,
00:19
Now, when a normal student writes a paper,
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Cando un estudante normal
escribe un artigo,
00:21
they might spread the work out
a little like this.
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debe organizar o traballo un pouco así.
00:23
So, you know --
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Xa saben...
00:25
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
00:26
you get started maybe a little slowly,
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Empezas quizais un pouco lento,
00:28
but you get enough done in the first week
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pero fas bastante a primeira semana
00:30
that, with some heavier days later on,
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así, traballando duro uns días máis,
00:32
everything gets done, things stay civil.
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todo estará acabado, todo en orde.
00:34
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
00:35
And I would want to do that like that.
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Encantaríame facelo dese modo.
Ese sería o plan.
00:38
That would be the plan.
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00:39
I would have it all ready to go,
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Teríao todo listo,
00:41
but then, actually, the paper
would come along,
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pero despois, chega a hora
de escribir o artigo,
00:44
and then I would kind of do this.
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o que realmente fago é isto.
00:46
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
00:48
And that would happen every single paper.
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E iso pasa con tódolos artigos.
00:51
But then came my 90-page senior thesis,
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Entón chegou a tese de 90 páxinas,
00:55
a paper you're supposed
to spend a year on.
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un artigo ao que se supón
que lle dedicas un ano.
00:57
And I knew for a paper like that,
my normal work flow was not an option.
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Sabía que para un traballo así,
non era viable o meu ritmo normal.
Era un proxecto grande de máis.
01:01
It was way too big a project.
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01:02
So I planned things out,
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Entón planifiquei todo,
01:04
and I decided I kind of had
to go something like this.
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e decidín que debía facer algo coma isto.
01:07
This is how the year would go.
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Así debería ser o ano.
01:09
So I'd start off light,
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Empezaría de forma suave,
01:11
and I'd bump it up in the middle months,
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aumentaría o ritmo nos meses do medio,
01:13
and then at the end,
I would kick it up into high gear
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e logo, o sprint final
01:16
just like a little staircase.
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como unha pequena escaleira.
01:17
How hard could it be
to walk up the stairs?
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Que traballo ía custar
subir unha escaleira?
01:20
No big deal, right?
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Non moito, verdade?
01:23
But then, the funniest thing happened.
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Pero entón, pasou algo moi gracioso.
01:24
Those first few months?
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Aqueles primeiros meses?
01:26
They came and went,
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Como viñeron, marcharon,
01:27
and I couldn't quite do stuff.
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e non puiden facer case nada.
01:29
So we had an awesome new revised plan.
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Así que fixen un novo plan axustado.
01:31
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
01:32
And then --
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E despois...
01:33
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
01:35
But then those middle months
actually went by,
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Pero os meses do medio tamén pasaron,
01:38
and I didn't really write words,
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e non escribín nin unha palabra,
01:40
and so we were here.
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e aquí estabamos.
01:43
And then two months turned into one month,
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Despois dous meses convertéronse nun,
01:46
which turned into two weeks.
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que se converteu en dúas semanas.
01:47
And one day I woke up
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E un día espertei
01:49
with three days until the deadline,
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e quedaban tres días para a entrega
01:53
still not having written a word,
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e non tiña nada escrito,
01:55
and so I did the only thing I could:
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de modo que fixen o único que podía:
01:57
I wrote 90 pages over 72 hours,
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escribín 90 páxinas en 72 horas,
02:00
pulling not one but two all-nighters --
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pasei dúas noites enteiras sen durmir
02:02
humans are not supposed to pull
two all-nighters --
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--os humanos non deberiamos
pasar dúas noites en vela--
02:06
sprinted across campus,
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corrín polo campus,
02:08
dove in slow motion,
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saltei a cámara lenta,
02:09
and got it in just at the deadline.
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e entreguei a tese xusto no límite.
02:11
I thought that was the end of everything.
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Pensei que con iso acababa todo,
02:14
But a week later I get a call,
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pero unha semana despois
02:15
and it's the school.
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chamáronme da universidade.
02:17
And they say, "Is this Tim Urban?"
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Dixeron: "Tim Urban?"
02:19
And I say, "Yeah."
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Eu dixen: "Si".
02:20
And they say, "We need
to talk about your thesis."
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Dixeron: "Temos que falar
sobre a súa tese".
02:23
And I say, "OK."
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Eu dixen: "Vale".
02:25
And they say,
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E eles:
02:27
"It's the best one we've ever seen."
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"É a mellor que vimos na vida".
02:29
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
02:32
(Applause)
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(Aplausos)
02:36
That did not happen.
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Iso non ocorreu.
02:38
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
02:40
It was a very, very bad thesis.
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Era unha tese malísima.
02:43
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
02:45
I just wanted to enjoy that one moment
when all of you thought,
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Só quería gozar dese momento
en que todos pensaron:
02:49
"This guy is amazing!"
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"Este tipo é incrible!"
02:51
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
02:52
No, no, it was very, very bad.
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Non, non, era malísima.
02:55
Anyway, today I'm a writer-blogger guy.
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En calquera caso, hoxe escribo un blog.
02:58
I write the blog Wait But Why.
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Escribo o blog Wait But Why.
03:00
And a couple of years ago,
I decided to write about procrastination.
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E hai un par de anos, decidín
escribir sobre a procrastinación.
03:04
My behavior has always perplexed
the non-procrastinators around me,
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A miña conduta sempre desconcertou
os non procrastinadores do redor,
03:07
and I wanted to explain
to the non-procrastinators of the world
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e quería explicarlles
aos non procrastinadores do mundo
que pasa pola cabeza dun procrastinador,
03:11
what goes on in the heads
of procrastinators,
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e por que somos así.
03:13
and why we are the way we are.
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Eu tiña a hipótese
03:14
Now, I had a hypothesis
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03:16
that the brains of procrastinators
were actually different
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de que o cerebro dos procrastinadores
era realmente distinto
03:18
than the brains of other people.
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do cerebro do resto da xente.
03:21
And to test this, I found an MRI lab
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Para probalo, encontrei
un laboratorio con RMI
03:23
that actually let me scan both my brain
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que me deixou facer
unha resonancia do meu cerebro
03:26
and the brain of a proven
non-procrastinator,
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e unha do cerebro dun non procrastinador,
03:29
so I could compare them.
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para que as puidese comparar.
03:30
I actually brought them here
to show you today.
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E hoxe tróuxenas aquí para mostrárllelas.
03:32
I want you to take a look carefully
to see if you can notice a difference.
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Observen con atención
a ver se encontran a diferenza.
Se non son expertos
en procesos cerebrais,
03:36
I know that if you're not
a trained brain expert,
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non é algo tan obvio,
pero só observen, de acordo?
03:38
it's not that obvious,
but just take a look, OK?
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Velaquí o cerebro
dun non procrastinador.
03:40
So here's the brain
of a non-procrastinator.
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03:43
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
03:46
Now ...
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Agora...
03:48
here's my brain.
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este é o meu cerebro.
03:50
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
03:55
There is a difference.
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Hai unha diferenza.
03:57
Both brains have a Rational
Decision-Maker in them,
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Os dous teñen alguén
que toma decisións racionais,
04:00
but the procrastinator's brain
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pero o cerebro do procrastinador
04:01
also has an Instant Gratification Monkey.
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tamén ten un Mono
da Gratificación Instantánea.
04:05
Now, what does this mean
for the procrastinator?
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Que significa isto para o procrastinador?
04:07
Well, it means everything's fine
until this happens.
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Significa que todo está ben
ata que pasa isto.
04:09
[This is a perfect time
to get some work done.] [Nope!]
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[É o momento ideal
para traballar un pouco.] [Non!]
O Tomador de Decisións Racionais
tomará a decisión racional
04:12
So the Rational Decision-Maker
will make the rational decision
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de facer algo produtivo,
04:15
to do something productive,
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04:17
but the Monkey doesn't like that plan,
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pero ao Mono non lle gusta o plan,
04:19
so he actually takes the wheel,
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por iso colle o temón,
04:20
and he says, "Actually, let's read
the entire Wikipedia page
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e di: "Mellor, vamos ler
a páxina enteira da Wikipedia
04:23
of the Nancy Kerrigan/
Tonya Harding scandal,
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do escándalo Nancy Kerrigan/Tonya Harding,
04:25
because I just remembered
that that happened.
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porque xusto me acabo de lembrar diso.
(Risas)
04:28
(Laughter)
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Entón...
04:29
Then --
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04:30
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
04:31
Then we're going to go over to the fridge,
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Despois imos ir á neveira,
para ver se hai algo novo alí
desde os últimos 10 minutos.
04:33
to see if there's anything new
in there since 10 minutes ago.
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Logo, imos entrar nunha espiral de YouTube
04:36
After that, we're going to go
on a YouTube spiral
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04:39
that starts with videos
of Richard Feynman talking about magnets
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que comeza con vídeos
de Richard Feynman falando de imáns
04:42
and ends much, much later
with us watching interviews
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e remata moitísimo despois
mirando entrevistas
04:45
with Justin Bieber's mom.
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da nai de Justin Bieber.
04:47
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
04:49
"All of that's going to take a while,
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"Todo iso vai levar un anaco,
04:51
so we're not going to really have room
on the schedule for any work today.
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así que non imos ter tempo
de facer ningún traballo hoxe.
Síntoo!"
04:54
Sorry!"
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04:55
(Sigh)
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(Suspira)
04:58
Now, what is going on here?
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Pero, que está pasando aquí?
05:03
The Instant Gratification Monkey
does not seem like a guy
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O Mono da Gratificación
Instantánea non parece ser o tipo
05:06
you want behind the wheel.
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que queremos ter ao timón.
05:07
He lives entirely in the present moment.
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Vive totalmente o momento actual.
05:09
He has no memory of the past,
no knowledge of the future,
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Non ten memoria do pasado,
non coñece o futuro,
05:12
and he only cares about two things:
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e só lle importan dúas cousas:
05:14
easy and fun.
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o fácil e o divertido.
05:16
Now, in the animal world, that works fine.
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No mundo animal iso funciona.
05:19
If you're a dog
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Se es un can
05:20
and you spend your whole life doing
nothing other than easy and fun things,
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e pasas toda a vida facendo só
cousas fáciles e divertidas,
tes un éxito enorme!
05:24
you're a huge success!
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05:25
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
05:27
And to the Monkey,
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E para o Mono,
05:29
humans are just another animal species.
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os humanos somos só outra especie animal.
05:32
You have to keep well-slept, well-fed
and propagating into the next generation,
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Tes que durmir ben, comer ben
e propagarte na seguinte xeración.
05:36
which in tribal times
might have worked OK.
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Isto en tempos tribais
pode que funcionase ben.
05:38
But, if you haven't noticed,
now we're not in tribal times.
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Pero, por se non o notaron,
non estamos nos tempos tribais.
05:41
We're in an advanced civilization,
and the Monkey does not know what that is.
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Estamos nunha civilización avanzada,
e o Mono non sabe que é iso.
05:45
Which is why we have
another guy in our brain,
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Por iso temos outro tipo no noso cerebro,
05:48
the Rational Decision-Maker,
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o Tomador de Decisións Racionais,
05:50
who gives us the ability to do things
no other animal can do.
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que nos permite facer cousas
que ningún outro animal pode.
05:53
We can visualize the future.
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Podemos visualizar o futuro.
05:55
We can see the big picture.
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Podemos ver as cousas en perspectiva.
05:57
We can make long-term plans.
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Facer plans a longo prazo.
05:58
And he wants to take
all of that into account.
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E esta parte quere ter todo iso en conta.
06:02
And he wants to just have us do
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E quere que fagamos
06:03
whatever makes sense
to be doing right now.
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o que teña sentido facer xusto agora.
06:06
Now, sometimes it makes sense
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Ás veces ten sentido
06:08
to be doing things that are easy and fun,
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facer cousas fáciles e divertidas,
06:10
like when you're having dinner
or going to bed
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como cear ou ir durmir,
06:12
or enjoying well-earned leisure time.
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ou gozar dun merecido descanso.
06:14
That's why there's an overlap.
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Por iso hai un solapamento.
06:15
Sometimes they agree.
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Ás veces están de acordo.
06:17
But other times, it makes much more sense
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pero outras veces, ten moito máis sentido
06:20
to be doing things that are harder
and less pleasant,
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facer cousas máis difíciles
e menos pracenteiras,
06:24
for the sake of the big picture.
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polo ben da perspectiva.
06:25
And that's when we have a conflict.
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E aí é cando se xera o conflito.
06:28
And for the procrastinator,
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Para o procrastinador,
06:29
that conflict tends to end
a certain way every time,
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ese conflito adoita rematar
sempre da mesma maneira,
06:31
leaving him spending a lot of time
in this orange zone,
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pasando unha morea de tempo
nesta zona laranxa,
06:35
an easy and fun place that's entirely
out of the Makes Sense circle.
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un lugar fácil e divertido
totalmente fóra do círculo da Lóxica.
06:39
I call it the Dark Playground.
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Eu chámolle o Patio Escuro.
06:42
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
06:43
Now, the Dark Playground is a place
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O Patio Escuro é un lugar
06:47
that all of you procrastinators
out there know very well.
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que todos os procrastinadores
coñecedes moi ben.
06:50
It's where leisure activities happen
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Alí teñen lugar actividades de ocio
06:52
at times when leisure activities
are not supposed to be happening.
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en momentos
nos que non deberían ter lugar.
A diversión que se obtén no Patio Escuro
06:56
The fun you have in the Dark Playground
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06:58
isn't actually fun,
because it's completely unearned,
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non é diversión real,
porque é totalmente inmerecida,
07:00
and the air is filled with guilt,
dread, anxiety, self-hatred --
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e o aire está cargado de culpa,
temor, ansiedade, auto odio...
07:04
all of those good procrastinator feelings.
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todos os sentimentos do bo procrastinador.
07:06
And the question is, in this situation,
with the Monkey behind the wheel,
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E a pregunta é: nesta situación,
co Mono ao timón,
como é que o procrastinador
consegue chegar a esta zona azul,
07:10
how does the procrastinator ever get
himself over here to this blue zone,
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un lugar menos pracenteiro
pero onde ocorre o realmente importante?
07:13
a less pleasant place, but where
really important things happen?
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07:17
Well, turns out the procrastinator
has a guardian angel,
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Pois, resulta que o procrastinador
ten un anxo da garda,
07:22
someone who's always looking
down on him and watching over him
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alguén que sempre o vixía e vela por el
07:25
in his darkest moments --
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nos momentos máis escuros...
07:26
someone called the Panic Monster.
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alguén chamado o Monstro do Pánico.
07:28
(Laughter)
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(Risas)
07:34
Now, the Panic Monster
is dormant most of the time,
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O Monstro do Pánico está durmido
a maior parte do tempo,
07:39
but he suddenly wakes up
anytime a deadline gets too close
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pero acorda de súpeto
sempre que se aproxima o fin dun prazo
07:43
or there's danger of public embarrassment,
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ou hai perigo de vergonza pública,
07:45
a career disaster or some other
scary consequence.
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un desastre na carreira
ou outra consecuencia aterradora.
07:47
And importantly, he's the only thing
the Monkey is terrified of.
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4172
E, o máis importante, é a única cousa
da que ten medo o Mono.
07:51
Now, he became very relevant
in my life pretty recently,
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Volveuse moi relevante
na miña vida recentemente,
07:56
because the people of TED
reached out to me about six months ago
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porque a xente de TED
contactou comigo hai uns seis meses
07:59
and invited me to do a TED Talk.
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e invitoume a dar unha charla TED.
08:01
(Laughter)
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2428
(Risas)
08:07
Now, of course, I said yes.
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E, claro, dixen que si.
08:08
It's always been a dream of mine
to have done a TED Talk in the past.
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Para min sempre foi un soño
ter dado unha charla TED no pasado.
08:12
(Laughter)
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480818
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(Risas)
08:16
(Applause)
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484814
3697
(Aplausos)
08:24
But in the middle of all this excitement,
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1969
Pero no medio de toda esta euforia,
08:26
the Rational Decision-Maker seemed
to have something else on his mind.
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494196
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o Tomador de Decisións Racionais
parecía ter outra cousa en mente.
Dicía: "Temos claro
o que acabamos de aceptar?
08:29
He was saying, "Are we clear
on what we just accepted?
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497521
2548
08:32
Do we get what's going to be now
happening one day in the future?
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3249
Entendemos o que vai ocorrer
un destes días no futuro?
08:35
We need to sit down
and work on this right now."
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Hai que sentarse
e traballar nisto agora mesmo".
08:37
And the Monkey said, "Totally agree,
but let's just open Google Earth
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3265
E o Mono dicía: "Totalmente de acordo,
pero só imos abrir Google Earth,
08:40
and zoom in to the bottom of India,
like 200 feet above the ground,
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3160
e facer zoom ata o fondo da India,
como a uns 60 metros do solo,
e subir durante dúas horas e media
ata chegar á cima do país,
08:44
and scroll up for two and a half hours
til we get to the top of the country,
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512130
3621
para ter un mellor coñecemento da India".
08:47
so we can get a better feel for India."
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1978
08:49
(Laughter)
206
517777
4435
(Risas)
08:55
So that's what we did that day.
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Iso foi o que fixemos ese día.
08:56
(Laughter)
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524658
2670
(Risas)
09:00
As six months turned into four
and then two and then one,
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A medida que seis meses pasaban a catro,
e logo a dous e logo a un,
09:04
the people of TED decided
to release the speakers.
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3095
o equipo de TED decidiu
anunciar os oradores.
09:07
And I opened up the website,
and there was my face
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2612
E eu abrín a páxina web
e alí estaba a miña cara mirándome.
09:10
staring right back at me.
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E adiviñan quen espertou?
09:11
And guess who woke up?
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1600
09:13
(Laughter)
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541283
3115
(Risas)
09:17
So the Panic Monster
starts losing his mind,
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545430
2450
Entón, o Monstro do Pánico
comeza a perder a cabeza,
09:19
and a few seconds later,
the whole system's in mayhem.
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547904
2746
e uns segundos máis tarde,
todo o sistema entra en caos.
09:22
(Laughter)
217
550674
2446
(Risas)
09:27
And the Monkey -- remember,
he's terrified of the Panic Monster --
218
555511
3101
E o Mono -lembren que ten
un medo inmenso do Monstro do Pánico-
bum! chimpa para a árbore!
09:30
boom, he's up the tree!
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558636
1158
09:31
And finally,
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559818
1151
E, finalmente,
09:32
finally, the Rational Decision-Maker
can take the wheel
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560993
2596
o Tomador de Decisións Racionais
pode coller o timón,
09:35
and I can start working on the talk.
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563613
1718
e eu podo comezar a traballar na charla.
09:37
Now, the Panic Monster explains
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565355
2288
O Monstro do Pánico explica
09:39
all kinds of pretty insane
procrastinator behavior,
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567667
3481
todo tipo de comportamentos
absurdos do procrastinador,
09:43
like how someone like me
could spend two weeks
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571172
2334
explica como alguén coma min
pode pasar 2 semanas
09:45
unable to start the opening
sentence of a paper,
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3844
sen conseguir escribir
a frase inicial dun artigo,
09:49
and then miraculously find
the unbelievable work ethic
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577398
2771
e logo atopa milagrosamente
unha ética de traballo incrible
09:52
to stay up all night
and write eight pages.
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3096
para estar en pé toda a noite
e escribir oito páxinas.
09:56
And this entire situation,
with the three characters --
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Toda esta situación,
cos tres personaxes...
09:59
this is the procrastinator's system.
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587391
2020
é o sistema do procrastinador.
10:02
It's not pretty, but in the end, it works.
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3425
Non é marabilloso,
pero ao final, funciona.
10:05
This is what I decided to write about
on the blog a couple of years ago.
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4062
Sobre isto decidín escribir no blog
hai un par de anos.
10:09
When I did, I was amazed by the response.
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2971
Cando o fixen, abraioume a resposta.
10:12
Literally thousands of emails came in,
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2153
Recibín literalmente miles de correos,
10:14
from all different kinds of people
from all over the world,
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602803
2777
de todo tipo de persoas
de todo o mundo,
10:17
doing all different kinds of things.
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605604
1738
que facían todo tipo de cousas.
Había enfermeiros, banqueiros,
pintores, enxeñeiros
10:19
These are people who were nurses,
bankers, painters, engineers
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607366
2966
10:22
and lots and lots of PhD students.
238
610356
2322
e unha morea de estudantes
de doutoramento.
10:24
(Laughter)
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612702
2001
(Risas)
10:26
And they were all writing,
saying the same thing:
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614727
2288
Todos escribían dicindo o mesmo:
10:29
"I have this problem too."
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617039
1952
"Tamén teño ese problema".
10:31
But what struck me was the contrast
between the light tone of the post
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3829
Pero o que me chocou foi o contraste
entre o ton superficial do que publiquei
10:34
and the heaviness of these emails.
243
622868
2095
e a melancolía dos correos.
10:36
These people were writing
with intense frustration
244
624987
3083
Estas persoas escribían
cunha frustración intensa
10:40
about what procrastination
had done to their lives,
245
628094
2762
sobre os efectos
da procrastinación nas súas vidas,
10:42
about what this Monkey had done to them.
246
630880
2030
sobre os efectos do Mono nas súas vidas.
10:46
And I thought about this, and I said,
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2966
E pensei nisto, e dixen para min:
10:49
well, if the procrastinator's system
works, then what's going on?
248
637892
3112
Se o sistema do procrastinador
funciona, entón que está pasando?
10:53
Why are all of these people
in such a dark place?
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2486
Por que todas estas persoas
están tan deprimidas?
10:55
Well, it turns out that there's
two kinds of procrastination.
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3298
Pois resulta que hai dous tipos
de procrastinación.
10:59
Everything I've talked about today,
the examples I've given,
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2834
Todo o que expliquei hoxe,
os exemplos que dei,
todos teñen prazos.
11:02
they all have deadlines.
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650845
1151
E cando hai prazos,
11:04
And when there's deadlines,
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652020
1298
os efectos da procrastinación
están acoutados na curta duración
11:05
the effects of procrastination
are contained to the short term
254
653342
2925
porque o Monstro do Pánico intervén.
11:08
because the Panic Monster gets involved.
255
656291
1913
Pero hai outro tipo de procrastinación
11:10
But there's a second kind
of procrastination
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658228
2054
que acontece en situacións
nas que non hai un prazo límite.
11:12
that happens in situations
when there is no deadline.
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660306
2487
11:14
So if you wanted a career
where you're a self-starter --
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662817
2690
Por iso, se alguén quere
unha carreira independente
11:17
something in the arts,
something entrepreneurial --
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2413
--algunha cousa artística
ou emprendedora--
11:19
there's no deadlines on those things
at first, because nothing's happening,
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3525
non hai prazos nesas cousas ao principio,
porque non pasa nada,
11:23
not until you've gone out
and done the hard work
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671517
2244
ata que se sae fóra
e se fai o traballo duro
11:25
to get momentum, get things going.
262
673785
1626
para coller pulo e mover as cousas.
11:27
There's also all kinds of important things
outside of your career
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675435
3078
Tamén hai cousas importantes
fóra da carreira
que non teñen prazos,
11:30
that don't involve any deadlines,
264
678537
1605
como visitar a familia,
facer exercicio e coidar da saúde,
11:32
like seeing your family or exercising
and taking care of your health,
265
680166
3265
11:35
working on your relationship
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683455
1404
ocuparse dunha relación
11:36
or getting out of a relationship
that isn't working.
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684883
2681
ou rematar unha relación
que non funciona.
11:39
Now if the procrastinator's only mechanism
of doing these hard things
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5148
Pero se o único mecanismo
do procrastinador para facer estas cousas
é o Monstro do Pánico,
hai un problema,
11:44
is the Panic Monster, that's a problem,
269
692760
1885
11:46
because in all of these
non-deadline situations,
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694669
2800
porque en todas estas situacións
sen prazos,
11:49
the Panic Monster doesn't show up.
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1628
non aparece o Monstro do Pánico.
11:51
He has nothing to wake up for,
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1452
Non ten motivos para espertar,
11:52
so the effects of procrastination,
they're not contained;
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2698
por iso os efectos da procrastinación
non se acoutan;
11:55
they just extend outward forever.
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703343
1740
simplemente se prolongan para sempre.
11:57
And it's this long-term
kind of procrastination
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2740
E esta procrastinación de longa duración
12:00
that's much less visible
and much less talked about
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708717
3081
é menos visible e menos comentada
12:03
than the funnier, short-term
deadline-based kind.
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711822
2901
ca a divertida, a de curta duración,
a que ten prazos.
12:06
It's usually suffered
quietly and privately.
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3103
Polo xeral padécese
en silencio e en privado.
12:10
And it can be the source
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1154
E pode ser a fonte
12:11
of a huge amount of long-term
unhappiness, and regrets.
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719994
3735
dunha inmensa infelicidade
a longo prazo e de remorsos.
12:16
And I thought, that's why
those people are emailing,
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724576
2872
E, pensei, por iso me escribían
todas aquelas persoas,
12:19
and that's why they're
in such a bad place.
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727472
2502
e por iso se sentían tan mal.
12:21
It's not that they're cramming
for some project.
283
729998
2744
Non se trata de que estean apurados
con algún proxecto.
12:24
It's that long-term procrastination
has made them feel like a spectator,
284
732766
3421
É que a procrastinación de longa duración
fainos sentir coma espectadores,
12:28
at times, in their own lives.
285
736211
2039
ás veces, das súas propias vidas.
12:30
The frustration is not
that they couldn't achieve their dreams;
286
738594
2982
A frustración non vén de que non poidan
alcanzar os seus soños;
12:33
it's that they weren't even
able to start chasing them.
287
741600
3089
senón do feito de non poder
sequera comezar a perseguilos.
12:36
So I read these emails
and I had a little bit of an epiphany --
288
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4183
Por iso, ao ler estes correos
tiven unha pequena epifanía...
12:42
that I don't think
non-procrastinators exist.
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3400
non creo que existan
os non procrastinadores.
12:45
That's right -- I think all of you
are procrastinators.
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3236
Así é... Penso que todos vostedes son
procrastinadores.
12:49
Now, you might not all be a mess,
291
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1914
Pode que non sexan todos un desastre,
12:51
like some of us,
292
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1350
coma algúns de nós,
12:53
(Laughter)
293
761210
1529
(Risas)
12:54
and some of you may have
a healthy relationship with deadlines,
294
762763
3316
e algúns de vostedes pode que teñan
unha relación saudable cos prazos,
12:58
but remember: the Monkey's sneakiest trick
295
766103
2524
pero lembren: a trampa
máis raposeira do Mono
13:00
is when the deadlines aren't there.
296
768651
1840
é cando os prazos non existen.
13:03
Now, I want to show you one last thing.
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2032
Agora quero mostrarlles unha última cousa.
13:05
I call this a Life Calendar.
298
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2373
A isto chámolle Calendario da Vida.
13:08
That's one box for every week
of a 90-year life.
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4279
Hai unha caixa por cada semana
dunha vida de 90 anos.
13:13
That's not that many boxes,
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1589
Non son tantas caixas,
13:14
especially since we've already
used a bunch of those.
301
782958
2974
sobre todo porque xa usamos
unha morea delas.
13:18
So I think we need to all take a long,
hard look at that calendar.
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5132
Creo que todos temos que mirar
con moita atención este calendario.
13:24
We need to think about what
we're really procrastinating on,
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3013
Precisamos pensar sobre as cousas
que estamos procrastinando,
13:28
because everyone is procrastinating
on something in life.
304
796014
3365
porque todos procrastinamos
cousas na vida.
13:32
We need to stay aware
of the Instant Gratification Monkey.
305
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3030
Temos que estar atentos
ao Mono da Gratificación Instantánea.
13:37
That's a job for all of us.
306
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2492
É unha tarefa para todos nós.
13:40
And because there's not
that many boxes on there,
307
808669
2300
E visto que non quedan
tantas caixas por diante,
é un traballo que, probablemente,
debería comezar hoxe.
13:42
it's a job that should
probably start today.
308
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2290
13:45
Well, maybe not today, but ...
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813307
3000
Ben, quizais non hoxe, pero...
13:48
(Laughter)
310
816331
1641
(Risas)
13:49
You know.
311
817996
1150
Xa saben...
13:51
Sometime soon.
312
819576
1150
En breve.
13:53
Thank you.
313
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Grazas.
13:54
(Applause)
314
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7998
(Aplausos)
Translated by Susana Brandariz
Reviewed by Alicia Ferreiro

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Tim Urban - Blogger
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.

Why you should listen

Tim Urban has become one of the Internet’s most popular writers. With wry stick-figure illustrations and occasionally epic prose on everything from procrastination to artificial intelligence, Urban's blog, Wait But Why, has garnered millions of unique page views, thousands of patrons and famous fans like Elon Musk.

More profile about the speaker
Tim Urban | Speaker | TED.com