We have been told to believe that it is wrong to procrastinate. "Do not put off for tomorrow," they say, "what we can do today."

That slogan certainly does have validity, as a generality. However, there are times when it is important to consider the value of procrastination.

Sometimes things that cannot be solved today can indeed be solved tomorrow, after putting them aside.

Writers, editors, and translators all know the value of setting their work aside for a day or two, after which they can view it as a fresh document. Procrastination works.

Similarly, those who solve problems, and those who relate to issues that they can or cannot accomplish, would do well to put them aside after giving them due thought.

That means that procrastination sometimes works. However, in these cases, it may be wise to remove the stigma of the name "procrastination." It sounds much better if we simply say that we are putting it aside so that we can work on it at a better time.

In such cases, we may discover that issues that we thought we cannot do or handle will ultimately become do-able – or even successful.