I'm sitting here writing this article on the balcony of an apartment I'll be living in for two weeks, overlooking the calm, blue sea, while petting the neighbor's kitty curled up next to me.

Oh, and I'm attending an artist residency in Greece.

You're probably wondering, "Why is this relevant?" Or maybe, "Who cares, I want to know why you think procrastination is a good thing."

Well, this is relevant because if it were not for putting off my homework, I would not be sitting in this wonderland right now.

Procrastination has always had a negative connotation because people think about it so narrow-mindedly. (Is that even a word?) Ask anybody, "What is procrastination?" and they will most likely give you an answer somewhere along the lines of "It'swhen you're avoiding doing something you should be doing."

WRONG!

Okay, well, technically that is right, BUT... I am telling you that stalling is a positive thing - you're welcome my fellow college students.

1. Learn More About Yourself

It's easy. If you're avoiding that twelve page essay, you're going to do anything you can to keep yourself busy. Maybe you pull up Youtube videos, search for music, clean your room, Google things you've always wondered. It doesn't matter what it may be. The things you do while you procrastinate are likely the things you are good at or are passionate about. Pay attention to them.

2. Better Quality Work

A lot of people, myself included, will force themselves to pull it together and get to work on the thing they are dreading doing. This is me telling you DON'T DO THE THING! If you write a paper while thinking 'I hate this, I hate this, I hate this,' I bet your professor is probably thinking the same thing while reading it. Putting it off gives you a break from the dread and allows you to go back to work when you feel like you can actually get through it without dying inside.

3. Exercise Your Creative Muscle

Think about the things you have done while procrastinating.

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Now that you've had a couple milliseconds to think about it, I hope you have come to the conclusion that they are either pretty random, or pretty pointless. That is okay! Because when you have run out of things to keep yourself away from whatever it is you're avoiding, you get quirky with it. You force yourself to come up with new ways to do nothing, and that is creativity in its purest form. Let your imagination run. Creativity is always helpful, and the more often you are forcing your brain to come up with new ways to slack off, the better you will be at coming up with new ideas when you need to. (!!!)

4. Making Things Happen

This may not be true for everybody, but when I postpone my to-do list, I am really letting myself do the things I want to do that I haven't had time for previously. How great is that? Now instead of stressing yourself out about "Shit, I really need to get this done," you can be at peace knowing you are still being just as productive. And, on top of that, you're probably doing things that you actually enjoy! How 'bout that.

So, enjoy yourself and never force yourself to do something you do not absolutely want to be doing. Oh, and Make Procrastinating Great Again!