Many of us are familiar with procrastinating. I know that I am guilty of this. Personally, I don’t typically spring to action until the deadline looms in front of me, shining like a guillotine.
I used to think it was funny and kind of cool to wait until the last minute to begin and end a project. “Look at this seven page paper I finished at 4:14 a.m.,” wouldn’t be too far from an actual quote of mine.
However, I’m finishing up finals of my junior year. I’m in the middle of working through anxiety that stems from -- you guessed it -- procrastinating.
I’m not laughing and I’m definitely not proud of myself or my work. In this moment of reflection, let me share some of my insight.
1. Why am I wasting time rushing through something?
It’s such a waste in all areas, really. I’m depriving myself of the opportunity to really comprehend what I’m working on. I’m not learning how to write better or compile a project nicely -- I’m just doing it quickly. There’s no positive reflection of what the professor has spent a semester focusing on; all they see is a haphazard piece of work that has a lot of holes and unfinished edges.
2. I’m not retaining anything
When I rush through something, I’m not paying attention to it in the way that it deserves. I’ve rushed through some papers on really important topics, but I can’t remember nearly enough because I was scrambling -- and likely exhausted -- while writing them.
3. It’s disrespectful to my superiors
I didn’t really see this until I was in a position of leadership, but getting last minute work is generally really crappy. It’s typically unpolished, disorganized and littered with errors that a second read through would have cleaned up.
I respect my professors so much and am now encouraged to turn in quality work that they deserve. Although my intention was never to disrespect someone with late work,
4. It adds unnecessary anxiety to my life
I already experience a lot of anxiety on a daily basis. Most of it can be dismissed; however, procrastinating is a serious thing, and the anxiety it produces can’t be shrugged off. It stems from a lack of responsibility that cripples my confidence, focus and quality of work.
5. I don’t truly enjoy the time I spend procrastinating
For me, a cloud of guilt hangs around when I’m not doing work that needs to be done. That second episode on Netflix, or the extra hour at the bar really don’t seem as rewarding when I’m avoiding responsibilities.
College friends always warned high school me that time management was an art, and an elusive one at that. It was best to practice good skills early and consistently, and that staying organized required diligence, but truly paid off.
Like many wise quotes, I appreciated the sentiment but found practice to be tedious, and not always exciting.
I proceeded into my college career with reckless abandon; I fell deeply in love with my field of study, but also with the freedom of my new life. If the opportunity to go on an adventure reared its tempting head, I willingly put aside my homework.
Freshman year? It was okay, sometimes.
Junior year? Too late. I should have learned this ages ago.
Now, I know that it’s important to manage time wisely. If I spread out my work, I’ll actually be able to enjoy a night out or a Netflix movie night in. It’s moments like this where my parents and teachers all appear to me as visions that murmur, “I told you so.”
But finally, after all this time, I understand why procrastination is a vice that I have to moderate. Many of us need to, and should; we deserve to have complex interactions with our work, so we need to dedicate time to getting it done.
Our professors, bosses, team captains and instructors deserve hard work in return for the guidance they provide. It’s a cyclical interaction that we control. Effort begets positive results; we just have to choose to make it.
