It’s the little devil that sits on your shoulder and it’s your friend at the dorm who says “just one more game.” The truth is procrastination has become unavoidable. Between Netflix, Instagram, and my constant need for food there is barley enough time in the day to go to class, let alone focus on homework for hours at a time. I mean how can a professor honestly expect me to write about the history of the Ming Dynasty when a new season of "Orange is the New Black" just came out?
The truth is mastering the art of procrastination can be very difficult. Once your show is over you might feel the need to find extreme ways to avoid doing your work. Such as:
- Adding random holidays to your planner
- Watching Tide pods dissolve in bowls of water
- Cleaning and rearranging your room
Don’t get me wrong, taking some time for yourself is important, and maybe you do actually care about knowing that Sept. 15th is Wear A Felt Hat Day. But let’s be honest, once you have to force yourself to find something to do, it's time to buckle down.
If you’re anything like me, then by the time you finally get down to business it already feels like you're drowning in work. As much as we wish we may have more time it’s not always possible, so here are a few tips to help you get out of the procrastination rut.
- Create a to-do list
- Write out everything you have to do, big and small (I find it helpful to write down what I will do each day). This breaks down all your seemingly overwhelming tasks into smaller, more manageable parts. As you work through your list check off the items, you will get a sense of accomplishment and your tasks will get accomplished while visually showing you your progress.
- Create a calm work environment and remove all distractions
- Put on some noise-cancelling headphones, turn off your phone, and hide your temptations. Play soft instrumental music to help you focus (Pandora’s Classical for Studying station works wonders for me) and make sure that your work space has enough room for you to spread out.
- Reward yourself
- Give yourself a treat to look forward to as a reward for crossing stuff off your to-do list; go see a movie, eat a chocolate bar, whatever it is that will motivate you. If positive reinforcement isn't your style then give someone you trust $50 and tell them to spend it on themselves unless you get your assignments finished.
Procrastination isn’t a bad thing, it pushes us to work harder and sometimes even inspires a last minute essay or two. We all do it, we just have to remember to keep it in check. Watching 30 minutes of Bernie Sanders photo-shopped into "Hotline Bling" is hilarious, don’t get me wrong, but it has a time and a place. Enjoy your procrastination just remember not to take it so far.
