Why do we choose to procrastinate?
It’s midnight. I have two essays and a stack of worksheets due tomorrow, along with a test I should prepare for. I lie. I tell myself I can finish it by 3 a.m.
Suddenly, it’s 4:30 a.m. I’m half way through, but nowhere near finished. I promise myself that’ll I get it done by 5:15 a.m.
But, it’s 5:45 a.m. Although I'm done with my essays, I have to power through that presentation that I forgot was due tomorrow (which technically is today, at this point).
It’s 6:15 a.m. I’m done with everything that is due immediately; I’ll just catch up on the extra sheets in homeroom. Time to hit the hay only to wake up one hour later.
This all-nighter, like many others, began with the decision to believe that I had much more time than I actually did to finish what I needed to. Many of us want to put away what is at hand to foster our guilty pleasures (whether it be Hulu or YouTube), and to delay the inevitable. It seems much easier to work under the clock when there is no time left to be indecisive.
You have to stick to something. You have no time to switch between different perspectives or new ideas. Life is full of choices. And, I, like many other procrastinators hate having to actively commit to them -- when we know that our minds aren’t set on anything. Plus, there is a certain rush that comes with powering through work in an ungodly amount of time. To finish reading a thick book in one night. Or, to finish writing all the notes assigned over a week in a couple of hours.
However, "feeling clutch" does come at a cost. Once, you choose to procrastinate there's almost never a chance to revise. Work is left unpolished. This cycle repeats and repeats. And ultimately prevents personal growth and greater returns out of our time.
Revision is an important part to growth in any learning process. So when we procrastinate, we repeatedly rob ourselves of the chance to turn decent work into exceptional work. So here are five tips on how to break the cycle.
Gather what you need to work on and put it in front of you.
You cannot begin to work on something what is not there. If you hide what you have to do, you end up forgetting about the work in the first place.
Set multiple deadlines.
Multiple deadlines, much like multiple alarm clocks are difficult to ignore. Multiple deadlines can be super effective in dividing up the work.
Write down your short and long term goals and steps you need to take to reach them.
If you don’t keep note of what is due, you are more likely to forget it. If you lay out how you can achieve something, it is much easier to actually take those steps.
Treat yourself within limits.
If you start on work early enough, you can devote some time to some fun without the guilt. Between ideal checkpoints, allow yourself to go outside, watch a bit of Netflix or even eat some chocolate cake.
Get in a motivated study/work group.
If you are around people who are setting the same goals as you, it will be easier to stick to them. Study groups can often lead to distraction, but that usually happens when there is no plan or intention to tackle work. So, as long as a plan is made ahead of time, working in a group can be a great source of motivation, especially if you’re lacking some at the moment.
In retrospect, procrastination took a chunk out of my sleep and motivation in high school, resulting in unnecessary exhaustion and stress. I wish I applied the above in my daily life, then. But, hey, college should be a fresh new start to apply new habits.
Trust me, discipline makes life so much easier. While we might be able to produce work in good quality, under short amounts of time, it all takes a toll on your mind, body and soul.
So, like every other article we procrastinators read, let’s not apply this tomorrow, but today -- or better yet, now. Go to your local Staples and get an agenda or something.
Figure out what you need and would love to do. Do something about this disease.
Call the procrastination hotline today. (Although there isn’t one, it seriously wouldn't be a bad idea -- except when they decide to wait and call you back the next day.)
