In high school, I never procrastinated. I typically had all my homework completed days in advance, just to get it out of the way. Fast forward to a little over a month into college, and I find myself doing everything last minute. How did I get here? How can I change this?
Obviously, it’s a lot harder to stay on top of things at college. Back at home, there was a clear distinction between time spent focused on school work, time for extracurricular activities, sports, a job, and time spent with family and friends. Now our schedules are all over the place. Classes span all throughout the day and extracurricular activities are in the evening, during that I used to dedicate to doing homework. We have to squeeze in time to eat in Alliot, or squeeze in a work study. We are surrounded by friends all day long, making it much more tempting to hang out and relax when we probably shouldn’t.
The busyness and temptations of the college environment, have not accommodated a productive study environment for me so far. I love Saint Michael’s and could not imagine myself anywhere else, but I have not nailed down a proper daily schedule yet. I definitely don’t always use my time as productively as I could. Usually, my obscene procrastination causes more stress than the actual assignment itself. Of course I would rather spend time going to Burlington or watching a movie with friends than doing textbook reading, and the newfound freedom to do so, makes it more difficult to make the right choice (reading).
I know I am not alone in this battle with procrastination. Here are some strategies that I have been trying to adopt:
1. Add all dates listed in the syllabus with assigned work in your agenda.
If you don’t have an agenda, buy one right now. I would personally never know what was going on if I didn’t have my agenda to set me straight. Just do it.
2. Don’t wait to study for an exam the day before.
Although I am a freshman and have only had a few exams so far, I already know this to be true. So much information is covered in a short amount of time that it is impossible to study the night before like I could in high school. When you hear repeatedly to study a little each night by professors and upperclassmen, listen to them.
3. Try to find the balance that works for you.
I know personally that I cannot do homework until 2 a.m. and then function the next day. I’ve already had to do this a few times, and I always feel awful afterwards. Because of this, I’ve been making an effort to focus on getting my work done before I hang out with friends. This isn’t to say that you should put off all opportunities to have fun just to get your math work done. Once in a while it may be worth it to accept a potential late night in order to take advantage of fun opportunities with friends. College about both your education and the memories you will make.
4. Do your most daunting assignment first.
I always procrastinate on bigger assignments; I instead do smaller ones at a slower rate just to avoid getting started on the more overwhelming ones. However, if you do the bigger assignments first, you will be putting forward your best work, since you won’t be rushing at the last minute to complete them.
Despite any advice we may hear about avoiding procrastination, we all honestly know we are still going to do it. Even still, starting to monitor how often we lose the battle is a closer step toward winning it in the future. For example, today I finished homework that is not due for 3 days. However, I am also writing this article an hour before its due. Oops.
Pic sources: https://blogcdn.4tests.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/procrastination.jpg https://www.smcvt.edu/admissions.aspx