Full disclosure: I did write this too close to when it was due. Urgh, sorry.
This is the reason I procrastinate: I haven’t been sufficiently affected by my procrastination. I pull relatively few all nighters, my grades suffer minimally, and I still have time for other things. Do I wish my grades or health suffered more because I procrastinate? No, absolutely not. I’ve just never found doing my work ahead of time means higher grades, lower stress, and better health. How awful is that?
It’s bad. Procrastination is an unhealthy cycle that’s almost impossible to break. It’s not that I don’t know how to plan my time or use it wisely. I know procrastination is not a healthy thing to do. Sleep deprivation and stress (aka the result of an all-nighter or two) are not so good either. And yet I procrastinate anyway.
If I knew better (which I do), might there be another reason why I still procrastinate? Maybe it’s a false sense of self or an underestimation of the workload. Each of those excuses is a result of poor planning. You either think “I can definitely write this paper on Sunday night” or you simply had no idea that your paper was seven pages long*. Sometimes you procrastinate because you know the assignment, but just don’t know what you’ll write about.
When I talked to my friend about why we procrastinate, she mentioned that she sometimes procrastinates because she feels her efforts won’t be met with a desirable result. This makes total sense. Why would you feel compelled to do an assignment for a class that you’re doing poorly in?
So here are some ways to stop procrastinating:
1. Figure out why you procrastinate. Seriously.
2. Determine how you could change your behavior (if you want to change your behavior)by checking out these helpful Her Campus guides:
http://www.hercampus.com/school/bc/love-letter-my-assignment-book
3. Fix it.**
*I didn’t look at the syllabus. Moving on.
** There are so many resources on campus if you need more than a simple fix! Here are just a few:
- Office of Health Promotion’s sleep health campaign
- Office of Health Promotion’s stress management campaign
- University Counseling Services
- Your Peer Minister
- Your RA
- Your RD
- Your Professors
- & many, many more!
Photo Sources:
http://www.chicagonow.com/list…
http://michellependergrass.com…