Procrastination had never been a huge issue for me until school moved online and everything became virtual and remote. I thrive when I’m in the presence of others who are doing schoolwork. I love going to the library or to my local coffee shop to study because there are always others there who are doing the same. Seeing other motivated individuals is what motivates me. When everything closed due to COVID-19, my brain did too. I was finishing the last few months of my senior year of high school not attending Zoom calls and scrambling to finish assignments on the day they were due.
As soon as I started my first quarter at Cal Poly, I devised several anti-procrastination plans to test out. I was determined to pull myself out of that rut. Now that we’re halfway through the first quarter of school, I’ve had plenty of time to figure out what’s worked and what hasn’t as far as curbing procrastination. Here’s what worked for me:
- I Developed a Buddy System
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Developing a buddy system to combat procrastination has worked wonders for me. I find that when I verbalize my plans to someone else, it makes it harder for me to back out of those plans. Telling someone what I plan on doing is my way of holding myself accountable. For example, almost every morning, I call my dad and tell him what I plan on getting done that day, whether it’s finishing an essay or hitting the gym. As silly as it sounds, telling someone what my goals are for the day motivates me to actually get them done.
- I Downloaded the Forest App
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I was never a believer in apps to help you with productivity. Over the past few months, I’ve downloaded several and none of them really did anything for me until I discovered Forest. This app is seriously a game-changer. Basically, you choose a certain amount of “focus time” during which you’ll work (I usually do about 45 minutes), and during that time period, a digital tree will start to grow in the app. If you exit out of the app and hop on another app like Instagram, your tree will wither and die.
At the end of your “focus time”, you’ll receive points with which you can buy different tree species. You can also set a timer for a break. At the end of the day, you can track your progress by looking at the forest you’ve created as a result of successfully completing each time interval. After you’ve racked up a certain amount of points, you can actually buy a real tree using those points. This means that the Forest team partners, Trees for the Future, will plant a real tree somewhere in the world. It’s a win for your focus game and a win for the environment!
- I Don’t Give in to Guilty Pleasures During My Breaks
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After I’ve worked for about 45 minutes to an hour, I’ll take a ten or fifteen minute break. During the break, I try my best to not give in to guilty pleasures such as Instagram or Netflix. When you use your breaks to watch Netflix or scroll through social media, it is incredibly difficult to stop at the end of those ten or fifteen minutes. This is exactly how procrastination is fueled. Instead, get up and stretch, doodle, or practice something that you’re trying to get better at. For instance, I use my breaks to mess around with graphic designing on my computer since this is a skill I’m trying to improve.
Everyone’s style of working is different. What worked for me won’t necessarily work for you. But, if you have become one of procrastination’s victims, trying out one or all of these methods can’t hurt! It might take some time for you to find your groove and establish a solid routine, but the payoff will definitely be worth it.