It’s the first of the year- you sit down at the table in study hall, pull out your laptop, notebook and pencils, start preparing yourself for the assignment you have due next week and then suddenly found yourself distracted by every little thing? Next thing you know, the day is over with, you’re getting ready for bed and you realize you haven’t gotten anything done.
For Louisiana Tech students, school has just begun and everyone already has assignments due sooner than we had expected. If you aren’t known for procrastinating then you might already be on top of it or have it finished, but for someone like me, you dread assignments and wait until the last minute. When that happens, stress kicks into overdrive and you start worrying about whether or not you’ll get it done and feel like an idiot for not starting sooner. Although some researchers view procrastination as a failure of self-regulation, many people still don’t understand the reasons behind why people procrastinate.
I can’t say much about anyone else, but I know for a fact that I am very good at procrastinating. If anyone could win an award for it, I would definitely be in the running for it. It’s not because of laziness or anything like that. For me, I get distracted easily or I’m afraid of missing out on something fun and being left out. It’s also because I know that some of the tasks I have due will stress me out, give me anxiety, and cause frustration just at the thought of it and those thoughts make me procrastinate even more. As strange as it sounds, procrastination is a way of coping with such emotions and negative moods that are created by certain tasks that are to be completed. Luckily, everyone has their own way of avoiding procrastination and here’s a few tips on how:
- Don’t punish or be upset with yourself for procrastinating. It’s harder for your mind to focus on the tasks you have to do when you’re stressed out so much. Such emotions will only make you more drained and frustrated. It will also stress you out to the point where you feel like you can’t complete the task at all.
- Start working on the most important task for about 15 minutes. With this mindset, you’ll stress yourself out less rather than thinking about the hours it might take just to complete it.
- Remove yourself from distracting environments. If you’re the kind of person that just can’t seem to study in quiet places, then go out and pick the right places that work for you. If you can’t focus with a lot of noise around then the library or a home office might be perfect for you.
- Always avoid multitasking to focus on one goal at a time. It may feel like you are accomplishing a lot but it prevents you from finishing them quickly. This also helps with avoiding getting overwhelmed by a busy schedule.
- Get a friend to keep you in check. Mostly everyone struggles with procrastination. If all else fails, having someone there to keep you focused on the tasks you must complete is also very helpful.
Don’t feel bad for being a procrastinator- we all do it at some point. We all just have to learn to become better and stop doing it so much. With these tips, or other ways that you come up with on your own, we all can overcome procrastination. Just believe in yourself.