The approaching midterm season has inspired a familiar feeling of fatigue and the unwanted but seemingly unavoidable experience of procrastination. Given the crucial moment that this particular academic season locates many students in as it is a defining period for grades, I am subsequently compelled to examine the potential causes and consequences of a habit that would wreck my grades as easily as it prolonged my experience of completing the work.
Reasons for procrastination tend to vary. My personal experiences have revealed that it was motivated by underlying emotions of fear, anxiety, and fatigue. A fear of creating a bad product, per se; or a certain tiredness that is really the result of being overwhelmed by the plethora of responsibilities placed upon you as a student. My being able to lightly analyze my experience and pinpoint a cause for such a specific reaction as procrastination is the key in being able to overcome it. In battling procrastination, one needs to be aware of what it is they are anxious or tired about, and to subsequently be ably to ask why it is that they are avoiding the thing that they are.
I offer once again a personal example, this very article was procrastinated. I have discovered that my sluggishness in completing was motivated by a few things. For one, I did not know what I wanted to write about. I was also afraid that the topic I wanted to present to the HerCampus community would not be worthy or original enough for the platform. However, once I acknowledged why I was avoiding it, it became easier to face and less of a monster.
I mean to emphasize through all this that procrastination may signify that you are running from something. If you find yourself doing it, try to take a moment to reflect on why. If you are anxious about something, just breathe, and take a look at whatever. Give yourself time to work on it, and ease up to it. It is not more powerful than you, and I’m sure that what you have to offer is good.
Shoot, I live on a small campus, and sometimes the college as a space can be too confining for the kind of clarity that such personal reflections would necessitate. Don’t hesitate to find other spaces outside of school to unwind and think. It will all be ok, and you will do great on your midterms.