Let’s face it, at least once a week you sit down to get some schoolwork done just to realize that two hours have gone by and you’re still scrolling on TikTok.
It’s a horrible feeling knowing you just wasted a good afternoon being unproductive. It can make you feel like you’re not ever going to finish what you have to do. Here are some things you can try next time you feel like you’re going in circles.
Discover new organization and study strategies
What is it that you need to do better? Do you need an agenda? A to-do list? More breaks between studying? New study methods because the old ones weren’t working? Do some research on ways to keep yourself organized and get your thoughts on the right track. This way, you might find something new that works perfectly for your needs.
Bonus Tip: check out our “So You Never Learned How to Study…” and “The Key To Straight A’s: The Pomodoro Technique?” articles!
Procrastinate with something productive
If you’re really, really dreading your textbook readings and you want to put them off just a little longer, then at least put them off while doing something productive! If you have some extra chores that need to get done soon, it might be helpful to check another thing off your to-do list instead. Doing your laundry or vacuuming your bedroom are productive filler activities to clear your head for when you’re ready to resume your studies!
Get rid of your distractions
The hardest, but most effective, way to stay on track is by ditching distractions. Always on your phone? Shut it off or put it on the other end of the house. Catch yourself watching the TV? Turn it off or leave the room. There are solutions—time to figure them out!
Forgive yourself and move on
Perhaps you had an unproductive last few days, or maybe even an unproductive week. That can be a very defeating and hopeless feeling. Ruminating about what you didn’t do could bring you down even more and you might convince yourself you’ll never get your work done, but that’s not true. You need to forgive yourself for procrastinating. You can’t change what you didn’t do, but you can move forward and plan how you’ll finish your tasks moving forward.
Procrastination is the #1 enemy for many of us and the biggest hurdle some have faced in university. There is one quote that you can think of whenever you catch yourself getting distracted:
“The cost of procrastination is the life you could have lived.”