Procrastination is a constant struggle for both adults and students around the world. A recent study revealed that 95% of students would consider themselves procrastinators. Procrastination is the act of putting something off to do later because of a lack of desire to work on the given task. Generally, people associate procrastination with anything they might define as work.
Luckily, there are many ways to prevent procrastination. Numerous students at BBHHS, along with experts, provided advice to those who may be struggling.
1: Goal setting
While often overlooked, setting goals can be a great way to accomplish tasks.
- Be specific with goals.
- Don’t say, “I will read my book.” Say, “I will read chapters 3 & 4 of my book.”
- Be realistic
- Set many small goals that are realistic and easy to accomplish. For example, don’t say, “I will read five chapters of my book.” Split it up and say, “I will read two chapters of my book,” and slowly add up until the work is done.
- Paul Holobinko, a substitute teacher at BBHHS, reinforces the idea, saying that the idea of setting goals and creating lists can be beneficial to productivity and organization.
2: Rewards
- Simple rewards can lead to a reason to finish.
- For example, say, “I want to go view the text I just got, but I have to read a chapter of my book before I do so.” This establishes a reason to get the work done.
3: Accountability
- Creating stable habits is often really hard.
- John Hopkins University suggests asking a friend or family member to check up and remind them of goals.
- By having others check in on the idea of getting the work done, it establishes a little necessary pressure to get the work done.
- Cadence Guo, a senior at BBHHS agrees with this idea. Many people feel as if they need to satisfy others. This can come in handy with productivity. The idea of another person holding one accountable for doing their work puts pressure on the work getting done. Guo personally says this method helps him a lot because he feels the need to get it done and not disappoint others.
Procrastination is a cumulation of internal and external factors. Not only do factors like goal setting help solve procrastination, but other factors such as environment affect procrastination.
1: Minimize distractions
- Numerous studies have shown a strong correlation between mobile devices and procrastination.
- Many suggest setting a screen time restriction to limit the time spent on the phone and other devices.
- Set devices on airplane mode or set them in another room
- Many Ivy League students claim that removing the distraction can be the best way sometimes. “If it isn’t there, you are not tempted to use it,” they say.
- Move to a quiet or more studious area. When the distraction does not exist, one cannot be distracted by it.
- Chris Morcos, a freshman, says this idea can help a great deal. The idea of reducing irrelevant sounds can help a lot for those who are distracted. “Putting your phone in another room also helps because then you cannot be distracted by it,” he added.
- However, Guo says that being around others can also help a lot with his productivity. It is key to figure out what works for you. It can be completely different depending on the person.
2: Get reasonable amounts of sleep
- Sleep helps replenish the mental state
- By getting thorough amounts of sleep, it helps ‘reset’ the brain
- Getting sleep affects a person’s self-control
3: Be organized
- Many people procrastinate due to the uncertainties about their responsibilities.
- Time management skills
- Organizing time for certain activities and efficiently setting time to get work done helps promote less procrastination.
- This same idea with prioritizing tasks helps allow for work to get done.
4: Trying out time managing methods
Sabrina Cojocaru, a sophomore mentioned a method that she frequently uses. This method is called the Pomodoro method.
- This method commonly focuses on the idea of setting a goal to get a task down. Then, proceed to work on that task for around 25 minutes. After this, take a short 5-minute break, and then do the same thing over and over again.
- These types of methods can be beneficial to working the brain and also getting a well-deserved break.
- While this method may not work for all, there are many methods online to try that may help a lot with productivity and productively managing time.
Aside from external factors, procrastination also includes mental blocks. Many people put off work because of inconvenience. For example, Cojocaru adds, “I tend to complete math and science homework first since I enjoy those classes more, which causes me to push off any English or history homework. This makes my work for the latter two subjects lower quality, since I am always doing them last minute. This impairs my understanding of the subjects, meaning the work continuously becomes more difficult for me throughout the year, leading to even more procrastination when assignments for those subjects come up.”
This idea of prioritizing what was easy over the ‘hard work’ was supported in a study conducted at Harvard. In 2006, Harvard professors Todd Rogers and Max Bazerman studied the psychology behind procrastination. They asked college students simply whether or not they would like to enroll in a savings plan. Despite the majority of the students acknowledging that they agreed with the idea of saving money, only 30% of the people said they would agree to enroll in the savings plan immediately.
This study presented a common theme amongst the students. Even though they supported the idea of saving they were hesitant to enroll as soon as possible. While many agreed that they would enroll in a savings plan sometime in the future.
This reveals the idea that people were more concerned over their current state rather than their future state. To explain further, they were more concerned about having more money now and having more benefits right now instead of how they may be affected in their future with less money.
This same principle applies to procrastination. People are influenced by the benefits of procrastination that often overlay the negative effects that come in the future. To further explain, people do not want to procrastinate, but they do it because they would rather be doing other things. For example, say a homework assignment is in two days. The student was going to do the homework tonight, but got invited to go hang out with friends, so he may disregard it and say, ‘I’ll do it tomorrow.’ When tomorrow comes around, suddenly it is a problem, and the homework is not getting done.
Procrastination can lead to terrible anxiety and stress about the work. Therefore, it is crucial to beat it.
It is key to find many tricks that work. For example, Cojocaru personally finds that working in mornings work best for her, while others find that evenings work better. By testing out different techniques and learning from mistakes, procrastination can be solved.
It is important to note that the majority of people procrastinate from time to time, and it is a normal human action; however, this should not prevent those from seeking to improve their productivity. By developing some useful skills, students can use them beyond schoolwork and into the real world.
Sites used
https://www.pcmag.com/news/smartphones-great-for-procrastination-terrible-for-your-mental-health
https://academicsupport.jhu.edu/resources/study-aids/overcoming-procrastination/
https://jamesclear.com/time-inconsistency
https://www.quidlo.com/blog/procrastination-facts-and-statistics/
Photo credit: https://thedailycougar.com/2024/10/08/tips-on-how-to-break-a-procrastination-streak/
