Do you always feel like you are completing assignments or running errands at the last very moment? We put things off because we don’t want to do them, or because we have too many other things that we value to be more important. Putting things off—big or small—is part of being human. Procrastination can have external consequences such as a poor grade or internal consequences like anxiety. However, when procrastination leads to discouragement and stress it is time to take action.
By creative a productive environment, you will be able to complete your work without distractions. If you have a laptop, go someplace where you can’t connect to the Internet. With no Internet, you will not be distracted by social media or youtube videos. If you have left your assignments until the last minute, chances are many things will annoy you. Don’t risk frustrating yourself even more by trying to write in an environment that doesn’t meet your needs.
Stop using diversions as an excuse. A common procrastination tool is, “I can’t function in a messy environment.” Thus, the assignment is procrastinated longer until other tasks are completed such as cleaning and organizing. If, when faced with a writing project, you start piling up prerequisites for all the things you must do before you can possibly start writing, you will only create more anxiety and stress for yourself. Many people say, “I do my best work under pressure”. There are lots of other ways to create pressure for yourself, besides waiting until the night before the paper is due to start writing it. You can set a time limit for yourself or pretend that the paper is a timed essay exam. If you do this in advance, it will be possible to complete a draft and proofread it before the assignment is actually do.
Try making a schedule in which you can break down your task into manageable bits. Set a time limit for yourself. If you determine an exact date which you should have your task completed by, it is more likely that you will adhere to that deadline.
