Procrastination Tips (From an Expert Procrastinator)

Procrastination is a problem that many students deal with, including myself. Thousands of assignments turned in at 11:58 with subpar effort put in despite having more than enough time to complete them. Despite the stress of racing against the clock for each assignment, many still find themselves waiting until the last minute to start. As someone who has tried for years to kick this awful habit, I have come across several different methods to jumpstart my work ethic with varying degrees of success. My goal is to share some advice to help at least one person get up and get to work.

The first step to getting started with work is to create a game plan. Oftentimes, not knowing where to start makes getting started daunting and extends the procrastination. The amount of work can seem overwhelming at times, leaving you stuck doing nothing at all. A way to combat this is to make a mental or physical list of what you need to get done. This can be done by priority, due date, assignment size, or any way you see fit. Creating a list of what needs to get done can make the amount of work seem less overwhelming and help motivate you to start. 

Another tip is to separate your area of work from your area of rest. I used to do everything on my bed, from watching TikToks, to writing essays. This often caused me to stop working and scroll on my phone in the middle of a project. The constant urge to get on my phone distracted me and made it much harder to finish anything on time. If possible, work in a separate room from which you play or rest. This can help your mind to dedicate its full attention to work when you’re in that area rather than focused on other things. 

A major contributor to my procrastination was not starting my work at all. When trying to write an article, staring at a blank Word document is the hardest part of writing. Not knowing where to start made it difficult to start at all. To combat this, I would write one or two sentences with “___” in the margins where I couldn’t think of what to write at that moment. Seeing something on the page gave me an idea of what I wanted to create. Even something as little as a note on my phone would be enough to get my mind flowing. 

A final tip to kick that procrastinating habit is to give yourself a reward after you finish. After submitting an assignment, I would allow myself some time to close my eyes before continuing onto the next task. This would help me bridge the gap between assignments; instead of thinking of them as one large task, I could split the work into tinier pieces. This also allowed me to stop resenting the idea of work and look forward to rewarding myself.

These tips are in no way a guaranteed cure for procrastination. I still procrastinate, this article being an example of it. Ironically, it took me a while to get up and start writing although I had this idea for months. Finding the motivation to start and continue until the finish line is difficult and daunting. Although it is challenging to curb these habits and work efficiently, it is important to remember not to overextend yourself and to start piece by piece. By starting small, you will be amazed by how great your work ethic will become.