As students, we’ve all struggled with procrastination. We’ve spent our days watching movies, going out, reading or even cooking and cleaning to avoid academic tasks. We’ve asked our fellow classmates if they have completed said tasks and found comfort when they said they hadn’t even begun. But unfortunately, we live in a society where we got to get our tasks done, academic or otherwise. Which is why here’s some tips you could use for battling procrastination. Don’t worry. You don’t have to keep your phone down.
Make a to-do list
I know this is a little difficult to do. For some of us, making a list in itself is a task. What matters is not making the list, but where you make it. You could use a planner or an aesthetic diary, or you could be like me and slide into the DMs of a famous celebrity to list all your tasks. I did it in hopes that the celebrity would notice me (spoiler alert: he didn’t). If you are a discord person, you can make a separate channel on discord that will list your tasks. If not, you could also paste sticky notes in the place you study, behind your laptop or phone, or places you see often.
Don’t let your thoughts wander
Whenever you have thoughts that make you wander while you study, write them down. If you have other tasks in mind while you study, writing them down might work so you know what you need to get done later and not let that distract you. You can also meditate before studying so your head is empty of any other thoughts.
Find a suitable place
Going to the college library might help. Or if you think a little noise around works for you, you can pick one of the cafés in the University. Or you can sit in the comfort of your home in your pyjamas. But make sure all possible distractions are not present where you are, and that your study table has only the materials you require to study.
Stop scrolling
This is a problem I face, too. I end up scrolling 5 minutes into studying. For this you need to make sure you lock apps that could distract you. But honestly, as a PROcrastinator, that doesn’t help me because I can access social media through my laptop instead. For this, using Chrome extensions that disallow access to websites that distract you might help. You could also do something else when you feel like picking up your phone. For example, you could watch a video or listen to a podcast for 10 minutes that is related to your studies.
Break down tasks
Sometimes having a lot to do might be daunting. You could instead break it all down and do each task one by one: for example, reading one chapter, then working on one part of an assignment, and then watching one video related to your class. If you have just one task to finish before deadline, then break it down to smaller tasks as much as possible to tackle it one by one.
As a master procrastinator who gets distracted easily, these ways help me while studying. I can guarantee that would help you, too. Having said that, there’s no hard and fast rule to stop procrastinating. You do the best you can every day. Thinking of the reason why you are doing your course and your plans for the future can be the biggest motivator at times. Let’s promise ourselves to work hard and fulfil our dreams.
