Procrastination reminds us of past experiences where we felt guilty, lazy, inadequate, anxious or some combination of these.
Procrastination
Procrastination involves avoidance of a specific task or work which needs to be accomplished. It reminds us of past experiences where we felt guilty, lazy, inadequate, anxious or some combination of these. It implies a value judgement such as "if you procrastinate you are bad", and as such lack worth as a person.
Procrastination is not the acutal problem. It is how we respond to impulses and pressure including our fears, dislikes and needs. The disadvantage is that we could become overwhelmed and it can have a negative impact on our self esteem. Strategies to overcome procrastination can include improving motivation, modifying the environment, changing attitudes and managing emotions.
Tips from students attending overcoming procrastination workshop:
Improving motivation
- Making the goal interesting
- Variety to avoid boredom
- Lower standards and get started/Put Standards and expectations in perspective
- Start early
Modifying enviorment
- Creating a motivating environment, like going to the library to study
- Being around like-minded people/work in groups
- Linking the goal to other people
- Comfortable environment without distractions
Changing attitudes
- Goal oriented rather then time oriented
- Rewarding yourself AFTER meeting a set task
- Break large tasks into smaller steps
- Writing down tasks and then crossing them off once they are done
- Do hard things first
- Expect that things change and learn to be more flexible
Managing emotions
- De-sensitizing/calming negative emotions
- Reducing concerns about how others think
- Focusing on positive emotions