Do you know what separates highly successful and highly productive students from the average? They procrastinate just like you and me, and they don’t want to start either. But they do one thing differently: They notice relatively early on when they are wasting their time and break through this annoying procrastination. That’s why we've collected strategies for you that will help you do just that.
Find Out Why You Procrastinate!
If you don’t feel like starting your work, procrastination wants to protect you from something (body function and such, such). The first and most important step you can take now is to find out where exactly the problem lies.
This can be something very simple, for example, if you urgently need to take a little break or eat and drink something. But it can also be a more complex problem, such as high expectations of yourself that block you and undermine your motivation.
Whatever it is, take a moment and figure out why you’re procrastinating right now. Get to the bottom of the causes and think about yourself and your situation. Maybe you just don't want to do a complicated task. Well, in this case, you can find an essay writing service that will help you out with that.
Clear All Obstacles Out Of The Way!
Find out what specific obstacles are preventing you from finally getting started and eliminate these troublemakers.
Do you want to concentrate on writing your bachelor thesis, but check 481 websites first? Turn off your internet and work offline. Do you want to study undisturbed, but like to be distracted by Facebook, or Instagram? Turn off your smartphone completely or install an app that blocks your social media time wasters for a while. Track down all concrete obstacles and eliminate them one by one.
Forget About Structure And Start Somewhere!
Instead of waiting for the perfect moment and coming up with an elaborate plan first, sometimes it’s better to just start somewhere.
Do you need to write a new summary of your lecture? Just start collecting and writing down important definitions. Do you have to write a chapter of your term paper? Just start writing wildly and organize your sentences later.
Once you’ve got the momentum and have overcome your initial difficulties, you can always transition into an orderly structure. The only important thing is that you get your horsepower on the road first.
Break Up Your Task Into Baby Steps!
We tend to procrastinate on tasks that are big and powerful. The tasks then scare us because there is no direct end in sight, and we quickly feel overwhelmed. So that this doesn’t happen to you, you take your big task and break it down into small parts. Then you go step by step and complete one mini-action after the other.
Take the fright out of your big challenges by dividing them up: Need to read your lecture notes? Break your script into chapters, then pages, then paragraphs. And now read the first paragraph. Then the second. And so forth.
Work In The Right Environment!
Adapt your work environment to your needs so that you become less prone to procrastination phases. Avoid noisy places or people who distract you from your work. Withdraw and isolate yourself from your surroundings so that you can work on your studies undisturbed.
Rejoice In Small Successes!
Success gives us self-confidence and makes us happy. The feeling of having accomplished something awakens new strength in us and boosts our motivation.
And that’s exactly why you should regularly review your successes. Write yourself a small to-do list and tick off every item that you have completed. Be happy that you have come to a small step closer to your big goal. This is how you build a cycle of success and gain momentum for the next one with every hurdle you jump.
Be Realistic!
Unrealistic goals discourage you and make you give up easily and procrastinate. High goals that you know from the start that you can never achieve are the best breeding ground for procrastination imaginable.
Better stay on the carpet! Set yourself realistic goals that you can still grow from. Your goals must spur you on but never block you.
Don’t Be Perfect!
Perfectionism is a productivity killer. If you spend hours working on every little detail of your task, you get bogged down and lose sight of the big picture.
Suppose you have to research background information about your project work: Set yourself a fixed time frame and concentrate on the essential points. Don’t stray too far and let the unnecessary details fool you.
Conclusion
Overcoming procrastination is first and foremost a battle with yourself. However, it’s not about fighting, it’s more about understanding. If you understand why you procrastinate and distract yourself, you can analyze your situations precisely and develop countermeasures. Because it depends on the right attitude, and you have already ways up your sleeve from now on.
