Procrastination—a word we are all too familiar with. You know that moment when you open your computer and begin to type out G-o-o-g-l-e C-l-a-s-s, but by the time your fingers hit the final “s” you are staring at Netflix’s homepage. Do not worry—this blog is not meant to publicly shame you for your actions (I’ll leave that to your parents), but rather to provide a few tips I’ve learned along the way to help combat procrastination.
There’s a rather well-known psychological concept called the foot-in-door technique. The basic idea is that if you ask a friend to complete a smaller task (ie. asking to borrow five dollars), they will be more inclined to complete a bigger task (ie. asking that same friend to borrow twenty dollars). You have probably used something smaller on your parents without realizing it. Perhaps, you ask them to pick you up from a friend’s house at 10:30PM and before you know it you and your friend are two more hours into your movie marathon. In other words, starting small gets the job done. So, why not start small with your homework? If by the time you get home a ten hour art history paper feels impossible, try beginning with your Spanish worksheet or physics problem set; once you are a few hours into your work and have entered what I like to call “the homework zone” then re-visit your art history paper. I promise it is at least worth a shot.
Another tip I have is to set small goals for yourself. If Generation Z is known for one thing—other than creating Tik Toks in the most random places and radically dying our hair different colors—it’s our short attention spans. I mean ask any high school teacher and you’ll probably get an aggressive head nod agreeing. I like to use the Pomodoro technique, which breaks your work session into segments: spend twenty-five minutes working then a five minute break and so on until your work is all done. By breaking up the work session and implementing breaks, it helps it all feel less overwhelming.
Lastly, the biggest culprit against productivity: technology. Phones are perhaps the biggest distraction when it comes to completing any work or even being remotely productive. My personal tip is to leave all your electronics on a different floor than you. By creating a physical distance between you and the distractions, you will be less inclined to reach for your phone when struggling with a math problem. Trust me: placing it under your bed or in a drawer is not sufficient. I also personally disconnect my text messages from my computer when I have a big to-do list just to make sure nothing gets in the way of my productivity. If you do not have that much will power, try downloading apps like Flora, which strive to help you develop life-changing habits.
Procrastination is something we all struggle with in our lives, but developing good strategies early-on will help you in the future both in college and work. But, be careful not to mix up procrastination with taking mental health breaks; just as it is important to study hard, it is also important to de-stress and watch Netflix, take a bath, or go for a run—just try to do it after your homework!
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