how I deal with procrastination

hi!! 

i don't know if this'll help a lot of people, but as a professional procastinator, i've come up with some strategies(??) that i wanted to share!!

before i begin, i want to make it clear that these ideas/tips i'm about to share may not be a one-size-fits-all type of solution. what works for me might not work for you, in fact this method doesn't really have a 100% success rate for me either. at the end of the day, it's really important that the study/productivity methods you use work with your needs, and understanding what those needs are take a lot of self-reflection and experimentation. and i only hope that by sharing my own observations and methods, it can help you with your own understanding of your brain!! 

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the most important step to solving a problem is to identify you have a problem. if you're reading this post in hopes to solve your procrastination problem, congrats! just by being aware that you have an issue with procrastination and seeking a solution, you're halfway done with this step. 

but i believe there's another part to this step, and that is to understand the root cause of your procrastination. so take some time to ask yourself some questions:

- why do i feel the need to avoid this task?

- what exactly is it about this task that makes me hesitant to start it?

- what can i do to make this task easier for myself?

i find that some of the most common causes for procrastination are anxiety, overstimulation, and confusion. you may find a task daunting because it's unpleasant for you, or you might find that there's so much for you to do that you have no clue where to start, which makes you want to avoid it, or you simply might not completely understand what the task requires you to do, so you can't start it. having this understanding will help you with approaching this problem. some examples of this include: 

- you're procrastinating on washing the dishes because you find that the textures of the food on the dishes really bother you or the task itself is just unpleasant. a solution might be to buy yourself a pair of cleaning gloves, or blasting some music while you're washing the dishes.

- you're procrastinating on an essay for your english class because there's just so much for you to do, and you just don't know where to start. you might want to start by creating a mental roadmap on how you'll approach this essay.

- you want to start on your math homework but it's hard because you kind of don't remember how to do the problems, so if you did start, you'd just be staring at your sheet of paper. you might want to call up a friend who's good at math, or maybe even talk to your teacher if they have office hours that work with your schedule.

there's absolutely no shame in needing an extra accommodation, even if it's for a task that most people are able to do without one. you're human too, and if a small "embarrassing" accommodation will make your life much more easier, it's definitely worth it. 

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but sometimes, there is no underlying cause, the answer is that you just don't want to do your work. don't worry, the feelings totally normal!

when i feel this way, i like to do something i like to call "prepping", where instead of trying to force myself to tackle the task anyway, I'll do a small section of the task that will set myself up to the next part of the task. that way i won't be pushing myself mentally, but i'll also have done enough that my brain won't feel guilty for not doing anything for the task.

for example, if i have a multiple part assignment that it's due in a week, and i know i should get started on it, but i really don't want to. instead of actually getting started on the task, maybe i'll pull up the tab, set up the format my assignment needs to be in, create a proper title, or even pull up some sources to get myself started. starting of with some simple, no-brainer tasks to set yourself up will ease the transition to the task, so you don't feel like you're starting entirely from scratch. this method is hit or miss for me, but making any kind of effort to push yourself is better than doing nothing. 

it's also important to remember that all of these tips i've listed above work when you use them with intention. in fact any study/procrastination method will only work if you approach with the right mindset. 

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one last reminder, everyone has different mental needs and while you're on the journey of figuring your own needs out, please remember you're not lazy, or stupid, or lacking ambition for struggling with procrastination. the fact you've made it this far into this really long wall of text is proof you're trying, and that in itself is pretty commendable in my opinion. 

i'm not the best at writing so i apologize if there's any part of this that was worded in a confusing manner. if you have any further questions, or just wanted to share your own experience, i'd love to hear it!

so now go on try your best to do something productive today, whatever that look like for you!

-sm