Procrastinating is a normal lifestyle for the average student. Usually, homework and other assignments are seen as a pain. The students don’t like to do them. So they leave them until the last second. Instead of doing boring schoolwork, students tend to ignore it for awhile and do something they do enjoy. With all the technology in today’s society, distractions are everywhere. Why should they do tiring work when they could have a good time doing other things?

While the students are off enjoying themselves, time does go by. The deadline gets closer and closer. Before they realize it, they barely have time to finish the assignment. Then they have to hurry themselves, and most likely, they don’t do their best. Sometimes it may not even get done. Procrastination is a bad habit, but people do it for many different reasons.

In his book The Road Less Traveled, M. Scott Peck explains that one must take the time to see what one needs to do. If the students leave it until the last second, it’s harder to see what all needs to be done. Then it is even harder to complete the assignment. The students will probably receive a grade lower than they could have originally achieved if they would have gotten it done earlier. The low grade may give the student a bad feeling of failure or the feeling of “I could have done better”. In all honesty, they could have done better if they would have taken all the time given.

According to a study done at Oregon State University, the fear of having this feeling of failure is one of the reasons why some people procrastinate. They think If I try really hard and fail, that is worse that if I don’t try and end up failing. They have the mentality that if they do not try 100%, they do not truly fail. The whole cycle may start when a student procrastinates for the first time and doesn’t do well on the assignment. Then, they are hit with this feeling of failure. Soon, they keep procrastinating because they are afraid of failing again.

Some people procrastinate because their self worth is tied to their level of achievement. This causes them to constantly question themselves about how much they must do to be “good enough”. They are afraid to succeed because it only sets them up for the next bigger challenge. Each success only opens the door to greater expectations. They fear success because they are afraid that even when they succeed, they won’t be good enough. The underlying feeling here is still the fear of failure. This mindset causes procrastination because not trying helps them cope with the pressure to constantly try to be “good enough.”

Procrastination is normal, but that doesn’t mean it is a good way to live and go about life. By procrastinating, the student don’t give their best effort. They can’t reach their full potential. As long as they don’t put 100% effort into their work, they will not find out what they’re truly capable of.

A Few Ways To Stop Procrastinating

• Write a to-do list

Students often have multiple assignments that they avoid. Writing a to-do list is a very simple tool to help with getting things done. When you write all the things that need to be accomplished down on a piece of paper, you are able to see what all needs to be a done. Having it on paper is a physical reminder of what you have to do. It has been psychologically proven that those who put their obligations on a to-do list work more efficiently than those who don’t.

• Organize your priorities

After you write everything onto the list, you should organize your tasks. What is most important and what isn’t as important? An assignment that’s due sooner should definitely be done before one that has a farther deadline.

• Get a friend to work along with you

Most procrastinate because the work is boring and they want to have fun. Having a friend work with you is an easy solution to help with that. Working with a friend can be more fun, and the friend can also keep you accountable. They could even help you with parts of the assignment that you don’t fully understand. If that friend is also a classmate, they will also need to do the assignment so you might as well work together.

• Reward yourself afterward

Doing the work may seem pointless when you could be off having fun. An easy way to fight this is to give yourself rewards after completing the task. Have the mindset of “I do this now and then after I can ______”. One reward will be the better grade you will get for taking the time to do it rather than cramming it in the last few moments before the deadline. After you finish, go out and get yourself a treat of some sort. It could simply be the free time you have afterward to relax and/or enjoy yourself. It could be a physical, sweet treat like ice cream. It doesn’t really matter what it is, but you should reward yourself for not procrastinating. For finishing the assignment even if you didn’t want to. You deserve that much.