5 Tips to Stop Procrastinating | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

5 Tips to Stop Procrastinating

"It takes 21 days to create a habit, but it takes the same amount of time to break one."

14
5 Tips to Stop Procrastinating
The Primal Shift

Do you often tell yourself, "I'll just do it later?" Do you put things off until the last minute? Is 'crunch time' in your vocabulary? If you answered yes to these questions, you are guilty of procrastination! And it's nothing to be ashamed of because almost everyone does it. Here are 5 tips to help you climb out of your procrastination slump.

1. Social media

Get all and every social media site out of the way. It can be really tempting to check the latest posts on Instagram or scroll through Facebook watching funny videos and mouthwatering recipes. So, check all of your social media, reply to any text/snapchat, and put your phone on 'do not disturb'.

2. One huge task can be scary

Break your work into little pieces. Looking at one big thing you have to do can be intimidating and scare you off. Break it down into steps. Ask yourself, "what steps can I take to reach the completion of this one task." Finishing little things that don't take much time can make you feel accomplished and driven to complete more.

3. Change your environment

A lot of times, that ability to study or get stuff done has to do with your environment. Figure out which environment is best for you when getting stuff done. Personally, I like to be alone and in a quiet space where I cannot easily get distracted, but everybody is different. If you find you are easily getting distracted or the space your studying in just isn't working, switch it up!

4. Set deadlines

This is a huge one for me! If you are like me, the type of person who absolutely cannot miss a deadline, this could be very useful to you. Setting your own deadline can help you really push yourself to complete the task at hand.

5. Reward yourself

A feeling of accomplishment should also come with a reward. Bargain with yourself. My favorite thing to do is tell myself, "If I get one of my tasks complete, I get to take a 5-10 minute break to check social media and redirect my focus." Or you could tell yourself, 'If I finish everything that needs to be done, I can have a fun night out with my friends." Looking forward to the reward gives you a drive to get the task done.

Procrastination is hard, and it's something almost everyone struggles with, but taking the right steps, setting goals, and rewarding yourself, can make it disappear quickly. It takes 21 days to create a habit, but it takes the same amount of time to break one.


Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Adulting

6 Unrealistic Expectations Society Has For Young Adults

Don't let the thesaurus-inspired vocabularies in our résumés fool you. We're actually just big kids.

2230
boy in adult clothes

Well over four feet tall and 100 pounds in weight, many of us "young adults" of the world still consider ourselves children. Big, working, college-attending, beer-drinking children. We may live on our own, know how to cook noodles, and occasionally use a planner, but don't be fooled; the youthful tendencies that reside within us still make their way into our daily lives. From choosing to stay up until 3:00 a.m. playing video games on a school night to going out in 30 degree weather without a coat, we still make decisions that our parents and grandparents would shake their heads at in disappointment. So why are we expected to know exactly how to be a wise, professional, sensible adult? It's not that we're irresponsible (for the most part, anyway). It's that we are young, inexperienced, and still have the sought-after, enthusiastic mentality that we can do and be whatever we want, which has not yet been tarnished by the reality of the world. These are just a few of the unrealistic expectations that society has for young adults.

Keep Reading...Show less
pizza
Fandango

There are a lot of foods in this world, but there is only one dish that stands above the rest: Pizza. If you're close to me or at least know who I am, then you know that I'm totally obsessed with pizza. It's one of my favorite things to eat and I will NEVER turn down a slice, even if it doesn't have my favorite toppings. There isn't a day that goes by where I'm not thinking about pizza. I even sleep with a pizza pillow every night! There are many reasons why pizza stands above all other foods, and here are just a couple reasons why.

Keep Reading...Show less
sex and the city
Warner Bros. Television

1. You don't have to feel guilty about flirting with customers for tips (or just for shits and giggles).

2. You can be obnoxiously flirtatious with anyone you want. You are free to be that girl that flirts with everybody and makes 'em all smile (it's especially fun when the guy is as cute as Collin Jost). No shame.

3. Making random men nervous with your superior beauty and intense eye contact just for the hell of it is really amusing and empowering.

4. No one gives two poops if ya legs are hairy (your man shouldn't either but *Kermit the Frog meme* That's none of my business)

5. The toilet seat will remain down.

6. There's more money to spend on yourself.

7. There's always this secret butterfly in your tummy that marvels at the possibility that when you go out this weekend you're gonna meet someone super handsome/wonderful/prince-like and have this moment of dazzling dalliance.

8. Nothing is that serious...you can take it all with a grain of salt...you don't owe anybody anything.

9. You can dance with anyone and everyone...or no one (Hello frat boi w/ glasses, I see you).

10. You don't have to fluff anyone's ego but your own.

11. Free drinks and dinners from single guys (It's not taking advantage if they're offering; a girl's gotta eat).

12. You have more time to learn how to love and improve yourself rather than constantly pouring your energy into another person.

13. You don't have to sacrifice your cheesy Jen Aniston rom-coms and Gilmore Girls for his Fast and Furious/other dumb action movie featuring blonde that is only in the movie to supply a relationship to the male lead and to make him look more masculine/empowered in juxtaposition (In other words, you don't have to deal with a guy being a crabby Patty while you watch your cute movies).

14. You can daydream about what your future husband may be doing right now (and not get stressed/guilty out because you're not picturing your current boyfriend that's crazy about you as your future husband).

15. There is more time to be spent with your girlfriends.

Girls Night In
Milk + Blush

We've all been there - you've been saying since Tuesday after French that this weekend is the weekend. You're finally going to break out those new heels and actually put on eyeliner on and make this Friday night be one for the memory books! That is, of course, until Girls Night Out turned into...Girls Night In.

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

What Is Your Zodiac GIF?

Characteristics of the astrological signs, explained through GIFS.

787
zodiac
Wordpress

Whether you believe astrology is a legitimate "science" or not, we have all found ourselves looking at our horoscopes from time to time. The 12 astrological signs all fall under one of four elements: air, water, earth, or fire. Air signs are rational, social, and love to communicate with others. Water signs are are emotional, intuitive, and mysterious. Fire signs tend to be passionate, creative, and adventurous. Earth signs are conservative, realistic, and loyal.

Each sign is determined by the relative positions of celestial bodies to ourselves at our moment of birth, which is said to influence our personalities. Find your zodiac GIF below, based on the traits and characteristics provided by each sign.

***Disclaimer: GIFS are meant to be lighthearted and are based on descriptions of signs from http://www.astrology-zodiac-signs.com/.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments