Procrastination – I’ll complete it tomorrow

Aren’t many of us guilty of evading tasks to the next day? We always seem to have logical reasons as to why. I will work on it tomorrow with a fresh mind…. It is not due until next week so it is better that I finish some important things first….I need to catch up with the last episode of my weekly show. All these situations are perfect examples of ‘procrastination’ which is defined by Webster dictionary as the act of delaying something to a later time because you do not want to do it.

Studies have been conducted by psychologists to find out why we procrastinate. Many researchers have found that the problem is more pronounced among students. According to the World Journal of Pharmaceutical Research an estimated 25 to 75 percent of college students procrastinate on academic work. Psychologists Ferrari, Johnson and Mc Cowen mention various reasons behind procrastination in their book – Procrastination and Task Avoidance. Overestimation of how much time is left as well as the level of motivation in future, underestimation of how much time will an activity take or simply the logic that one can work well under pressure have been identified as some common causes that lead to procrastination. Burka and Yuen published another study in their book, Procrastination:  Why you do it, what to do about it now in which they identified low confidence, task aversion, distractibility, impulsiveness and failure to identify the benefit of success in future years as causes of procrastination.

Since this phenomenon is so widespread innumerous various have been suggested to overcome the problem. As Stephen Covey says, “put first things first.” That being said we should not delay or postpone important things to the last minute. Plan ahead of time, maintain a schedule and monitor progress. These steps will always help avoid last minute stress and delays. Avoid wasting time on social media sites like facebook, youtube and stay focused. Such past times become fairly interesting and you don’t realize when a 10 minute break turns out into a 2 hour waste. Find your comfort zone; a place where there are less distractions be it a cubicle in a library or your own workspace. Put your productive time to use: Early mornings are considered a good time to get tasks done so instead of sleeping through that part of the day, wake up and put your brain to use. Where are the motivators? Study/Work with people who influence you in a positive way and reinforce the idea of getting work done. Together study buddies often meet deadlines and accomplish goals. Review from time to time: Make sure you observe the progress of your work and keep in mind that you are only allowed some time to complete it. Therefore making adjustments is not a bad idea. For more ideas you can visit The Positivity Blog – How to Stop Procrastinating: 7 Timeless Tips by Henrik Edberg

Areej Shah is a graduate from the BBA program, University of Toronto. She currently works as the Marketing Coordinator at Grade Learning and shares her passion for communication and writing through informative social media posts and blogs.