How To: Reduce Procrastination

I’ve seen a lot of great tips out there about fighting procrastination, and I don’t want to write just another post with tips you’ve seen before. But I’ve noticed a lot of recommendations jump right into ways to combat your procrastination without digging any deeper. In my experience, I procrastinate for a lot of different reasons, and I need to figure out why I’m procrastinating before I can effectively solve the problem. 

So, why are you procrastinating today?

I’m mentally exhausted: This is a pretty common one for me, especially if I’ve been studying for a while already. I *should* be scheduling regular breaks into  study sessions, which helps prevent this. But, of course, nobody’s perfect and sometimes I don’t remember to set a schedule. If I find myself unconsciously opening a new tab to procrastinate in the middle of a study session, this is probably the culprit.

The best solution is to take a purposeful, timed break (the scheduled nature of it really helps my brain relax, since I don’t have the added stress of thinking I “should be studying right now”). If I’m still feeling burnt out after a break, I try clearing my mind with a brisk walk or just a quick trip to the kitchen for tea. 

I’m physically exhausted: Being physically exhausted can lead to mental burnout and procrastination. The best cure is, again, prevention – get enough sleep, eat well on a good schedule, and exercise. But especially around exam time, those habits inevitably fall apart a little bit. So, if you catch yourself feeling physically spent and your studying is suffering for it, do what you can to refresh yourself.

First, eat a healthy snack if you haven’t had enough to eat today (even if you don’t feel hungry). Drink a tall glass of water with lemon (even if you don’t feel thirsty). Stretch out, walk around. If you can, exercise – I know it’s the last thing you want to do, but it will re-energize you. If you’re lacking sleep, take a nap if you can! None of this advice is anything you haven’t heard before, but I can’t stress enough how important it is. Your brain is a physical part of you, and it needs fuel, rest, and movement to operate at peak performance. If you’re physically exhausted, even if you can make yourself study longer it won’t be nearly as efficient.

I REALLY want to do this other thing: This is a very different type of procrastination. Sometimes, I have a lot of trouble studying because I’m really, really into some other project/book/game and I keep wanting to go back to it. I have all the energy I need to study, but I have a strong desire to put that energy somewhere else.

In this case, a schedule is your best friend. Promise yourself X amount of time to focus on the distraction after an hour of studying. Reward yourself with another chapter of the book after you finish going through your flashcards. It’s a lot easier to break away from something interesting if you have the knowledge of when you’ll be able to return to it.

I REALLY hate studying this: This is a tough one to fix, but absolutely worth it for both your studying success and your happiness. Some things just suck to study. Cramming all the muscle attachments and innervation for my gross anatomy final absolutely made me want to explode, and I could only do it for a few minutes before my eyes would glaze over and I’d have to move on to something else. Forcing myself back to the study guide not only wasn’t effective, but it was frustrating and stressful.

Since you have to learn the material either way, the only thing you can do is change the way you’re studying it. Are you doing the same thing over and over again? Try sorting the information in a different way. Try drawing it. Try explaining it to a friend. Try writing a song about it. Often, I’ve found that when I hate learning about something, the real problem is that I’m studying it the wrong way.