Procrastination is defined as “the act of delaying or postponing something.” As highschoolers, this is a term that we are all too familiar with. Every single day we are given things to do in class, this is no issue though because we have teachers looking over our shoulder to make sure we’re on task. At home is a different story. Why do your homework when you can see how many clicks it takes on Wikipedia to get from Garfield to the Spanish Inquisition? Procrastination is not something that is explained through rational words, because it is completely nonsensical to anyone other than those who put off their work.
To give some context, I’ll explain what it took for me to finish this article. I started it at the beginning of April, and it is currently almost halfway through the month and I just managed to start up again. In class I always mean to do my work productively and diligently, but somehow I ended up looking at videos of how Yoda looks when he wasn’t on camera in the original three Star Wars movies.
I like to explain to people that I have two parts of my brain, one part is extremely efficient, likes getting work done, and loves nothing more than the satisfaction of finishing a task early to leave room for free time later. The other part of my brain has the attention span of a kindergartner at 6 A.M. on Christmas Morning. The one side of my brain that wants to work makes a valiant effort to work well, but the other side thoroughly enjoys staples, and why they bend like they do.
The first tip, eliminate your biggest distraction. 99.99% of the time, that distraction is always the same thing: your phone. This seems impossible to do sometimes, because you need your phone to have a calculator, or to make sure someone doesn’t text you and-no. You do not need your phone. You may want it, but you don’t need it. Give it to someone else in your house or put it in a different room with the ringer off, this removes the temptation to ruin the flow you might be in.
Second, make sure your work is neatly laid out in front of you, organized and smooth to make it easier on you to do your work. Making sure your workspace is clean is important in keeping your focus, otherwise you might end up dropping what you’re doing to clean, or to move something around. I cannot count the times that I have stopped doing homework so that I can clean my room because it was bugging me that it was dirty.
Third is to make sure that you won’t be interrupted by family, friends, or anything of the like. Let your family know that you’ll be doing homework, or put a sign on your door to make it clear you aren’t to be disturbed. These three things actually helped me to complete this piece on time. By putting my phone away, closing my door, and shunning my family, I am able to work confidently and continuously without worry of losing track.