Beating Procrastination in College

Earlier in the week, I had to identify a bad habit of mine for an assignment. Without a doubt, I struggle with procrastination. I don't know if it was the accountability of telling 230 of my classmates that I am the queen of procrastination or what, but this week I made a serious effort to change that. 

This semester, I am taking an online class with weekly assignments due on Friday. For the past four weeks, my Fridays have been painfully long, tiring, and dreaded. I would let all the assignments pile up throughout the week and designated Friday as my day to tackle them all. The results were extreme stress, too much caffeine, and low-quality work.  

However, it is currently noon on Friday and I am completely done with my school work for the week! Crazy, right? I can hardly believe it. If you struggle with procrastination, I want to share my what has helped me! Take a look at my 5 secrets to overcoming procrastination: 

1.) Invest in a nice weekly planner. Pick something you love and will want to use. 

2.) USE the planner. I write down my assignments under the day they are due, as soon as I find out about them. Also, write in meetings and other important tasks. 

3.) This is what has seriously helped me: I bought a cute notebook, solely for daily "To-Do" lists. Each morning or even the night before, I write myself a list of what I want to accomplish that day. 

• I only write in what I can actually accomplish in a day; giant lists are overwhelming
• I make cute little boxes that I can check off when I complete a task
• Write everything that needs done that day, not just school work
• If I know I have multiple assignments due on one day, I break it up and pretend they are due earlier in the week to spread out the workload 

4.) Study with a friend at least once a week. Accountability is so good. If you find yourself doing other things when you're supposed to be studying, find a friend that will make you focus

5.) Put down the phone. Sometimes I go as far as setting a timer for 30 minutes and hiding my phone from myself. After 30 minutes of working hard, I allow myself 5 minutes to use my phone and then set the timer again! It sounds silly, but it works

When I say, I am the Queen of Procrastination, that is not a joke. It won't be easy, but I'm determined to kiss that lousy title goodbye. It feels amazing to be productive and check items off of my to-do list, rather than feeling trapped under days of put off work. Monday starts a new week, so grab a cute planner, notebook, and a nice pen at the store. Then, join me in getting over procrastination. 

Good luck y'all // Julia

Daily Agenda from Texas A&M Book Store | Recycled Paper Notebook from Target | Cactus Pen from Lolli and Dauts in Round Top, TX | Mason Jar Coffee Mug & Leather Koozie from Bella's in Somerset, PA