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“There are 2 “I have plenty “I will get started soon, “Oh no! The
weeks until the of time.” I only work well under assignment is
assignment is pressure.” due tomorrow! ”
due.”
Negative Effects of Procrastination
Stress/Anxiety
Neglecting Your Health
Irritability/Bad Mood
Letting Yourself & Others Down
Not Achieving Your Full Potential
What do you do when you
procrastinate?
I raid the refrigerator.
I read mystery novels & science fiction.
I start calling up my friends.
I work on something that’s less important.
I become obsessed with cleaning my desk.
I go out jogging.
I sit and stare.
I keep doing research.
I watch TV.
I read the newspaper.
I go to sleep.
I go shopping.
Four Simple Reasons For
Procrastination
Difficult The task seems too hard to do
Time-consuming Free time is unavailable until the
weekend
Lack of knowledge/skills Don’t want to make a mistake
until you’re sure it’s right
Fears Everyone will know you made a mistake
Procrastination ...
something you can do right now.
Four Complex Reasons For
Procrastination
Perfectionism 1. “If you can’t do it right, don’t do it at all”
2. May delay starting a project
3. Creates dissatisfaction & frustration
Anger/Hostility 1. Withhold best efforts out of spite
2. Getting Even
Low Frustration Tolerance 1. Feeling overwhelmed
2. Unfairness
Self-Downing 1. Minimize your skills/abilities
2. Attribute success to luck
3. Cannot accept praise for work accomplished
Steps to Cure Procrastination
1. Acknowledge that you are postponing a task.
2. List the reasons why you are postponing doing the task.
3. Discuss the reasons and list ways to overcome them.
4. Begin the task immediately!
Helpful Techniques
Write down your tasks in a visible place with their due dates
Make the tasks look easy in your mind
Have a 5 minute plan: start a task for 5 minutes, eventually
you will want to complete it
Break the task into components
Tackle each component separately
Modify your environment to encourage accomplishing the
task
Tell your family/friends about your goal; they will motivate
you along the way
REWARD yourself for a job well done!
Other tips…
Do’s: Don’ts:
Change your thoughts Criticize yourself!
Engage in physical Anticipate catastrophe
activity (exercise)
Focus on faults,
Give yourself some alone
time (15 – 30 min. inadequacies, things left
without distractions) undone
Increase alertness by
changing your position or
stretching for a few
minutes (important thing
is movement!)
Choosing a Plan of Action
Christina chose to…
- set weekly goals & write down tasks
Ammera chose to…
- break tasks down
Lucrecia chose to…
- apply un-schedule technique
- learn to say “no”!
Christina’s Plan of Action
I procrastinate on:
•School assignments
•Work
•House chores
I procrastinate by:
•Watching TV
•Eating snacks
•Talking to my friends
Christina’s Plan of Action
I wrote down my weekly tasks in my schedule.
Each weekly schedule listed specific tasks to be
accomplished.
I had post-it notes attached to my books and living
space to remind myself of what was to be done.
I followed the 5 minute rule. I began the task
believing I would work on it for 5 minutes, but
continued it until it was complete.
Having lots of reminders made procrastinating (for
example, watching tv) seem like a waste of much
needed time.
I went through my task list on Sunday making sure I
completed them.
I began the following week with a clean slate.
Ammera’s Plan of Action
I procrastinate on studying for exams.
I chose to break down the assignments I needed to complete to prepare for
exams.
Next, I estimated the number of days I could spend studying before the
exam.
I divided the number of pages I had to read by the number of days I had to
study.
For example, if I had 150 pages to read, and 10 days before the exam, I set
a goal to read 15 pages per day.
To motivate myself, I made a check off list with the pages I needed to read.
After I completed a page, I checked off the page number. This allowed me
to visualize my accomplishments.
I rewarded myself my scheduling breaks.
I would study in an environment conducive to studying, such as the library.
Lucrecia’s Plan of Action:
“Un-schedule” & Exercising the
“No” Muscle
Procrastinators’ view of time is quite unrealistic (hope to
find more than there really is!).
Procrastinators often underestimate/overestimate how
long a task will take.
Un-schedule is a weekly calendar of all of your
committed activities, not what you “should” do
Consider all your activities (i.e. work hours; scheduled
meetings and appointments.; classes & social events;
time for regular exercise; time for meals including prep &
clean-up; time for chores & cleaning, laundry &
shopping, etc.)
Lucrecia’s Un-Schedule
Learning to Tell Time…
Look at your schedule – How do you feel?
Overwhelmed? Anxious? Depressed?
Visualize going thru this week & consider what makes
you feel that way.
Un-schedule shows you the maximum amount of time
you “could” use to work on a project
Reward yourself after working ½ hour towards your goal
& block off the time on your un-schedule
Add up the “blocked” time to calculate how much time
you spent working towards your goal that week (self-
monitoring helps procrastinators be more realistic!)
Learning to say “NO”
Tips to Help You Say No:
Buy yourself time to think (I’ll get back to you….)
Shift the focus back to you (This is not about you; I
need to say no for me…)
Know your priorities and stick to them!
Keep it simple (don’t give long-winded explanations or
make excuses…)
Tackle easy situations first (Try it with the telemarketer
on the phone…..)
What I’ve learned…
To reduce stress, I need to frequently use the “I’ll get
back to you…” technique and refer to my schedule
before booking social get-togethers (especially during
school semesters!)
I need to more realistic about time and juggling work,
school and a family (sometimes you can’t do it all!)
Prioritize – I will set priorities at the beginning of the
week for goal(s) to be accomplished during “free time”
that week instead of trying to “squeeze-in” the time…
Other Techniques to
Improve Your Timing…
Practice telling time
Learn to use little bits of time
Expect interruptions and disruptions
Delegate
Don’t spread yourself too thin
Identify your prime time
Enjoy your “free time”
Stress & Procrastination
Think back to a time when you felt a great deal
of pressure.
Recall the circumstances around the incident
and remember how you felt.
Were there any changes in your behavior or
attitude?
Were there sensations in your body that were
letting you know that you were feeling
pressured?
Some Signs of Stress
Physical Signs: Emotional & Behavioral
Signs:
“knot,” “butterflies” or pain in Irritability
your stomach Fatigue, exhaustion
Cold, clammy hands Trouble concentrating
Headache Increased alcohol or drug use
Rapid breathing, Changes in sleep or appetite
hyperventilating Inability to relax, fidgeting
Tightness in neck or shoulders Forgetfulness
or both Inability to enjoy things that
Lower back pain once brought you pleasure
Tendency toward illness (colds,
flu)
Tension in jaws (grinding or
clamping)
Exercise in Progressive
Relaxation
Sit in a comfortable position
Give yourself some quiet time to begin with (10-15 min.
recommended)
Close your eyes & breathe evenly
Tense the selected body area; hold the tension tightly for
5 – 10 seconds
Relax the area you just tensed for 10 – 15 seconds.
Let the muscles become soft, heavy, warm and loose.
Breathe slowly and comfortably.
Benefits of Overcoming
Procrastination
Peace of Mind
Feeling strong
Taking charge of your life
Feeling competent
Experience personal freedom