When it comes to the subject of procrastination, I'm really a pro at it. Actually, I used to be worse but I continuously try to use other study methods we have learned in CLS105 so my procrastination has gotten a lot better. I do not cram as much work as I did last semester of college. For example, 20 minute test prep is one of my favorite because it actually does help me study before hand and when it comes to studying for an exam, I get to review more rather than "study-study". However, this weekend I got a chance to dig into the reason why I procrastinate. The strategy I used for this is called Time Wasters.
Time Wasters allow you to list out bunch of distractions that keep you away from finishing your tasks. I know for many of us procrastinators, when the time comes to studying, we always come up with an excuse like, "oh, i really have to do laundry" and we always push off our work to the side. So when I listed all my distractions, I finally realized how much I have tried to tell myself bunch of lies that these aren't distractions. Facebook....my number 1 distraction, I know in my heart I have to turn it off and go back to work but as soon as I touch my computer again I find myself on facebook. My other distractions such as music, AIM, and watching shows online really doesn't help me. To be honest, even while writing this blog, I have been struggling to just finish writing this because of facebook and AIM.
However, I have an exam tomorrow and as I was studying for bio all weekend, I made sure I turned of my computer completely while studying because I didnt need my computer. This really allowed me to focus only on biology and finish all my studying by today. The time waster was really helpful for me because the things that I have listed were always things that I denied as my distractions. Having the list infront of my face really helped realized I need to stop and change this.
Also to help me really get through all my work I also realized that I'm going to have to work on some rewards strategy. For example, if were to go through all of chapter 40 slide for my bio exam I would get a chance to log on to my computer and rest up for a little bit. I did that with an increments of 2-3 slides each day to help me get through my study. This gave me breaks I needed to rest and even allow myself to go on AIM, Facebook, etc.
I thought it was interesting that you said that "having the list in front of [your] face" helped you realize what yo were doing wrong. Because I am a visual learner, I think it would be helpful for people like me to have a list of my distractions in front of me so that I can be reminded not to engage in those activities until I accomplish some work.
ReplyDeleteI used the time wasters, too. I liked this strategy very much and it seems like it worked well with you. Facebook is one of the such a bad time waster! I forgot to put it on my blog but I just realized it. Good job!
ReplyDeleteTime waster! i think the good point of time waster is very similar with excuse busting. we could broadcast our private life, which is very good to fix our problem. i used excuse busting. it was embarassed me so much. i became bad student according to the on peice of paper. it was great to read your blog. thank you for sharing your story,.
ReplyDeleteUsing Time waster is a good way to check what things actually make you waste your time. It is funny how FB is everyone's common time waster.
ReplyDeleteI also used time waster for one of my biggest concern for procrastination. Time waster has been working very well for me. Hopefully this method will help you avoid procrastination! Nice blog!
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