Procrastination!

ProcrastinationWhat is it?
Psychological behavior that allows a person to postpone or delay a certain activity or task. Source of great stress and anxiety for many people. Time management is not directly related to procrastination.

Cycle Timeline
Panic & Stress Set In
Deadline is Set False Sense of Security Time Passes

II

III

IV

There are 2 weeks until the assignment is due.

I have plenty of time.

I will get started soon, I only work well under pressure.

Oh no! The assignment is due tomorrow!

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 I I I I I I I I I I I

raid the refrigerator. read mystery novels & science fiction. start calling up my friends. work on something thats less important. become obsessed with cleaning my desk. go out jogging. sit and stare. keep doing research. watch TV. read the newspaper. go to sleep. 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 Dont want to make a mistake until youre sure its right Fears Everyone will know you made a mistake

Procrastination ... something you can do right now.

Four Complex Reasons For Procrastination

Perfectionism
Anger/Hostility

1. If you cant do it right, dont do it at all 2. May delay starting a project 3. Creates dissatisfaction & frustration
1. Withhold best efforts out of spite 2. Getting Even 1. Feeling overwhelmed 2. Unfairness

Low Frustration Tolerance

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
Dos: Change your thoughts Engage in physical activity (exercise) Give yourself some alone time (15 30 min. without distractions) Increase alertness by changing your position or stretching for a few minutes (important thing is movement!) Donts: Criticize yourself! Anticipate catastrophe Focus on faults, inadequacies, things left undone

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!

Christinas Plan of Action

I procrastinate on:
School assignments Work House chores

I procrastinate by:
Watching TV Eating snacks Talking to my friends

Christinas 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.

Ammeras 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.

Un-schedule & Exercising the No Muscle

Lucrecias Plan of Action:

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.)

Lucrecias 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 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 (selfmonitoring helps procrastinators be more realistic!)

Learning to say NO
Tips to Help You Say No: Buy yourself time to think (Ill 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 (dont give long-winded explanations or make excuses) Tackle easy situations first (Try it with the telemarketer on the phone..)

What Ive learned

To reduce stress, I need to frequently use the Ill 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 cant 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 Dont 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:

knot, butterflies or pain in your stomach Cold, clammy hands Headache Rapid breathing, hyperventilating Tightness in neck or shoulders or both Lower back pain Tendency toward illness (colds, flu) Tension in jaws (grinding or clamping)

Emotional & Behavioral Signs: Irritability Fatigue, exhaustion Trouble concentrating Increased alcohol or drug use Changes in sleep or appetite Inability to relax, fidgeting Forgetfulness Inability to enjoy things that once brought you pleasure

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