Procrastination

Hey, my name is Neranjana Elapatha. I am a 22-year-old third-year psychology student. My hobbies involve watching an unhealthy amount of K dramas and Netflix. I’m just your typical introvert, which is probably the best trait to have in this bizarre world we are living in right now. My blogs posts will cover my university experience, travelling and study tips.

Procrastination

Ah, procrastination, probably the most cursed thing to have as a student, and I am sure everybody can relate to this. So, painting the picture here, you have a deadline, three days from now and you have only written one sentence, and if you are lucky have a very basic plan. You are panicking, adrenaline is pumping in, that dreaded date on Faser is not getting any further away. But suddenly, your hand automatically goes on YouTube for some reason; now’s the time to watch cat videos or must-haves when getting a car when you don’t have your driving licence yet, then you think that the room is way too dirty, and I need to clean. A couple of hours have been wasted, and there is still one… line… on… that… word document ahhh. And then there is one day left, now it is becoming serious, stress levels are at their peak, and adrenaline is pumping, now you are doing the essay and have submitted it on the “one hour left!” time on Faser. Phew, that was too close.

Now even though it is done, your heart has gone through several attacks at this point and felt like the brink of death. So, to prevent this here are some tips for you.

Taking breaks

Taking breaks?! What? Isn’t that the opposite of what I should be doing Neranjana?! While that is correct, what I am suggesting is that studying should involve a regime. Many people don’t think to include breaks; whether it is having a fifteen-minute break every hour or every thirty minutes having a five-minute break, it allows your brain to energize for another intensive study session. When people don’t apply breaks, the body thinks of other ways to get rest and here are the three-hour long cat videos that come in.

Giving yourself rewards

This is a personal tip; in every submission, I think of something to look forward to after it is over, whether it is binging on a K drama, putting on a face mask or hanging out with your friends and watching a movie together. Something little can be a massive boost to finishing that task. In quarantine to get my submissions done, I would plan a virtual Netflix party with my friends to watch a movie together or get that Holika Holika sheet mask to do after my submission is finished. Rewarding yourself will feel incredible that you have finished that deadline.

Study partner

Now you are thinking, Neranjana, if you haven’t noticed, we are kind of in the middle of the pandemic right now?! Yes, but throughout my study in the pandemic, I have had a faithful virtual study partner, and we had pushed each other when we needed to get something done and listened to my stress and problems. We know precisely when the other is procrastinating (one big hint we would smile). Seeing that little box of the other person studying is very encouraging and discouraging to go down that YouTube rabbit hole. But the key is picking the right study partner. There is no point getting a study partner if you are gonna talk all the time instead of studying, so finding a partner who is just as motivated. If you can’t find a virtual study partner, don’t sweat. I have recommended my fave study YouTube videos, and they are just as good, and they have timers to take breaks, so an additional bonus there! My personal fave study YouTubers are ‘The Sherry Formula’ and ‘TheStrive Studies’, but if you literally type study with me, you will have an abundance of videos to choose from.

Hope these tips bode well when you are in the middle of multiple submission as it isn’t uni unless there are multiple submissions due all in one week.