Students regularly fall prey to procrastination. This often occurs at home while they try to finish assignments or long term papers.
Since most online learning is done entirely at home (or wherever else one chooses to work), it is especially important for e-learners to be prepared to tackle procrastination. Here are 10 tips to beat procrastination:
- Reward yourself. You know what you like. Whether it is shopping, conversation, baking, etc., promise to reward yourself for getting a certain amount of work done.
- Set small goals. A work load can often be daunting and prevent students from starting. Take it bit by bit.
- Set earlier deadlines. Some students do their best work under pressure. If that is your case, consider setting personal, earlier deadlines to encourage you to complete the assignments.
- Just start. Whether it is reading only an article or two or simply getting a paragraph on paper, once you begin it will be easier to continue, even if it is at a later point.
- Create accountability. Make a deal with a fellow student that you will each complete a certain amount of work by a pre-designated time. This accountability to a classmate can encourage you to finish.
- Use a timer. If you allow yourself to take breaks, use a timer on your computer to remind you to stop surfing the web and return to your required activity.
- Evaluate the distractors. Sometimes an opportunity arises which is too great to refuse. Recognize which distractors are worthwhile and which will only hurt you in the long run.
- Turn off social media. Silence your phone and log off social media sights so that you will not be tempted by any friendly alerts.
- Do some easy tasks. Try starting with a quick and easy assignment to get you into the studying mindset.
- Compartmentalize. If something else important is fighting for your attention, put it off. Don’t say that you cannot think about – just that you will think about it soon.
Let us know – how do you overcome procrastination?