Time Strategies

Time by Sean MacEntee

Not gonna lie, I'm a terrible procrastinator. I often leave things to the very last minute and then stress out over not having enough time to finish them. The issue, however, is that I do finish them, and I usually end up doing them well, so there is no incentive for me to change my behavior. That's why I would call myself a High Functioning Procrastinator. That being said, I have tried to encourage myself to have better daily habits; for example, when I have a long assignment due that is causing me anxiety, I will use an app blocker to prevent myself from going on websites and apps that usually distract me, such as Netflix and Youtube. 

Because this is something I have been struggling with for a while, I have read many articles on time management and planning and I have never truly found anything that was particularly helpful. This is why I approached the two articles I chose with a grain of salt. I decided to read 11 ways unsuccessful people mismanage their time and Four Questions to Help You Overcome Procrastination. 

I found that many of the tips they mention are things that I already do, but that have not necessarily improved my constant procrastination. I have a planner, I write everything down and try to organize my weeks as best as I can, but I still find myself leaving everything until the very last minute. I did like the idea of having daily rituals, such as a morning routine with coffee and exercise. I have tried to develop daily routines that would help me be more productive, but they have almost always failed. What I liked was that the article proposed these rituals as a way to motivate yourself, rather than as a way of being productive. One thing I definitely did not like was the "What will go wrong if I don't do this now?" question because that is something I constantly ask myself. As someone with General Anxiety Disorder, I am constantly tormented by questions of how things could wrong, so I found this tip to be incredibly neurotypical in the sense that it failed to recognize the different ways in which people's minds work. 

In any case, I think part of my procrastination problem has a lot to do with my anxiety disorder and depressive episodes, which usually drain me from my motivation and energy. This is why I am trying to make the most of the start-of-the-semester energy to work ahead as much as I can, and I have tried to schedule some self-care time throughout the week to make sure I am always at my best. Hopefully, this semester will be easier than previous ones and I will be able to properly keep up with my work.