Why You’re Procrastinating & How To Stop

It’s more complicated than you think, but we’ve got you.

Procrastination really is the devil when you’re a student. You need to revise, complete assignments, go to lectures and tutorials. But sometimes, you feel the urge to do none of those things, and the reasons aren’t random.

The reason could be surface-level, but it could also come about because of an underlying problem or condition. For example, people with ADHD and/or other behavioural issues may struggle with executive function and have to find additional strategies to cope such as therapy.

If you’ve found yourself procrastinating and it’s at a point where you’re struggling, this article may be your saving grace. We’ll talk about why you procrastinate as a student, different types of procrastination and what you can do to overcome it with easy and realistic steps.

What is procrastination?

In short, procrastination means putting off tasks until the last minute or well beyond their deadline.

You can be the most organised person in the world, but if you’re investing time where you shouldn’t be with a looming deadline over your head, then you’ll have fallen into the trap of procrastination.

It’s not quite this simple though. In fact, there are two types of procrastination to be aware of.

Active vs passive procrastination

Active procrastination, in some ways, can be seen as a more “beneficial†or “positive†thing. This is when you might deliberately decide to put off a project. Maybe this is due to waiting on information elsewhere, or knowing you’d perform better under pressure.

But passive procrastination is essentially not “knowing†you’re procrastinating, or maybe you do know but you can’t seem to “do the thingâ€. You may fall into the trap of this type of procrastination due to anxiety, disorganisation, and a lack of confidence.

Other types of procrastination

You can categorise how you procrastinate depending on how you behave. These are the classic procrastination behavioral types:

• The perfectionist: Puts off tasks out of the fear of not being able to complete a task perfectly

• The dreamer: Puts off tasks because they are not good at paying attention to detail

• The defier: Doesn’t believe someone should dictate their time schedule

• The constant worrier: Puts off tasks out of fear of change or leaving the comfort of “the known”

• The all-or-nothing: Puts off tasks because they like working under pressure

• The overdoer: Essentially biting off more than you can chew. This procrastinator takes on too much and struggles with finding time to start and complete a task.

Any of these ringing a bell? We bet they are. But let’s dive into the why of procrastination.

Why do we procrastinate?

Being a student

Not the act of being a student, but more the elements that come with it. It’s possible to overestimate the time left to revise or complete an assignment, or maybe you get buried under too much work that it causes you to “switch offâ€.

You’re more likely to have doubts or uncertainties about the future too, which can contribute to procrastination or make you believe you “shouldn’t botherâ€.

Seeing tasks as one big project

By failing to break things down, you’ll struggle to work through an assignment. You might mistakenly think you have to complete the whole thing in one sitting or by a certain time that’s before your deadline, but this can cause feelings of stress and academic burnout.

Indecisiveness

When we don’t know what to do, or there’s too much to do and we don’t know where to begin, the indecisive nature can cause us to procrastinate.

Perfectionism

If things aren’t done perfectly, or you don’t have the tools necessary to complete something to your idea of “perfectâ€, this can make us put things off entirely. It’s a very all-or-nothing way to think but is often a reason why some people procrastinate.

Fear of failure

Avoidance can be caused by a fear of failure, leading you to procrastinate. You may fear making mistakes, or have doubts about whether you are doing something correctly. Perhaps others expectations may come into play and you’re worried you’ll fall short.

No self control

It really can be a lack of discipline that causes you to procrastinate. You may be easily susceptible to putting things off on purpose and need that extra push to stay on course.

Lack of organisation

A lack of organisation can lead to the swapping and changing of tasks. There are numerous studies as to why multitasking can be bad. Neuropsychologist Cynthia Kubu, PhD explains why in this article.

No SMART goals

Failing to plan means planning to fail. Setting realistic goals is half the battle in ensuring you stay on track and keep your productivity at a decent rate.

By not setting SMART goals, you’ll have no idea where to begin and what an end result would look like. When your tasks are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely, you’ll feel a sense of structure.

Relying on pressure

Relying on pressure can be a good and a bad thing. It runs the risk of getting to the task under pressure and underestimating how much time and effort is actually needed. This could lead to feeling overwhelmed, stressed and potentially more procrastinating.

Laziness

We’ve saved the best till last, but yes, pure laziness really can be the reason you’re procrastinating. When we’re “not feeling itâ€, we usually turn comforts like Netflix or naps. While those things have their place, it could be adding more stress than is necessary.

How to stop procrastinating

Besides these apps boosting your productivity, we recommend the following to curb the procrastinating and do the thing(s):

Make lists

The act of making a list can really work wonders for curbing procrastination. Make a list of all your to-dos. Even down to sending that email or paying a bill.

It might help to categorise your lists into uni work, life, job, events, or anything else you have going on.

Remember to always break down big tasks into smaller ones. You may see the list get bigger, but we can guarantee that ticking off the sub-tasks will give you a nice hit of good feels.

We love writing lists the old fashioned way but digitally works too. If you’re sticking to the old pen and paper, get a student discount from Ohh Dear with Student Beans!

Find your why

When we lose our way with a goal or task, we’re more likely to put it off. Ask yourself these questions:

1. What wider goal am I trying to reach?

2. What can I reward myself with after I complete this?

3. Is there an easier way to complete this task?

4. What way works best for me?

Set SMART goals

We’ll keep banging on about this until you do! SMART goals may make you eyeroll, but they’re quoted time and time again for a reason.

Ensure everything you write on your list of tasks meets the SMART criteria. It’ll help paint a picture of your finished tasks and how to get there.

Set regular reminders

We’re only human and forget things time to time. If you need to get something done but think you’ll “forgetâ€, set a reminder to work on something for a determined amount of time. You can even set reminders to ensure you stay hydrated or reward yourself with something!

Set a schedule that works for you

Schedules aren’t a one size fits all thing. If you know you burn out quickly, plan around your moods, menstrual cycle (yes, planning work around your period could work wonders) and any other factors that could be robbing the energy you need to complete something.

It may mean that on paper you get through “less†in a day or a week, but the alternative of doing absolutely nothing is far worse.

Work less

Wait, what!? Yep. We really mean this.

Working less will conserve energy but still chip away at the tasks you need doing. We’re not saying do the bare minimum, but we believe in being realistic.

If you can do one shift or two less at your part-time job, yes this may mean less money, but it means getting your assignments done and dusted.

Read: Essential Food Shopping List For Cheap Living.

Unfollow and unsubscribe

We’re checking our phones more than ever before. But getting an alert from our BFF Dominos isn’t going to do wonders for your productivity, is it?

Search “unsubscribe†in your mail inbox and unsubscribe from newsletters you genuinely don’t read. We’ve all been there and signed up to too many, but it could be one of the reasons you reach for your phone more often than you should.

Secondly, it’s wise to unfollow any accounts you feel the need to keep up with but aren’t contributing any value to you. This can be tough (especially if it’s an ex…), but your future and very productive self will thank you.

Track your progress

Tracking your progress is not only good to see where you’re at, but it also provides you with an amazing visual of your progress. We recommend these study planner apps that most double up as habit trackers too!

Create a playlist

Sometimes we just need a darn good playlist to get us going. Maybe it’s a pick-me-up playlist that’ll get you pumped before exercise or giving a presentation, or a calming one that’ll help you zone into an essay.

Whatever it is, make sure you have several to fit all the vibes.

Give yourself rewards

Rewarding yourself with an episode on Netflix, a takeaway, chocolate or anything after completing something is a great way to keep procrastinating at bay as a student and beyond.

Plus, it keeps things fun and interesting if you’re powering through something that isn’t.

Be accountable

If you’ve procrastinated for too long and you’re visibly stressed, we feel you. But we also believe it’s important to forgive ourselves and make a plan of action.

Accept what’s happened and show accountability by taking charge.

We also believe in having accountability partners too. Make sure you check in with each other and motivate one another to curb procrastination.

Use the Pomodoro technique

Imagine what you could do in 25 minutes.

The Pomodoro technique works by setting a timer for 25 minutes, having a break for 5 and repeating this process 4 more times and increasing the break times to 10, 15 and so on.

So not only are you rewarding yourself with a break, but you’re working with your mind (which is incapable of working for hours upon hours straight, by the way) to power through tasks as optimally as possible.

And there you have it. All the reasons we procrastinate and ways we can beat it. By understanding how procrastination works, or more specifically, how you procrastinate, you can create a plan to beat it in the way that works best for you.