Proper Procrastination

It’s exam time again, and that can mean only one thing: I suddenly have an overwhelming, irreversible obsession with procrastination.

Things that have happened to me this exam season:

1. Online shopping is my new passion. I'm getting so good I might have to write it under the 'Skills' section of my CV. 

2. Daily Mail articles are fascinating. That's high quality journalism right there, folks. 

3. Films are MY LIFE. I've watched Frozen ten times now. It's so deep and meaningful, you know?

I have to admit, procrastination has taken over my life. And I’m sure I’m not the only one – if you’re reading this, it’s probably because you are procrastinating. But no need to look so worried, I'm not going to shout and make you feel like an awful student. 

In fact, I’m going to tell you why procrastination might actually be really helpful. But before I do that, here are some fun but completely useless facts just to make this look even more like procrastination.

Did you know any of these facts?

•         Shakespeare invented the word “assassination” and “bump.”
•          For every 230 cars that are made, 1 will be stolen.
•          The Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from Libraries.
•          One in eight million people has progeria, a disease that causes people to grow faster than they age.
•          All polar bears are left-handed.
•          Bulgarians are known to be the biggest yogurt eaters in the world.

Anyway, back to the point: procrastination can be beneficial. Often we procrastinate because we are unsure of how to start a task, or we are avoiding something we think will be hard or take a long time. For example, when I sat down to write this post, I had no idea what to write – so I found myself on the internet, procrastinating. 

Having bought two new dresses online and checked Facebook and Twitter countless times, I found myself on www.psychologytoday.com, reading an article entitled ‘Can Procrastination Ever Be a Good Thing?’ My instant reaction was, I hope so! The author of the post, Pamela Wiegartz, has a Ph.D, so she must know what she is talking about, and here is what she had to say:

1. Procrastination has its benefits. I know right, this is pretty mind-blowing. 

2. Some procrastinators delay tasks deliberately, because they prefer to work under pressure. These people are called active procrastinators.

3. Procrastinating can help people feel in control of their time, and use it better.

4. Others, referred to as passive procrastinators, let their procrastination tasks dominate their day and have no control over their procrastination.

5. Active procrastinators are less avoidant, have lower stress levels, and higher self-efficacy than passive procrastinators.

It is better, then, to actively procrastinate. This allows us to cope with our tasks, but also manage our time effectively and not allow the procrastination to dominate the majority of our time. Procrastination gives us a break from the anxiety felt about the task, and in my case, and make the task a lot easier to handle, as my procrastination gave me the idea for my post!

On the other hand, uncovering your old Nintendo DS while unpacking your uni stuff and playing Mario Kart and Super Mario Bros. for the next five hours probably isn’t that helpful. (Though I did manage to finally conquer Level 7 of Super Mario Bros. after what has been a particularly long break from the game!)

Just don’t forget to be an active, not a passive, procrastinator. As long as you are careful not to let procrastination tasks dominate your day, you can successfully revise and have a bit of fun at the same time!

Now, I must go – I’ve scheduled myself another procrastination break. Now I’ve completed Level 7 of Super Mario Bros., I think it’s about time I challenged myself to complete Level 8, don’t you?