How to beat procastination in vacation

Let’s be honest, procrastination has hit us all one way or another. Even the best of us sometimes fall victim to it. We must remember that we all make mistakes and there will be times in which we will procrastinate. However, we should try our best to improve.  So how can we try not to fall into procrastination?

1. Understand what makes you procrastinate. This step is very essential so we can come up with solutions.

In my case, reading made me procrastinate. Reading isn’t necessarily a bad thing but once you’re reading instead of actively working on your priorities, it truly becomes a problem. I would spend nights reading on my phone and had lack of sleep. Therefore I was also very tired and couldn’t perform as I needed to.

2. Define your goals. Writing down goals is very important as it gives you a specific end to work to. The goals are your expectations and having SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-Bound) will help you work effectively.

I decided I must do up to 5 tasks related to my priorities each day. I can’t read until I finish those tasks.

3. Identify possible courses of actions. This is the stage in which you’ll come up with ways to achieve those goals. The solutions you come up with have to help you find a way to overcome the reasons why you procrastinate.

Each week I must plan an overview of relevant goals I want to accomplish. Each night, as part of my night routine, I must write down important tasks I have to do the next day in order to achieve those goals. These can’t be more than 5 and I must make sure I can absolutely do those tasks. In order to avoid reading, I downloaded an app called self-control on my phone and laptop in order to avoid the sites I read stories on. In case I fail to accomplish this and decide to read, I must give my mom my phone for a day. My night routine starts at 6 PM, which means I can read till 6 PM in order not to disrupt my sleeping cycle.

4. Identify when you are the most productive. Some people are night-owls while others are early-risers. What time are you the most productive? When you know this, you can schedule a time to work on your priorities.

I work best in the early morning. Most people find my waking hours atrocious. However getting things done as early as 3 AM does wonders to me. Most people are already asleep at that time, which means no distractions coming from mobile notifications. The internet is crazy fast at that hour. And the quietness of everything makes me go real deep, real quick into my work.  

5. Keep track of your habits. This will help you see how you’re actually working and it’s also the perfect time to reevaluate if things are going the way you want. Here you can also give yourself feedback. And if necessary, you can also go back and repeat the process.

It’s important to remember that each one of us has their own ways of working. What works for me, might not work for you. I encourage you all to experiment with all sorts of things in order to find a way that works for you and kick procrastination’s ass like a boss.

• Brainstorm! What is being productive for you? If you start with no concrete idea of what being productive means to you, then you’re off to an awful start. What would you like to accomplish? What do you wanna learn?
  
• Write your goals down! According to research, people who write down their goals are more likely to accomplish them.
• Be specific. A good idea for when you’re writing down your goals is using the SMART method. Which stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound.
• Track your progress. This is why Measurable goals are important. Being able to track your performance, gives you a good overview of how well you’re performing and in which areas you can improve.
• Make sure to treat yourself. Treating yourself can keep you motivated and help you find a balance between the things you’ve got to get done and your free time.

How do I do it?

I like to brainstorm ideas with my friends. I often ramble to them about things I wanna do and they often give me good ideas and tips. After that, I write them down using the SMART method. I take my time to design trackers, look for additional information and other things. Very important to do research at this stage. After all that, I make sure to write down a to-do list for the day and make sure to write down a reward for myself after I get all my tasks done. It motivates me to finish all my tasks! Sometimes, it’s reading that new manga update or watching the new upload of a YouTuber.

Useful tip: Write your to-do lists in visible places. If you spend a lot of time in your bedroom and have a board, write it there so you can see. If you spend a lot of your time on your browser, consider downloading an extension such as Taskadethat allows you to see your lists everytime you open a new tab. You won’t forget that way!