Over the years, I discovered procrastination feels good in the beginning. The good feeling, for me, usually started dwindling around the 6^th episode of “Lost”. In college, I was able to convince myself that meeting up with my friends was more important than that upcoming test, because, well, the test was 5 days away. That good feeling was completely gone when it was the night before my test, and I realized there were no Sparknotes for my marketing textbook (I Googled).

            My reason for procrastinating was because I thought work was ”too difficult”. Subconsciously, I wanted to avoid pain so I did “fun” things instead. I admired (and envied) people in my dorm who “got things done”. They were the ones with clean rooms, who had enough willpower to decline my invitation for a late night trip to Oscar’s or Convenient Deli. For me, I just had to have my pizza and Gatorade at night, even if no one could join me. It was a habit I developed in the beginning of college: pizza and procrastination.

            There’s a great book titled “The Procrastinator’s Handbook: Mastering the Art of Doing It Now” by Rita Emmett. One of the tips she suggested was: start out with an organized work space. Now I make sure my desk is clutter-free before I work, but in college it was whole other story. In my memoir, I wrote about how one morning I, upon waking, was about to call the police because I thought someone had ransacked my dorm before realizing I was the one responsible for the mess.

            Having an organized work space helps us focus, and lessens distractions.  In “The Procrastinator’s Handbook” Rita states that it’s best not to read everything on our desk. It’s better to prioritize, and read the important things. She emphasizes the importance of de-cluttering. Massive amounts of paper will only lead to confusion. I’ve discovered I own several sheets of paper with a few sentences written on it. The sentences are probably a few months to a year old, so I’ve decided to get rid of them. I have a few books, a pamphlet, and a Best Buy folder on my desk. It’s easier to work when I’m not neck-deep in papers and Sprite bottles like I was in college.

            To ponder whether to “throw it away” or “keep it” Rita suggests asking ourselves:

1.     Do I currently love it?

2.     Do I currently need it?

She points out people feel a sentimental attachment to “things”, which is why I still have my tank top from 7^th grade (that I never wear) in my drawer! I remembered being upset when I couldn’t find my wide orange Gap pants with the black stripe from high school. I didn’t have a lot of clothes back then, and I would always wear those pants.

           

            “The Productivity Project” is a book by Chris Bailey detailing what he learned from his productivity experiments. In one of his productivity experiments, Chris decided to let go of all maintenance tasks for an entire week. He wore pajamas, took 3 showers during the week, ordered daily takeout, stopped cleaning, and tried to be as productive as possible. He claimed he felt terrible during the middle of the “letting go” week. As a kid, I believed I would feel excellent if I lived on takeout and didn’t do any chores. In college, I realized that wasn’t true. I realized I would have been happier if I cleaned my dorm regularly. And I remembered my friends with “Martha Stewart” dorms getting good grades in their classes. I also remember that (rare) ecstatic feeling of looking around my tidy dorm.

            Chris suggests doing rote maintenance tasks (such as cleaning the house) with your significant other to make it fun. He also suggests listening to something while cleaning. Calling someone during cleaning can also make it more fun.

            Rita Emmett suggests that planning actually reduces procrastination, and makes work more fun. In college, my method of studying was: I’m going to read the textbook straight through. That’s one of the reasons why I rarely studied. It was too painful for me. My GPA goal in college was to get an overall 4.00. I remember discussing it with one of my professors: “If I get a B- in your class, I think I can still get a 4.00! I can just retake it next semester!” (I got a C in that class, and didn’t retake it.)

            Now, I would have planned it out to make it easy. I know reading a textbook back to back would be painful for me so I would have taken notes in class. If I didn’t understand something, I would read that section in my textbook. In college, I spent a lot of time on introductory chapter pages, where they would give a general summary of what the chapter was about. Now, I would only read what was absolutely necessary. It makes life easier.

            Simplicity is key. I wouldn’t get much done if I made everything difficult. Another reason why I procrastinated was because, in college, my subconscious belief was that everything still had to be perfect. When I studied for my European history final, I made an alphabetical list of every bold term in my textbook. I decided I was going to write a paragraph for each term. I wrote two paragraphs, and closed the book. Perfectionism was too difficult to achieve, so why bother?

            Life is much easier now that I’ve stopped demanding perfectionism from myself. My productivity increases when I stop trying to “make it perfect”. I take naps when I’m tired. A few nights ago I stayed up until 1 am watching rap videos on Youtube. I didn’t feel guilty, but I knew I couldn’t do it regularly because I needed sleep. When we do things over and over again, it becomes habit. According to researchers, from University College London, it takes an average of 66 days to develop a habit. Some habits feel “good” (junk food), while others take time getting used to (waking up at 4 am). If I had to wake up at 4 am, I would go to bed at 8. I know I’ll feel energized once I get 8 hours of sleep. That’s the recommended amount for adults, but it really depends on the individual. Work becomes easier when we’re energized, when we have enough sleep. We also tend to get more done when we’re energized, which is why sleep is important. Broadly speaking, getting enough sleep reduces procrastination.

It took me years to understand what I’ve written in my blog. For much of my life I’ve lived in complete darkness. My book (link below) details my remarkable journey to happiness. It was painful to remember, but I know everything happened for a reason. I wrote my life story to give people hope. 

Book Link