At Least I Have Tea

I’ve seen a lot of great tips out there about fighting procrastination, and I don’t want to write just another post with tips you’ve seen before. But I’ve noticed a lot of recommendations jump right into ways to combat your procrastination without digging any deeper. In my experience, I procrastinate for a lot of different reasons, and I need to figure out why I’m procrastinating before I can effectively solve the problem. 

So, why are you procrastinating today?

I’m mentally exhausted: This is a pretty common one for me, especially if I’ve been studying for a while already. I *should* be scheduling regular breaks into  study sessions, which helps prevent this. But, of course, nobody’s perfect and sometimes I don’t remember to set a schedule. If I find myself unconsciously opening a new tab to procrastinate in the middle of a study session, this is probably the culprit.

The best solution is to take a purposeful, timed break (the scheduled nature of it really helps my brain relax, since I don’t have the added stress of thinking I “should be studying right now”). If I’m still feeling burnt out after a break, I try clearing my mind with a brisk walk or just a quick trip to the kitchen for tea. 

I’m physically exhausted: Being physically exhausted can lead to mental burnout and procrastination. The best cure is, again, prevention -- get enough sleep, eat well on a good schedule, and exercise. But especially around exam time, those habits inevitably fall apart a little bit. So, if you catch yourself feeling physically spent and your studying is suffering for it, do what you can to refresh yourself.

First, eat a healthy snack if you haven’t had enough to eat today (even if you don’t feel hungry). Drink a tall glass of water with lemon (even if you don’t feel thirsty). Stretch out, walk around. If you can, exercise -- I know it’s the last thing you want to do, but it will re-energize you. If you’re lacking sleep, take a nap if you can! None of this advice is anything you haven’t heard before, but I can’t stress enough how important it is. Your brain is a physical part of you, and it needs fuel, rest, and movement to operate at peak performance. If you’re physically exhausted, even if you can make yourself study longer it won’t be nearly as efficient.

I REALLY want to do this other thing: This is a very different type of procrastination. Sometimes, I have a lot of trouble studying because I’m really, really into some other project/book/game and I keep wanting to go back to it. I have all the energy I need to study, but I have a strong desire to put that energy somewhere else.

In this case, a schedule is your best friend. Promise yourself X amount of time to focus on the distraction after an hour of studying. Reward yourself with another chapter of the book after you finish going through your flashcards. It’s a lot easier to break away from something interesting if you have the knowledge of when you’ll be able to return to it.

I REALLY hate studying this: This is a tough one to fix, but absolutely worth it for both your studying success and your happiness. Some things just suck to study. Cramming all the muscle attachments and innervation for my gross anatomy final absolutely made me want to explode, and I could only do it for a few minutes before my eyes would glaze over and I’d have to move on to something else. Forcing myself back to the study guide not only wasn’t effective, but it was frustrating and stressful.

Group studying can be one of the best ways to get a deep understanding of material for an exam -- or it can be a great way to waste an entire day goofing off with your friends when you really needed that time to study. As always, everyone learns differently, but here are a few tips that have worked *for me* to make sure that I get more of Option 1 and less of Option 2.

Pick the right people! The most important rule. If you need to be dedicated and focus on learning rather than watching Vine compilations, then you need to pick people to study with who have the same priorities. It might take a few tries before you find the best study squad for you, but it’s beyond worth it. If everyone’s on the same page and ready to work, you can feed off each other’s energy and study longer and harder than you would on your own.

Put the flashcards down. There’s no reason you can’t work through your flashcards or other rote memorization tasks on your own. Group study is best once you have most of the material down, and it’s time to connect the dots and get a deeper understanding of the course. Instead, talk through the material together and ask each other questions. Summarize bigger picture concepts from a lecture, talk through every step of a pathway or system, explain why things are the way that they are. If you stumble upon something that doesn’t make sense to you, talk it out in the group -- and Google it or email your professor if it still doesn’t add up.

Stick to a small group. The more people in the group, the less time you’re going to have to talk through concepts yourself, ask specific questions, and directly work through problems. Listening to other people talk through the material is less likely to stick in your mind than getting to explain it yourself, and you won’t be able to focus as heavily on the specific points you need help with. Try to stick to groups of about 3-4 so everyone in your group gets the time they need to deeply understand the material.

Have a plan. You don’t need to schedule out every minute of your study session, but it’s a good idea to have a general outline of what you’re going to work on together. Each group member should pick a couple key concepts that they really want to review, and then the group should prioritize studying those before moving on to new topics. If you’re planning on studying for more than an hour or so, you also want to schedule in short breaks. Knowing that you have a break scheduled into your study session will help keep you on task, and taking breaks saves you from mental fatigue.

Time your breaks. It’s not healthy or productive to keep studying for hours on end without downtime. However, it’s not helpful to take long breaks where one YouTube video turns into five and suddenly it’s time to go to bed. To avoid falling into the trap of a never-ending break, be diligent about setting a timer for 10-15 minutes and obeying it. In the middle of a video? Pause it, it’ll still be there the next scheduled break. In the middle of a conversation? You can talk about it later. Respect the timer and get your work done.

People talk a lot about how phones can distract us from quality studying -- and that’s true! When I’m sitting down at my desk for some intensive studying, I generally have my phone on silent and out of my field of vision so I don’t get swept up in texting my friends or scrolling through Tumblr. But, especially if you have a packed schedule like me, your phone can also be your best friend for reviewing throughout your day.

When? I used to feel like I had no time to study. Walking or taking public transport to and from class and extra curriculars took up a big chunk of my day, and I’d end up zoning out or wasting time on my phone. Look for time in your day that’s currently “dead time”: time that’s not dedicated to relaxing, but not productive either. For me that was my commute, but it could also be downtime at work, an awkward half-hour gap between schedule blocks, or the time while you wait for your ramen to cook.