Are you a world-class procrastinator? Have you started ‘cleaning out your room’ or baking endlessly to avoid studying? Then you’re in the right place – we’ve put together some of the most effective anti-procrastination methods around to ensure you stay on task and ace those exams!
1. Remove all distractions
Identify what distracts you the most when studying and try and remove yourself from it. For a lot of us, it’s our phones – which can easily lead you down an Instagram-stalking black hole on a Monday afternoon, and before you know it, it’s Wednesday. Try getting someone to hide your phone when studying at home, with a check-in every hour or two to respond to the group chat that’s lighting up.
2. Set small, achievable tasks
Instead of just saying ‘I’m going to study this unit for 2 hours’, change it to a definite task, like ‘I will do one practice exam for this unit’. Breaking up study into smaller tasks will not only keep you on track, it will make you feel like you have achieved more.
3. Do the hard bits first
A lot of the time, we procrastinate because we don’t want to do the hard things, or the things we will have to dedicate more time to. By knocking these off the list first, you will be more motivated to finish the easier things. So, get onto catching up on all those lectures and making notes – but make sure you…
4. Reward yourself
Giving yourself a little treat after meeting a goal or finishing a task will help to motivate you and encourage a positive feedback in your brain to studying. Things like a coffee break after an hour of work, some chocolate after finishing a chapter of revision, or an episode or two of your favourite show after a productive day are all great ways to reward yourself for kicking study goals.
