The most useful thing I learned from this week’s module was how to avoid digital distractions. By turning off my phone’s notifications or even just leaving it in another room while I get my work done I can avoid a major distraction and be much more productive.
I already have pretty good time management skills and I actually do a few of the tips that this module provided. I always break down larger tasks into smaller, more doable ones. For example, if I have a lab report due on Tuesday, I will have myself do the purpose in one sitting, the written procedure and data section in another, then the discussion and conclusion together. This helps me from becoming overwhelmed by the report as a whole (because they are kinda long) and makes it more doable.
Although, sometimes there are long assignments that I know are going to be difficult like research essays, and I lack the motivation to work on it. There was a video from this week’s module with three tips to beat procrastination that I will use in the future when I lack motivation. The first tip was the 10-minute rule where you make a goal seem more attainable by breaking the whole task into small, 10-minute long parts. The second tip was three magical questions where you take a piece of paper and answer where you are, what you want to dom and how you will feel after doing it. Once you answer these questions this should give you some motivation to start the task because you can see that you are not busy and can identify how accomplished you will feel after it is finished. The third tip was the ultimate goal vs. ultimate desire where when you are procrastinating something, think to yourself: what do I want for my future? and compare that to how doing what you want in the moment will affect that future you want.
My advice to any student who is struggling with procrastination is to isolate yourself and do a small part of the whole task first. Typically, once I start something I will be more motivated to finish it because I know how it will feel once I do not have to worry about it anymore when it is complete.
The link to the video I referenced on techniques to beat procrastination: https://youtu.be/VA8D1cGW5Qk