Office of Academic Support

How can I stop Procrastinating?
Procrastination! What’s a SLU-dent to do?

Carl Wahlstrom defines procrastination as putting things off intentionally and habitually. So, when putting something off becomes a pattern, we have the P-word: procrastination. Unfortunately, procrastination can seriously interfere with or even sabotage, academic success. Understanding why you procrastinate, and trying some strategies to challenge it, could make a big difference in your efforts to improve your grades.

Psychologist Linda Sapadin, author of “It’s About Time,” identifies six styles of procrastinators:

• Perfectionists
• Dreamers
• Worriers
• Crisis makers
• Defiers
• Over doers

Which one of these six types most closely describes you?

She argues that time management systems won’t help to address procrastination. Instead, she believes that procrastinators need to understand the reasons why they procrastinate, then work to change the thinking behind these behaviors.

Walter Pauk also discusses several reasons for procrastination. He offers these possibilities to help people discover “why” they procrastinate, because understanding “why” is the first step to changing these self-defeating behaviors. According to Pauk, the major sources of procrastination are “fear of failure, fear of success, lack of time, shortage of energy, and poor organization.”
(P. 69)

He goes on to urge people to devise ways to prevent procrastination, and offers seven possible interventions to try:

1. “Make your plans part of the public record.”
By writing your plans down as a note to yourself, and/or even telling a friend, “today I will…, ” your plan becomes part of a public record. Sometimes this simple action can provide some extra motivation to get you started on a task.

2. “Step back and check your progress from time to time.”
Some people procrastinate by getting tangled up in the little details of a project. By doing a progress check every now and again, you can catch this, and adjust your work speed.

3. “Let your momentum work for you.”
If you get on a roll and finish one project, immediately begin another. Sometimes getting started is the most difficult part, and you can use this momentum to start something you have been putting off or avoiding.

4. “Use the five-minute plan.”
If you have been avoiding a task, tell yourself you will work on it for 5 minutes. When 5 minutes have elapsed, decide if you want to continue to work on this task or not. Because getting started is often the most difficult, many people discover they want to continue to work.

5. “Be Specific.”
Sometimes an assignment can seem overwhelming: for example, write a 15 page paper! However, if you divide this large task into specific smaller parts, it can become less intimidating.

6. “Verbalize your excuses.”
Sometimes verbalizing your excuses for procrastinating to a friend allows you to hear your excuse out loud. Saying your excuse out loud can make it seem simpler, or silly, or not very logical, or even less challenging.

7. “Visualize success or completion.”
Some people believe that if you can imagine doing something, then you can do it. Performers and athletes often use this technique to give them confidence and to help them achieve goals. You can also take advantage of this strategy to help with procrastination. For example, simply imagine yourself starting a specific task, then working on it, then completing it. Now, imagine how good it will feel to have this assignment finished. Remember, if you can imagine it, you can do it.

So, the next time you find yourself procrastinating, try one of Walter Pauk’s suggestions. If that one is not successful, try another. If these strategies do not work, talk with someone in Counseling Services (5391) to gain further insights as well as work on solutions. Don’t get sabotaged by procrastination. Instead, right now, try one of these ideas.

Just in case you want to learn more about these topics, the sources used in the preparation of this section on distractions and procrastination include:

Casady, Mona. Getting the College Edge. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002.
P. 54-55.
Pauk, Walter. How to Study in College. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1997.
P. 68-73.
Van Blerkom, Dianna. Orientation to College Learning. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing, 1995. P. 59-67.
Wahlstrom, Carl, and Brian K. Williams. Learning Success: Being Your Best at College and Life. . Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing, 2002. p. 126-130.

These books can be borrowed from the Office of Academic Support, Whitman 161.