New Year Resolution: Break Procrastination Habit

The start of New Year seems to encourage people to create new habit, or break with old habit. One bad habit that most people adopt is procrastinating. It may feel good to just veg out and binge watch TV or play games while avoiding an English paper. But, it’s horrible to have only hours to go until that deadline. Unfortunately, while we know it’s a bad habit, it can be hard to break procrastination habit.

When we procrastinate, all we’re doing is avoiding the inevitable while also adding mounting stress and shrunken deadlines to our plate. It may feel like we’re doing ourselves a favor but it’s actually the exact opposite. Now is the time to break procrastination habit. Here are some tips to finally break up with procrastination:

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Know your priority

Procrastination can lead to anxiety when you feel like you have too many things in your hands. Prioritization is the KEY to keep you from feeling overwhelmed about your mounting to-do list. Rank your tasks from most important to least important and tackle those more important tasks first.

Set deadlines

Give yourself concrete deadlines for your tasks. If you’re having a difficult time holding yourself accountable, tell a family member or friend about your deadline and have them check in on you. You’ll be more likely to want to finish your tasks on time.

Minimize distractions

It’s so tempting to open that chat notification, check on Instagram, continue that game, or anything—especially when you feel stuck with your task. If this sounds like you, it’s best to put your phone out of reach while you’re trying to get a task done.

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Commit to the task

Focus on doing, not avoiding. Write down the tasks that you need to complete, and specify a time for doing them. This will help you to proactively tackle your tasks.

Give reward to yourself

Each time you finish a task, reward yourself! The specifics will depend on the individual and might include snacks, entertainment, or socializing. It will help you motivate yourself before tackling your next task!