Every student has had the same problem, procrastination, the action of waiting and postponing something farther and farther right until it is due. “It doesn’t matter how long I take unless I finish it right?” This is completely wrong! This popular problem can be found to increase anxiety and bad study habits. This can lead to depression, ADHD, and give you lower self-esteem. These are not all the outcomes of procrastination, the most noticeable consequence is the lack of sleep. We all know that we need rest to function and waiting to do something until it’s already 2 a.m. is not going to help you. In a classroom, you need sleep to learn and process new information, make fewer errors in work or tests, and be able to pay attention to your teacher and the material. Obviously, you are going to get behind in school and you are going to have a hard time doing anything.

We all want to stop procrastinating but we just don’t know how and just… don’t.. feel like it. So, how do you start to stop hitting that snooze button? With anything, there are many ways to stop procrastinating and get straight to work.

3 ways to get straight to work

1. Study in a group

Studying in a group is a great way to get work done on time. Working as a group makes you have a responsibility to show up and get to work. As a group, this holds you liable to get off your phone and start doing your work. Some groups just aren’t meant to be, while most study groups will help you get straight to work some might do the exact opposite. It is good to balance talking and having fun together but if you are fooling around rather than working it might be harder to get back to work.

2. Take out your work

Before you start any type of work you have to take it out. A big cause of procrastination is taking everything out, if everything is there right in front of you it is easy to start. With a simple goal of opening your laptop or pulling out a sheet of paper, it is easy to go off of that and begin.

3. Clear out distractions

You got all your work out and have started already, then, your phone goes off you check it and suddenly you’ve been scrolling on your phone for an hour. To start working and to keep working you need to put yourself away from distractions like your phone, a loud environment, and maybe even your siblings. The hardest thing you can remove yourself from would be a loud or distracting environment, to get yourself away from this, classical music can drown some noises out but won’t grab all your attention. Similarly, mild fighting can get your mind off of distracting thoughts but won’t steal your place at work.

As you work if you have time it is important to take a break. This doesn’t mean going on your phone for another hour or start playing some video games. You should get up and walk around, if you can you should go outside get a deep breath of fresh air, and take a walk for a couple minutes. You can also do a quick chore, take out the dishes, do a little laundry, or take the dog for a walk with you. A simple chore will get you out of your chair and after you finish you will feel a lot better about yourself as you got one more thing done rather than playing games.