It is the week of Thanksgiving and we students all know what is just around the holiday season bend. Just as your heart starts feeling the warmth and you start to get in that holiday spirit, BAM! Finals hit you in the face. Now, it may just be me, but my inner student tends to really want to hide when it’s time to crack open that text book (for the first time all semester). But, what should one do while their brain decides to take an un-awarded procrastination break? That’s what I am here to tell you. Here is a list of the best “productive” ways to procrastinate during this years finals season: 

1. Make A Study Playlist: One of the best ways to busy your mind is to go through all your songs and create a playlist for the moment you do begin studying. It’t a great way to feel as though you are prepping yourself for that study sesh (and you also get the chance to look through your entire iTunes library and run across songs that will bring back great middle school memories). Now you have a soundtrack to play during your soon-to-come study session.
2. Create a Study Calendar/Lists: This is more for those creative people who like to go all out with their calendars. For me, I find time to make 30 lists of what I have to do before I actually do them. On your schedule, you can break up your day into hour segments (inserting a lot of breaks for more procrastination). I guarantee that once you create one of these, you will feel more productive because you are THAT much closer to studying.
3.  EXERCISE: If you aren’t going to be productive in your academic life, you might as well get your body moving so you feel accomplished for the day. Give yourself an hour to do any sort of activity so (1) you wake yourself up (2) you get your exercise for the day over with and (3) procrastinate studying.
4. Call Mom: Calling a family member can actually help you de-stress. Call up someone who can take your mind off of studying or any other duties you have yet to complete. Although you are still not studying, you are calling mom, or whoever, and catching up with that family member which you probably should have done, like, last week.
5. FOOD: So, you have made your playlist, you have created your study schedule, you have worked out and you’ve spoken to a family member that has probably talked your ear off. Now it is time to create a magical meal in the kitchen before you open that dusty text book. We all need to eat, so technically, this is a very good form of procrastination.

After you have completed all 5 of these steps of procrastination, I hate to break it to you, but it is probably time to sit at a table, pull out your books and notes, put your computer in front of you and FINALLY start studying your self-earned hour of social media.

After that, THEN you should start your work (at approximately 10pm). BUT, at least you had a very productive day of procrastinating.

 

If you want to learn how to procrastinate successfully, watch Brian Johnson’s explanation of the book Procrastinate on Purpose by Rory Vaden:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wz3QTdB6GDA