In a group of 100 people, I can guarantee with reasonably certainty that I am the person least likely to procrastinate and put things off until the last minute.
Let’s say a due date for a major project is July 15. Well, I set my own due date. My due date for that same project would probably be July 12-three days early. I just can’t help it! To me, early is on time, and on time is late. Perhaps it’s a fear of lateness? I’ve operated this way for as long as I can remember, and it’s a practice that has served me well overall in work, school and otherwise.
For some reason, however, I am struggling to maintain this pristine timeliness in my statistics course this summer. That may be in part because this is my third statistics class, or perhaps that I’ve been enrolled in graduate school full time for one year (and will be finishing in 1.5 years), or perhaps I’ve just got other things on my plate. All of this is true. Regardless, I realized it’s time to kick it into high gear and finish this summer semester strong.
Here’s how I motivated myself to do my stats homework, or, in other words, a small, seemingly simple task that I just didn’t want to do.
- Get rid of distractions temporarily: Cell phone away, television off, and puppy asleep.
- Light a candle: Something about having a candle lit soothes my mood and makes any task more enjoyable.
- Dress to impress: When I’m dressed better, I feel better, and, therefore, I perform better. Simple as that. Don’t think I’m wearing a ball gown though. In fact, I’m wearing my favorite gym clothes! They make me feel inspired and accomplished—good feelings to carry into a banal task.
- Feed yourself first: I don’t mean this literally. Today, I “fed” myself first by spending one hour of time laying by the pool and reading The Happiness Project (and also writing this blog post). Other days I feed myself first by doing yoga, rearranging apartment decor, window shopping, or looking through photos.
Now that I’m feeling motivated, homework time it is!
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