Procrastination & Time Management - Thursday Workshop - Winter Term 2021
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Procrastination & Time Management Thursday Workshop – Winter Term 2021
Good things do not
come to those who wait:
A study of Academic
Procrastination
Saman Awan
procrastination rates 3
bills health students
100
Studies find a consistent rise in
procrastination in the last four-decades
90
40% adults confessed to not paying bills
80 on time resulting to $400 million of fines
(Ferrari 2005).
27% in UK confessed to missing health
70 check appointments, with 18% resulting
in negative outcomes on health (Sirois et al
60 2003).
Largest procrastinators been found to be
50 students (90%)
%
40
30
20
10
0
1986 1996 2006 2016
year
4
So what factors contribute to academic
procrastination?
what influences academic procrastination?
Self-efficacy
“The Belief in ones own
capabilities to successfully execute Self-efficacy was a strong predictor of
an action required to manage a procrastination in students. (Steel, 2007)
prospective situation" (Bandura, Van Earde (2003) found that the lower
1995, p2) ones self-efficacy was, the higher their
The lower the belief, the less likely levels of procrastination.
one is to manage a situation
.
Motivation
Senecal et al (1995): intrinsically motivated
Motivation is the force that drives a students procrastinated less than
person to do something extrinsically motivated students when
(de Charms 1968). performing the same task.
It can be intrinsic (IM) such as feelings Brownlow et al (2000): low procrastinators
of gratification) or extrinsic (EM) such were motivated by internal and external
as rewards (Deci and Ryan, 2000). rewards and found academic tasks as
opportunities to progress further.
what influences procrastination?
Perfectionism
Perfectionists adhere to strict and high
Onwuegbuzie (2000): found that
standards for themselves and can be
maladaptive perfectionism such as fear of
severely self-critical. They are often high
failing, self-critical beliefs were linked to
achievers but a fear of failure may cause
procrastination
them to procrastinate.
However, Steel (2007) found that
Perfectionism can be adaptive
perfectionism did not predict procrastination.
(motivating) and maladaptive (limiting)
effects
Performance Procrastinators received lower marks on all
their assignments (Tice and Baumeister 1997)
Procrastination has practical implications
for academic performance Low performance was associated with high
levels of procrastination
in a semester long study (Steel 2017)
Results
Low self-efficacy led to
SELF-EFFICACY .
procrastination
Motivation did not play a
MOTIVATION role in procrastination
Maladaptive perfectionists
PERFECTIONISM
procrastinated more
Procrastination led to poor
PERFORMANCE
performance
Strategies
• Positive self-talk:
. prevents ego depletion
SELF-EFFICACY and promotes self-belief
• Success spirals and actual accomplishments
• Practice self-control: targets irrational
cognitions about failure
PERFECTIONISM • Addressing values and rewards
• Breaking down tasks
• Formative feedback
PERFORMANCE • Setting up step-by-step instructions
• Inhibit multi-tasking
Students have difficulties from procrastination, such as;
lack of personal control, ineffective learning skills, Poor cognitive outcomes
implications
irrational thinking, ineffective time management (Rozental and
Carlbring 2013)
Procrastinators experience increased psychological
.
distress and anxiety as deadlines approach due to fear Poor psychological outcome
of failing and low perceived self-ability (Balkis and Duru 2007)
Procrastinators complete their assignment later than
non-procrastinators, experienced more stress and
Poor physical health outcome
reported poor health symptoms such as colds and flu
(Holden 2007)
Procrastinators reported lower positive actions, low
expressions of feelings and needs than non- Poor emotional outcome
procrastinators (Ferrari and Díaz-Morales 2014)
Procrastinators show less commitment and poor
willingness for job search behaviours after graduating Poor economical outcome
(Gupta et al. 2012)
Procrastination
• Try to recognise why you do it?
• Poor organisational or decision-making skills
• Perfectionism
• Fear of failure/feeling overwhelmed/anxiety
• Talking rather than doing, over-planning
• Managing interruptions
• A barrier to success
• External or self-induced ?(frequent switching between tasks wastes
time)• Highly successful and productive people give
Achieving Personal themselves credit. Give yourself credit
Goals is stressful
Fear of Failure and • Procrastinators sometimes do just the
Perfectionism – can opposite
paralyse you
Lower standards a • Make a list of everything you’ve achieved in a
little and be more day
relaxed, more
creative and more • Find something interesting in your work
productive
• Successfully tackling a project builds more
confidence and motivation to do it again Setting small, intermediate, realistic goals Work in short spurts Make a plan. Include timings. When are you going to start exactly? Reflect on your task. Negative feelings? Guilt? Is it right for now? What you really want to do? Is it a step towards a long- term goal? Advantages and disadvantages of your procrastination A sense of commitment and excitement = the right goals
Getting started
• Activity often breeds more activity, action comes
first motivation comes second ACTION
• Successfully tackling a project builds more MOTIVATION
confidence and motivation to do it again
MORE ACTION
• You don’t have to be in the mood to do
somethingTime Management • Define your goals and priorities • Make a list of everything you need to do and add anything else you usually do • Apply the Important/Urgent Matrix • Make a prioritized plan • Stick to your plan but allow for tweaks and flexibility
Why is it important? Being good at time management means organizing your time intentionally and prioritizing activities that efficiently advance you towards your goals and honour your values • Effective time managers are often high achievers in life • Minimise your stress & maximise success • Become pro not reactive - take control • Watch this video clip & note the main ideas https://www.screencast.com/users/UniRdg_Library/folders/Study%20Advice/media/e0 cf7fa0-e5c8-4ef4-8375-d5bab05b10d1
How can we take control? • Goal setting • Prioritising • Managing interruptions • Deal with procrastination • Scheduling & planning
Why set goals? • Need to know where you are going • What needs to be done in order to get there ? • Gives you a long term vision, motivation, & self-confidence • Hopefully easier to ignore distractions
Goal setting • Education, career, financial, family, • Gives long term vision, motivation, & self-confidence - easier to ignore distractions • Where do you want to go in life? • What do you want to achieve? • When do you want to achieve these goals? Lifetime, next 5 years, next year, next term…
Prioritisation • ‘Important vs urgent matrix’ (Covey, 1994) • Important = an outcome that leads to achievement of your goals • Urgent =demands immediate attention, may be based on other people’s priorities
Important/Urgent Matrix
URGENT NOT URGENT
IMPORTANT Lectures, assignment Preparation/planning , strategic,
deadlines, crises critical thinking,
Personal development
Relaxation/exercise
MANAGE FOCUS FOR SUCCESS
Quadrant of necessity Quadrant of quality & personal leadership
NOT IMPORTANT Interruptions Trivia
Emails Junk mail
Phone Displacement activities
AVOID/EXPLAIN RESIST/CEASE
Quadrant of deception Quadrant of wastePrioritise
do it NOW
1. Urgent & important
2. Urgent but not
important do it if you can
3. Important but not
urgent start it before it becomes urgent
4. Not important and
not urgent
don’t do it!!What are your priorities? URGENT AND IMPORTANT IMPORTANT BUT NOT URGENT URGENT BUT NOT IMPORTANT NOT IMPORTANT AND NOT URGENT
Another way of using the grid…..
• Colour code your tasks for each module
• Decide whether a task is
• important and urgent (the assignment
for the coming week) or just important
(renewing your insurance)
• or urgent but not that important
(checking Instagram?!)
• You can move the post-it notes around as
your priorities changePrioritising
HIGH RETURN LOW RETURN
HIGH EFFORT Major projects Hard slogs
One may ‘crowd
out’ quick wins
Disengage Avoid
LOW EFFORT Quick wins ‘fill-ins’
Only do if you
have spare time
Focus time here Drop if something
better comes
alongScheduling/Planning • Identify time available & plan what you can realistically achieve in this time • Block in essential tasks • Schedule deadlines/urgent tasks & work backwards with self- imposed deadlines, eg. finish reading by Oct 20th • Build in contingency
Organisation Overview Big Picture
How long will each task take? • Hofstadter’s law: • Tasks always take longer than you expect, even when you take into account Hofstadter’s Law • Parkinson’s Law: • Work expands to fill the time available
Task management v Time management • ROSE – Results-only study environment - based on the business model ROWE – results-only work environment • Productivity can be increased by as much as 41% when ROWE (or ROSE) is employed (Tefula, 2012) • Don’t just measure work done by the hours invested, do measure by the actual tasks completed • Set goals to complete specific tasks with less emphasis on how long they may take
Studying: Chunking time
Pomodoro Technique
The Pomodoro Technique
is a time management
method developed by
Francesco Cirillo in the late
1980s. The technique uses
a timer to break down work
into intervals, traditionally
25 minutes in length,
separated by short breaksStudying: Review
Knight, K. (2018)
Review is an excellent return on investment.
5 minutes can potentially save hours of time when it comes to the examsKeep your motivation alive? • Use your ‘down’ time more effectively • Link study to reward • Break up tasks into small, manageable units • Reduce the number of tasks • Break focus – need time to re-engage • Think about your optimal study environment - location, lighting, sound, view (declutter)
Self-Discipline • Consider your most productive time of day – optimise energy levels • Blocks of time • Diary/Microsoft Outlook/planner – weekly/daily? • Track progress – remove completed tasks, carry over unfinished ones, re-prioritise • Identify & use unproductive time for other things • A regular pattern
Study tips using your mobile • Most phones offer the facility to set alarms for reminders and tasks connected to your calendar • Remember you can synchronise your University Outlook email account to your phone calendar • Reminders – set alarms ahead of deadlines and appointments • Tasks – ‘to-do’ list facilities • Timer – can be useful for practising exam papers, notes, etc. E.g: Pomodoro Technique - Timer App https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/studentservices/support/supportforyourstudies/aca demicsupport/studyresources/timemanagement.aspx
Useful links Remote Learning with Office 365 for Students • https://support.office.com/en-us/article/remote-learning- with-office-365-for-students-eea3ee92-ba42-4217-90d4- 155f9a5477e4#ID0EABAAA=Get_started Assignment Survival Kit • https://www.staffs.ac.uk/ask/ Forest – stay focussed and in the present • www.forestapp.cc
Useful Links MindTools TimeManagement ToDoist – Linear Task List http://bit.ly/MindToolsTimeManagement https://todoist.com MindTools Procrastination Trello – Visual Task List http://bit.ly/MindToolsProcrastination https://trello.com MindTools Prioritisation http://bit.ly/MindToolsPrioritisation
Remember - your goal & reward!
Contact sarah.myhill@buckingham.ac.uk
References www.mindtools.com Cottrell, S. (2007) The Exam Skills Handbook Covey, S.(2004) The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. London: Free Press Covey, S. First Things First www.palgrave.com/skills4study http://www.orgcoach.net/timematrix.html http://www.deakin.edu.au/current-students/assets/resources/study- support/study-skills/exam-success.pdf Tefula, M. (2014) Student Procrastination: Palgrave Macmillan Burns, D. (2000) Feeling Good: Harper
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