Procrastination strikes us all from time to time. Most of the time it’s not such a big deal; you can always get some work done tomorrow.
But when you sit at the computer for 9 hours and only manage to write 112 words of your thesis, then you’re going to feel like crap.
When you get stuck in a pattern of procrastination, you need to break out of it. These three simple tricks are to get you out of the short-term rut.
3 ways to beat thesis procrastination
1: Change Location
Sitting day after day at a computer writing a thesis can be literally mind-numbing, just when you need to be at your most mentally nimble.
Your brain craves variety. That’s why the internet is so damn distracting. If you’re stuck in a rut, changing location can help get your brain going again
If you have a laptop, try working somewhere new. The more unusual the better. You could go to Starbucks, but you have more imagination than that. You could try these alternative venues
· The lobby of a posh hotel
· The park
· The isle of Jura (where George Orwell retreated to write 1984)
If you have a desktop, try moving your desk.
2: Make a bet
Procrastination often happens because there’s no immediate consequence to not doing it now. So create one.
Take an amount of money you care about losing, put it in an envelope and give it to a friend you trust. If you get your chapter done in time, you get the money back. If not, they keep it.
You are making a bet on yourself. You’re taking action to back up your belief that you can get it done. Now every time you reach for the mouse to click onto Facebook, you can think of the money.
3: Get away from your computer
Bear with me on this. It might seem counter-intuitive, but if you’re sitting there getting nothing done, what do you have to lose?
Close everything except the one thing you need to work on, then get away from the computer. It’s far better to spend some relaxed time to focus your mind on what you’re going to do than sitting there feeling guilty about not doing it.
Don’t sit around talking, don’t watch TV or read books, and don’t go to sleep.
You should think about how you’re going to attack the task, picture yourself doing it, then when you’re ready, come back to the desk and do it.
The short guide to writing fast
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Oooooh, i so would have loved to be able to change location when i was writing last summer! I would have loved to just take my laptop to the pier and write there. Home felt like prison, i hated it! Even moving my work space in my balcony didn’t work… Only i couldn’t go to the pier because i only had 1 or 2 hours of work there before my battery died on me, and obviously there are no plugs on the pier… i usually took breaks every 4 hours, so that would have meant having to stop right when i was finally at maximum productivity. Also, i was writing in french, so i constantly used about 5 dictionaries, so i needed the internet too. But that feeling of “jail time” associated with writing was awful! I was never grounded as a kid, but it felt like being grounded while writing my thesis!
)
I got rid of facebook, which was really a pain, by a simple website blocker add-on on my Google-Chrome browser. If you like you can try it. “Website Blocker”
Redecorate your working environment. A plant, a basket with fruits, a new towel on top of the secretary. It worked almost immediately for me!
Good idea!!! Hehehe
I like the idea of working in the lobby of a posh hotel! Nice wum!
Two things seem to work for me:
1. Abandon the computer. Not just the internet, leave the computer at home. Embark on your thesis journey of the day with nothing but a pen and a notebook. And some notes. But not too many.
2. Find yourself a comfortable but PUBLIC spot. Work for an audience. With no internet to distract you (and hopefully you can restrain yourself from your smartphone) you’ll find you HAVE to do something just not to appear bored and awkward. And so you write.
“If you have a desktop, try moving your desk.”
ha! Easier said than done, my desk has turned into my thesis fortress.
Well you could buy a load of posters, put one up behind your monitor, and change it every week, so it seems like you’re in a new place…
cool…
cheers!