Confessions of a Night Owl: The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Procrastinators

Related Content

Last 5 posts in Features

• My Little Pony - February 6th, 2012
• College or Bust… - January 24th, 2012
• Is the Lottery Cursed? - January 23rd, 2012
• Procrastination - January 19th, 2012
• Underwear, Cow Bells, and...Pooping Logs? - December 14th, 2011

Other stories that might interest you...

• Biting Pencils, Chewing Nails, and All Other Things High School Entails
• A Not-So Secret Problem
• Procrastination
• Students Actually Studying? Maybe After Reading This…
• No Meat, No Problems

Autumn Busbee
October 22, 2009
Filed under Features

For many night owls like me, procrastination is inevitable. We get caught up in the multiple aspects of life, and forget (or in my case, choose not) to do an assignment until reminded it’s due the next day. Although procrastinating is not recommended for most, for me, it’s the only way. I naturally do well under pressure of school work.

Because of my dallying ways I have learned (solely upon trial and error) how to successfully stay up all night completing an assignment, stay up the entire next day, and do well on my project.  Although I can’t promise you an excellent grade or extreme alertness, I can share my knowledge and guarantee you won’t make the same mistakes I once made. I would like to call these the Seven Habits of Highly Effective Procrastinators. (Notice that visiting a social networking or video site, texting, or watching TV are not one of these habits.)

Step 1: Take a shower.
What better way to rejuvenate your senses than by taking a shower? The trick to this step, though, is to make the water as cool as possible. Yes, this may make you slightly miserable, but it will also make you alert. Sometimes discomfort is necessary to get things done.

Step 2: Drink something caffeinated.
Popular choices include coffee, energy drinks, tea, and soda. To get the most caffeine per ounce, drink espresso or strong brewed coffee (instant coffee has less caffeine.)  Repeat step every two hours. Keep in mind that caffeine is a stimulant. Along with increasing concentration and mental stamina, it can significantly increase blood pressure. If you are sensitive to caffeine, this step should be carefully taken, if at all.

Step 3: Drink ice water.
This step is one of the most important ones, seriously. The temperature will help keep you awake, while the actual water will prevent you from getting dehydrated. I suggest drinking the same amount of water (if not more) as caffeinated drink, at the same frequency.

Step 4: Break up your workload.
Fragmenting makes it easier to keep up with what has been done and what needs to be finished. This prevents omitting necessary parts of the assignment. It also makes a project easier because you feel accomplished when you’ve completed a segment.

Step 5: Adjust your surroundings.
Dim the computer screen and keep the light on. This reduces eye strain, headaches, and fatigue. Don’t turn the light off and a lamp on; this will result in over relaxation and tiredness. Another pearl of wisdom: glance around the room every 15 minutes.

Step 6: Take a break.
Do this every hour in a half for 20 minutes. During this time, get up! Stretch your legs, do jumping jacks, sing and dance; you may feel ridiculous, but your body will thank you. If you choose to nap during a break, make sure you set multiple alarms and DO NOT fall asleep completely. Breaks give you something to look forward to and prevents brain overload.

Step 7: Grab something to eat.
Just because its night time doesn’t mean your body can perform without food. Snacking is convenient because you can work while eating. Stray away from junk food. To keep energy up, snack on cheese, nuts, dried fruit, bagels, peanut butter, pasta, and vegetables. Eating throughout the night will help prevent that nauseated feeling associated with staying up all night.

Understand that not everyone can successfully put things off; including me at times. Some believe that procrastinating is “taking the easy way out,” but its not. Procrastination involves mental and physical stamina. It is highly stressful and can easily lead to failure. If you have even the slightest doubt of having enough time to complete an assignment, don’t procrastinate or you will most likely do badly. In addition, staying up all night is extremely detrimental to your health. It can impair your ability to think properly, which in turn can affect your school work and other tasks, such as driving.