Chapter 9 Flashcards
(11 cards)
If you have problems with being easily distracted, what are some good approaches to help you prevent procrastination?
How would you decide when procrastination is useful and when it is harmful?
Where have you noticed that pausing and reflecting before charging forward has been beneficial in your life?
If you sit down to work but find yourself fritering away your time, what are some actions you can take to quickly get yourself back on task?
Reflect on your way of reacting to setbacks.
Do you take active responsibility for your part in those setbacks?
Or do you assume a victim’s role?
What way of responding is ultimately most helpful?Why?
Why would those who followed their passion in choosing their careers, without balancing their decision with rational analysis of their choice, be less likely to be happy in those careers?
INSIGHTS FROM A STUDENT WITH ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER
As a student with attention deficit disorder, I struggle with procrastination on a daily basis,and structure is the only foolproof way to prevent procrastination.
For me, this means writing EVERYTHING down in my planner or notebook—things like assignment due dates, work hours, and times to hang out with friends. It also means studying in the same area every day and removing ALL distractions—for example, turning my cell phone off.
“I now also do things at the same general time every week—my body likes structure and routine;
that’s why it was so hard at the beginning to break out of my procrastination habits, but it is also why it has been so easy to keep up with new habits after a month of forcingmyself into it.
What is a healthy form of procrastination? How does it help with your way of thinking? How does this divide the difference in skill between a professional and a novice?
A healthy form of procrastination entails learning to pause and reflect before jumping in and accomplishing something.
You are learning to wait wisely.
There is always something to be done.
Prioritizing allows you to gain big-picture context for your decision-making.
Sometimes, waiting allows a situation to resolve itself.
Pausing and reflecting are key, not only in stopping procrastination but in math and science problem solving in general.
You may be surprised to learn that the difference in the way that math experts (professors and graduatestudents) and math novices (undergraduate students) solve physics problems is that experts are slower to begin solving a problem.
Unsurprisingly, the conclusions drawn by the undergraduates were often wrong because their choices were based on superficial appearances rather than underlying principles.
It’s as if experts took their time to conclude that broccoliis a vegetable and lemon is a fruit, while novices barged in to say that broccoliis a tiny tree while lemons are clearly eggs.
Pausing gives you time to access your library of chunks and allows your brain to make connections between aparticular problems and the bigger picture.
How do we keep control over our emotions? How could emotions negatively influence us?
Staving off natural desires to reactaggressively to emotional provocations allows time for the molecules of emotion to gradually dissipate.
The resulting cooler heads save lives.
Emotions that goad you by saying, “Just do it, it feels right,” can be misleading in other ways
Procrastination FAQs
- I’m so overwhelmed by how much I’ve got to do that I avoid thinking about it, even though it only makes my bad situation worse. What can I do when I feel paralyzed by the enormity of the work I need to do?
Write down three “microtasks” that you can do within a few minutes.
Remember how LadyLuck favors those who try—just do your best to focus on something worthwhile.
At this point, close your eyes and tell your mind that you have nothing else to worry about, no other concerns, just your first microtask.
(I’m not kidding about the “close your eyes” part—remember, that can help disengage you from your previous thought patterns.) You may want to play a Pomodoro game with yourself.
Can you get a start on the first few pages of the chapter in twenty-five minutes?
Accomplishing a lot ofdifficultt tasks is like eating a salami.
You go slice by slice—bit by bit.
Cheer every accomplishment, even the tiniest ones.
You’re moving ahead!
- How long will it take to change my procrastination habits?
Although you will probably see some results right away, it may take about three months ofadjustment to get in place a new set of working habits that you like and are comfortable with.
Be patient and use common sense—don’t attempt to make drastic changes immediately because they may not be sustainable and that may only discourage you more.
My attention tends to hop all over the place, so it’s dificult for me to stay focused on the taskat hand.
Am I doomed to be a procrastinator?
Of course not!
Many of my most creative and successful students have overcome ADHD and related attention difficulties using the types of tools I’ve outlined in this book. You can, too.
If your attention is easily divided, you especially will benefit from tools that help keep you focused on a specific task for a short period of time.
These tools include a planner-journal, a whiteboard by your door, a timer, and scheduling and timing apps and programs on your smartphone or computer.
All of these tools can help you turn your zombie procrastination habits into zombie “take charge” habits.
The proof is in the outcome:, how can someone who blindly works towards their dream job end up hating it?
Over the past decades, students who have blindly followed their passion, without rational analysis of whether their choice of career truly was wise, have been more unhappy with their job choices than those who coupled passion withrationality.
