The 11th-hour hits. You get self-loathing panicky feelings as sleep-deprived you watches the sun rise with an untouched assignment. As a fellow procrastinator, you have my condolences. 

Procrastination is terrible because it can overshadow the strengths of an otherwise normal ‘ole person. You kick yourself for turning in quality work late or sub-par on-time or having to do marathon work sessions because you wasted time. You also hate how constantly unhealthy you feel. You can’t concentrate in class because you’re not sleeping, have a terrible diet, and consequently have no energy.

You’ve probably read blogs and books about how to get over procrastination. Thing is, those pieces always seem like they’ve been written by people who aren’t true procrastinators. It’s time to acknowledge the people in between Points A and B…. A being those who are in total denial over how procrastination is impacting their lives and B being the non-procrastinators. Middle people still procrastinate the majority of the time but have engineered ways to avoid ruining their lives.

Here, we talk about being in the middle of the procrastinator spectrum. You might never stop procrastinating entirely, but that’s okay. Learn about yourself, what you want, and how you work. Take advantage of self-knowledge. Do better but also forgive yourself for slip-ups. As Mindy Kaling says, 

“I’m constantly in a state of self-improvement but I don’t beat myself up over it.” 

Here are some tips to help you survive – and function well – even if you default state is “putting everything off”:

Table of Contents

Know What You Do 

What is your non-negotiable? 

Look at what you hate your procrastinating self the most for. Pick one of these three and address it. The options are: