The Official Student News Media of Southeastern Louisiana University

The Lion's Roar

The Official Student News Media of Southeastern Louisiana University

The Lion's Roar

The Official Student News Media of Southeastern Louisiana University

The Lion's Roar

    Procrastination

    As a busy college senior and the Editor in Chief of The Lion’s Roar, writing a feature on procrastination was something that got put off until the last minute due to classes, midterms and work obligations. According to Center for Student Excellence (CSE) advisors, many college students find themselves waiting until the last minute to study or complete assignments, and students often find themselves procrastinating due to their newfound independence, a multitude of distractions and a lack of motivation.
    “Procrastination is a widespread issue for many students,” said Shallene Joseph, an academic advisor with the CSE. “In my opinion, it is not only a student issue, it is a life issue. I think it is a habit that follows people across environments [work, school, personal life, etc.] and over the life span. Most of my students who are procrastinators know and claim it. The issue is they’ve yet to find the value in correcting the behavior.”
    According to the CSE advisors, students have named many other factors that contribute to procrastination. They can be wasting time by hanging out with friends excessively, playing on their phones, following social media sites or playing video games. It can be an inability to make a decision or even fear of failure. If someone does not do well on a test, they can tell others they studied at the last minute that makes not doing well seem justified. In rare cases procrastination can be caused by having to work or care for your family.
    According to Terry Fitzpatrick, an academic advisor for the CSE, procrastination is one of the greatest factors that affect students’ grades.
    “I have not just seen [procrastination] affect their GPA, but their self-esteem as well,” said Mike Nettles, another academic advisor on campus. “It can be depressing knowing that not only are you not achieving your academic goals, but you are not even giving yourself a fair chance.”
    According to academic advisor Brad Bergeron, procrastination can even go as far as to negatively affect someone’s health. Procrastination can cause a person to get less sleep and to get sick more often due to anxiety. It can also negatively affect their relationships and their jobs if they are not careful.
    “Some students like the gamble that procrastination offers,” said Bergeron. “However, if you want less stress and you want to do your best work, it takes time and effort.”
    Bergeron correlated studying to the preparation of a professional athlete. Athletes do not put in their time and effort right only a week before a big game. They practice constantly, every single day, regardless of the next game day. Many students wait to study the hardest one week before their test when that week before a test should be more review of what you already know.   
    “Many students report actually believing they do their best work under pressure. However, that is a lie,” said Bergeron. “If we think it through, we all know we can do better with more time. Procrastination robs us of second or third drafts for our papers. It robs us of being able to use the resources that are available to us such as meeting with our teachers, advisors, going to tutoring, using the Writing Center, etc.”
    Procrastination is ultimately a choice. It is a bad habit that each individual must decide to fall into or rise above. The SE 101 course and CSE advisors offer students all the time management advice they could need, but it is up to the student to use their time wisely. The time will come when all students must decide to attend a game or study for a big test, hang out with friends or start writing the paper that is due in a few days.
    “Many of the freshmen I advise and many of my students in SE 101 would label themselves as procrastinators,” said Bergeron. “However, most wouldn’t say they struggle with it. It’s a choice, a lifestyle, and many are proud at being able to procrastinate and still get things done, even if they don’t always get the grade they want.”
    According to Nettles, the best way to combat procrastination habits are “good old fashioned discipline: calendars, study schedules and learning to accept that there will always be another event to go to or another party or another Pinterest pin to comment on. It’s better to miss a social engagement than to mess up a test.”
    Counselor Emily Moise of the University Counseling Center stated that changing just one behavior in a study routine can have a major impact. Joseph likewise specified that the hardest part of changing the bad habit of procrastination can be motivating yourself.
    Something that can help combat procrastination is setting short term and long term goals. Academic goals can help a student remember why they are in college in the first place, and once a goal is reached, the sense of accomplishment will often make that student want to start and finish their future projects sooner.
    Procrastination is about making effective decisions. Students are encouraged to keep a planner and make choices that will have the most positive impact on their schoolwork. Students who need additional help should meet with their academic advisor or visit the University Counseling Center.  
     

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