Procrastinators Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from chronic procrastination.

Hi (an introduction)

Hi,

I am a chronic procrastinator, and have been as long as I can remember! I can even remember procrastinating in year 3 at school, and finishing an assignment the morning it was due in year 7 (oh, my poor parents!).

Now I'm an "adult" and I'm finishing my third year of university study, and it's time to man up and take control of my life. When I say I'm a "third year" student, I actually mean I have procrastinated three years away without actually deciding on a degree and sticking to it, and I'm certainly not going to be graduating this year or next! (As of now, I haven't even finished the second year curriculum for any major!) My grades are nothing special, and I've failed one course... mostly, I've been procrastinating away my future and I'm scared of really screwing it up.

I went to see a course advisor for the program I realised I actually want to study, and we laid out a course plan where I can finish my degree in only 5 more semesters (and will be eligible to graduate formally after I complete some industry work experience). I guess this isn't much, but it's very exciting for me! I recognise that this requires hard work, and of course that's where the problem lies for me! I've never really worked "hard" before, I've just procrastinated all my time away and then achieved a result that's "OK, given I didn't do much."

I've found this article helpful before http://maxweber.hunter.cuny.edu/psych/faculty/valian/docs/1977workingItO... (1.1MB) which totally describes me but I keep putting off actually applying the advice

I probably sound nuts, but it feels like a relief to write this down and admit honestly that I've been throwing my time away and it's time to stop. I told a friend about it before, but I basically got the "why work?" response:(.

College Kid

welcome^2

your story sounds like mine, and many people here.

Including having the knowledge (eg the article) and not putting it into practice. This forum and the 12 steps are the missing piece for me--the part that gets me to apply the knowledge on a consistent basis.

Right now i'm on a designated break reading this site (actually 3 min over :( ) so that i can get myself to do my next MIT (Most Important Task) which i'm resisting.

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http://www.procrastinators-anonymous.org/node/1114#comment-23050

welcome college kid

Welcome here college kid.
No one here will think this sounds nuts at all. I think that by finding an advisor to help you put together the program you want and then having the courage to introduce yourself with such an honest post here (which takes some courage) you've already taken significant steps in a new direction. That's a big thing already--congratulations!

 

Thanks for that link too. A very interesting article. It resonates with some things in The Now Habit. Useful!