Procrastination Issues

[Jimmt]

I haven't been posting much recently, been playing games a lot and getting behind on schoolwork, getting straight A's but taking a long time to do homework, procrastinating until the last day. Have done maybe 3 days of legit programming in a month...
Help? Anti-procrastination robot? Advice?

[ReBirth]

Have a strong will first. Don't come back here until you uninstall every single games and remove internet connection. Go!

[kramin42]

I have the same problem, I've been doing a bit of programming lately but I just keep procrastinating the assignments I should be doing. It seems like I just don't get the motivation until the deadline gets close and I feel the pressure

I guess you need to find some way to get motivated? I don't really know any great solution.

Have a strong will first. Don't come back here until you uninstall every single games and remove internet connection. Go!

I find that if I don't have motivation then there always seems to be something to distract me (also I need the internet for studying). This might work for some people though.

Games published by our own members! Check 'em out!

[Grunnt]

Doesnt work ReBirth, tried that. Reasons for procrastination usually have little to do with "willpower" or being lazy and a lot with escaping from inner fears, like the fear to ultimately fail in some way (its a common thing in perfectionists with fear of failure, and it doesn't help if people around you have high expectations because you are intelligent).  Its also called escapism. For me, procrastinating was caused by being (mostly subconsciously) afraid that I would fail and people would discover what an horrible person I am. Not trying at all and doing something instead in which I could escape and get instant gratification (gaming) allowed me to avoid these feelings. Ultimately this approach makes you feel worse, but for the short term procrastination is a way to avoid hurt. Good news is, it is very possible to overcome.

Suggested reading: The Now Habit by Neil Fiore. Its a bit Americanish in writing style, but its quite a good guide on overcoming this.

[HeroesGraveDev]

Play games/do homework during the week.
Program on the weekend.

Then, if you're lucky, you may find time for programming during the week too.

[ReBirth]

You are the only one who can find it. For example in my case, I always give myself an order "Damn it dude, you have to finish this project ASAP (I am freelancer). Those items on Amazon wont wait you forever and they could be out of stock!" So basically, I try to reward myself.

However, after long time of coding you may can't resist it more. It is normal, play some games and come back later within reasonable time.

Alternatively, you can try site like lifehacker who have various tips for productivity and creativity.

[Riven]

Reading articles on how to fight procrastination pretty much qualifies as procrastination.

[kramin42]

Doesnt work ReBirth, tried that. Reasons for procrastination usually have little to do with "willpower" or being lazy and a lot with escaping from inner fears, like the fear to ultimately fail in some way (its a common thing in perfectionists with fear of failure, and it doesn't help if people around you have high expectations because you are intelligent).  Its also called escapism. For me, procrastinating was caused by being (mostly subconsciously) afraid that I would fail and people would discover what an horrible person I am. Not trying at all and doing something instead in which I could escape and get instant gratification (gaming) allowed me to avoid these feelings. Ultimately this approach makes you feel worse, but for the short term procrastination is a way to avoid hurt. Good news is, it is very possible to overcome.

Suggested reading: The Now Habit by Neil Fiore. Its a bit Americanish in writing style, but its quite a good guide on overcoming this.

Wow... it sounds like you're talking about me I'm also a perfectionist and my family is pretty used to me getting good grades. It's annoying having fear of man issues

Fortunately for me I usually get a day or two now and then when I'm super motivated and get heaps done, but the rest of the time...

[ReBirth]

Reading articles on how to fight procrastination pretty much qualifies as procrastination.

As well talking about it, like we do now.

[Damocles]

Its always good to cut projects into smaller Tasks to reach.
Much more motivating.

Like writing a little game:

1   2   3   4   5   6   7

public class SkyrimCloneConcept {    public static void main(String[] a) throws Exception    {       System.out.println("you:" + (new java.util.Random().nextInt(10) == System.in.read() - 48 ? "won!" : "dead"));    } }

Games published by our own members! Check 'em out!

[Grunnt]

Reading articles on how to fight procrastination pretty much qualifies as procrastination.

Don't think so. Reading articles on how to fight procrastination because you want to fight procrastination is quite the opposite of procrastination. If you read articles on how to fight procrastination because you avoid doing something else, you are indeed procrastinating.

[Jimmt]

Reading articles on how to fight procrastination pretty much qualifies as procrastination.

At the time, I was waiting for my portfolio assignment to print. And now I'm in drafting class.

[dime26]

Reading articles on how to fight procrastination pretty much qualifies as procrastination.

Don't think so. Reading articles on how to fight procrastination because you want to fight procrastination is quite the opposite of procrastination. If you read articles on how to fight procrastination because you avoid doing something else, you are indeed procrastinating.

made me chuckle, wasting time is so easy! I am starting to close Facebook, Google+, Twitter, turn off TV and just got on with a bit of coding.

My problem is I don't get to code on my game until late evening (9pm til 2am) and I would rather chill out sometimes after long day in work, but if you are not motivated at all then do you really love programing?

[ctomni231]

I think procrastination is getting a lot more common now-a-days then all of us are going to like to admit.

It is very difficult to sit down and concentrate daily on how to solve problems. If you combine school with programming, then you really have a lot to do brain wise. Regardless of how much I wished I was a robot that can just sit down and pump out code every second of the day without fail. I think that, being human, our bodies are trying to tell us that there is a little bit more to life than just sitting around all day long doing work.

The times that I am able to program for a long stretch of time is right after I've finished doing a lot of physical activities. But, the problem I've realized is that I burn a lot of that energy away by checking up on the various forums/blogs/social networks. So, by the time I actually get around to thinking about programming, I am already wondering about the next TV show/game/movie I want to see, and do that instead.

I know for me, JGO has been a double-edged sword when it comes to my motivation.

On one hand, it is very inspiring and I learn a lot of new programming concepts and techniques when browsing through the various threads in this site. There is soo much knowledge here that I get lost for hours reading and searching. However, the time I spend here just happens to be the exact same time I could have used actually coding something. So, I am learning a lot of new techniques but in no way am I applying them at all.

But, hey, it is no one's fault but my own. I can say this about any online activity that I involve myself in...

I guess what I'm trying to say here is, prioritize. It is just like with anything, really. When you go to your computer, don't open the internet browser, just start programming instead. Yeah, it might start to feel like a job, or you might want to instantly gratify your needs with something else. Just because you feel like that, doesn't mean you don't like programming anymore. There are just other tasks that are taking up that time.

The funny part is procrastinating takes effort. In your mind, you know that you have to do a task, but you ignore that feeling by overriding it with another one. It is like a drug... you end up feeling guilty for it afterward. To stop feeling guilty, you do another task... and the snowball begins. It is a never-ending cycle.

Break the cycle. Prioritize.

Now let me get back to reading all those "unread posts". 



 

[Grunnt]

But, the problem I've realized is that I burn a lot of that energy away by checking up on the various forums/blogs/social networks. So, by the time I actually get around to thinking about programming, I am already wondering about the next TV show/game/movie I want to see, and do that instead.

That's so recognizeable... Especially at the beginning of the day it makes a huge difference if I directly start with work or programming, or whether I spend "just a couple of minutes" on what is essentially procrastination. If I start working on the important things I tend to continue working on them, and vice versa if I start doing less important things, it tends to degrade into doing even less important ones.

Break the cycle. Prioritize.

Thanks, good advice! I'll work on following it.

[ReBirth]

Agree with ctomni231, you will take this issue too much and end up forcing, suffering yourself. Actually it's not about time spent, it's about the result. Make a target.

[pjt33]

There is an art to constructive procrastination. If the washing up is accumulating in the sink, it's not so hard to tell yourself "I'll just fix this bug first..."

[greenOwl]

A really good article on one of my favourite websites:
http://lesswrong.com/lw/3w3/how_to_beat_procrastination/

[gimbal]

bit of a recognizable thread this, especially about the fear of failure. I suffered from that quite a bit, still do sometimes especially when I have to make decisions out of my comfort zone.

I (mostly) grew out of it with time; my experience grew and so did my confidence to state that I am right, and my confidence to admit openly that I am wrong. On top of that my focus on being an epic programmer dropped and I started to focus on being a decent software engineer - a much easier attainable goal that also nets you more jobs. Being able to hammer out perfect code is great, but it won't help you to function in a real world project with real world requirements and real world problems and limitations.

I still do this "procrastination" (the usage of that word seems to be a new internet thing); I check the forums, read the news and I slack off and basically do not do my work all the time. But I still get the work done - the procrastination actually helps me to do it. 10 years ago I would work in crunch mode for 8-12 hours a day (not counting hobby programming) and I would be burned up at the end of the week. Nowadays I see crunch mode, except in times of crisis where you have to put the pedal to the metal, as a very bad thing and I actually slack off by choice. Keeps me healthy and sane and in a good mood.

[sproingie]

A really good article on one of my favourite websites:
http://lesswrong.com/lw/3w3/how_to_beat_procrastination/

Cool link, I saved it in my Read It Later bookmarks