I used to make sure all my homework was done before my day off, even if I had to stay up late to do it. It was better for me, personally, to have nothing hanging over my head and I was able to enjoy the day off and not feel bad.
Actually, I still do that today as a teacher in regards to my grading and lesson planning.
I read a quote a while ago that was kinda like: motivation is not something that magically appears, it is something you attain after doing. Basically it was about how our motivation hits us only after we really start doing the task. Rather than waiting for it to come, welcome it with your actions.
Ig, the best way to get motivated is to start.
Look at what habits you have that have really short-term rewards
Your mind always does a cost analysis when you procrastinate:
I could do this hard work
Or we could do X easy thing, like games, smoking, etc
You either need to cut back on the things that result in easy, short term gratification or get really good at encouraging positive habits with your homework
Have you noticed at all if you leave things to the last minute a bit? That forces your mind to use the deadline as a reason to do things, which is a really negative form of motivation which is more like a punishment to your mind, you go days feeling negative about the work then you hate doing it, and you get little relief when completing it,
Where as being proactive might feel hard to start but leads to you having many more days of feeling relaxed, "Aaah that thing is done, good good"
Hope you figure out what is messing with your homework schedule, or find the motivation to slam it out a bit earlier!
Smoking every night to help you sleep is a problem.
Getting proper rest and going through all stages of the sleep cycle is necessary if you want to be productive. This isn’t negotiable.
A lot of us mistake sleeping with getting proper rest, but the two aren’t equivalent. If smoking is disrupting your REM sessions then we have your smoking gun (pun intended)
I won’t go into how sleep works, there are a hundred videos on YouTube who will do a better job, but a quick and dirty hack is ti ask yourself if you’ve stopped dreaming at nights. That’s usually a good sign that you haven’t engaged in proper REM sleep in a while
You don't need motivation.
You need discipline. As Joe De Sena (Spartan Race founder) says, "Discipline is doing the work when you don't feel like it."
Here's all the motivation you need: Get the fuck out of the restaurant industry! You hate it. It takes your fucking soul. Your college is the best way out of it. So tough it out now, or you'll be stuck there for the rest of your Goddamned life.
That’s absolute bullshit. You only need discipline to create systems where you don’t need discipline. Discipline is a myth. We can’t just "pull ourselves together" at will. It’s a question of energy.
Discipline is a framework, you dont suddenly decide to have discipline. You have to build it. Telling someone to just have discipline when they haven’t built up to it is very similar to telling a depressed person to just be happy.
It is possible to have grit/willpower/motivation and to take on what you need to do, that is a thing but that tends to be momentary and finite. So when you run out of motivation without a framework, you end up in the same place.
Thats why its more productive to suggest strategies rather than to just tell someone to get off their asses. Although you have the best intentions, It works sometimes but not for most people.
Tactical framework like the Pomodoro technique or the one minute discipline techniques are fine, but you can find that information anywhere. This guy is asking how he can do work when he doesn't feel like it.
There is no substitute for brute force discipline: Do hard shit. No one cares how you feel, just do the work.
When someone feels like they dont want to do work it may be typically because they dont have the energy to deal with mental strain.
While being able to ignore what you feel is possible can lead to motivation from that itself as you see youre being productive. But again thats finite and for someone to be able to keep up that supression has to do with a lot of other factors: did productivity reduce a lot of your stressors? Did you feel more stressed after being productive?, etc
Thats why its not as simple and its why it works for some people and others it wont.
Online classes. Do what you can to at least attempt to start your homework. The feeling of not being finished may be enough to convince you to get it done. Never underestimate the value of turning in incomplete work. Less points is better than no points. Talk to your professor about your work load. Most college "professors" these days are just grad students trying to get their masters or PhD. They know what it feels like to be burdened with work and school better than someone who has been teaching for 25 years. I once churned out 7 papers and a 15 page research paper in one week because my professor let me make up 7 weeks of late assignments for reduced points.
On a side note, burnout is a sign. Listen to it. You need to rest when you need to rest. Smoking to relax is fine but don't let it be the cinderblock you've tied around your own ankles. Moderation in everything.
Source: took me 9 years to get my bachelor's and I worked in restaurants the whole time. It sucked, but I knew what it meant to me. You got this.
Focusmate.com helps so much! Set an appt and work with someone else for 25, 50, or 75 min. Helps with accountability, distractions, and procrastination! Schedule appts to do specific tasks
I also keep a job while going through the semester and
It's hard but focus on assignment dates and trying not to accumulate missing material until the end of the semester.
I usually set a month before the end of the semester to start giving it a push to catch up, and during the testing season treat it like a marathon, running hard and fast and it will be over after the tests.
Remember why you started the degree and what motivates you.
and that during the testing season it's gonna be hard and that its not a time to recalculate a course and overthink things, it's a time to do your best and be done with it so later you can have time off to relax and an easier life.
Smoking is fine but it can easily be taking up your study time. Try making it as a reward in the evening if you felt like you studied good or stopping during the testing season if you can, i know its not an easy thing to do for some.
Also studying with other people and studying in the library helps set the atmosphere to a study vibe, and seeing other people study too so your not alone in this.
Goodluck and remeber its only temporary
I would always go to the campus library or do homework with a study partner. It was always tough for me to study on my own, but when I found a good, dedicated study partner to work through everything with I was able to work much harder and for longer hours.
I generally put it off till the last possible day and let the wave of panic carry me to the shore. But I also quit smoking when I started school. Just graduated with a 4.0
I would create an environment that makes you comfortable and has something to look forward to, whether it’s having a warm drink by your side, soft music etc. also, doing something you enjoy right before you start and right after, even if it’s as simple as watching a tv show or dancing to your favorite song etc.
I never could get homework done at home. I would stay at my college after class and do my homework at the math center or in the library. If I needed to do homework on my day off, I would go somewhere other than home. I would go to a coffee shop or the library because if I was at home I couldn’t focus. Being somewhere else helps you hunker down and just get it done. Then go home and smoke :)
I do mine in between classes, or try and get up earlier on the weekend and just knock it out. It’s almost reverse procrastinating, where I’ll tell myself “if I do it now I can do nothing/anything I want the rest of the week!”
I finished my masters as a single mom to three kids while holding down a full time job. This is what I would advise:
1. At the start of each semester gather your syllabuses (sillabi) for all your classes and put the due-dates for major projects, exams, assignments, etc. on the calendar.
2. Schedule a block of time each day to dedicate to reading, assignments, studying for that particular class.
3. Work on your readings, projects and assignments during these study sessions a little at a time. Doing a little a time is much easier than trying to finish everything in one day.
4. Find a good, quiet, comfortable study area with good lighting and put away any distractions, like your phone. I liked using the Pomodoro method to keep me on task for reading and studying, since I tend to get very distracted. There's apps that you can download, or simply set a timer.
5. Don't forget to take care of yourself, eat well, get some exercise, or plan some fun activities once in a while so you don't burn out.
I know this may be difficult because you need your job to pay your bills, but don't lose focus that school is the priority over your job right now. Is there some job that you could take that would allow you some flexibility over your schedule, such as a work study program through your school? This may help you have more time to study, better hours, or even not be burnt out at the end of the day so you can study every day instead of only a few days a week.
Too impressive for me. So...
> Schedule a block of time each day
How long is this time block, enough for readings, projects and assignments; yet the needs of your job, yourself, & 3 kids can't lay their hands on it? Just curious.
Not to pry too much of your secrets, but you seem to manage to achieve flexibility between those needs (in clear boundary time block without intrusion I assume)
Some days I only had half an hour or an hour available, and only after the kids went to bed or before they woke up in the mornings. Usually on the weekends I could pull off longer blocks of time to study. If I had it on my calendar, it made it “important” in my mind so it was harder to procrastinate because that time was already allocated to study.
Thanks. I take it as real example, that **even as little as half an hour daily, is a slow but surely ways we can get into somewhere**. (No matter what, I definitely won't argue with actual deeds). (Of course the better the condition the quicker we can get, but I will look into the bare minimum in my pessimistic behavior)
Personally, I like to have busy days and free days. I'll try to do as much homework as possible on my busy days and then I do the rest on my free days, but I try to keep those days as stress free and relaxed as possible to get rid of some of the burn out. I know this is probably a terrible plan for most people, but it really helps me
I have struggled with this a lot. Leave the house and make a study date with yourself. Go someplace you like, a beautiful park, a fun coffeeshop. Someplace you can work but actually enjoy. Decide to stay 2-3 hours minimum, and don't take distractions with you. You can do it!!! You are almost there!
I feel you, I work 6 days a week and even though my job is not a difficult one I feel burnout when I get home. I just do it eventually but procrastinating it is normal.
I used to make sure all my homework was done before my day off, even if I had to stay up late to do it. It was better for me, personally, to have nothing hanging over my head and I was able to enjoy the day off and not feel bad. Actually, I still do that today as a teacher in regards to my grading and lesson planning.
You need to take care of yourself! I wish this was easier and understood that young people are not robots
(Just try not to smoke in the a.m.'s)
I read a quote a while ago that was kinda like: motivation is not something that magically appears, it is something you attain after doing. Basically it was about how our motivation hits us only after we really start doing the task. Rather than waiting for it to come, welcome it with your actions. Ig, the best way to get motivated is to start.
Look at what habits you have that have really short-term rewards Your mind always does a cost analysis when you procrastinate: I could do this hard work Or we could do X easy thing, like games, smoking, etc You either need to cut back on the things that result in easy, short term gratification or get really good at encouraging positive habits with your homework Have you noticed at all if you leave things to the last minute a bit? That forces your mind to use the deadline as a reason to do things, which is a really negative form of motivation which is more like a punishment to your mind, you go days feeling negative about the work then you hate doing it, and you get little relief when completing it, Where as being proactive might feel hard to start but leads to you having many more days of feeling relaxed, "Aaah that thing is done, good good" Hope you figure out what is messing with your homework schedule, or find the motivation to slam it out a bit earlier!
Smoking every night to help you sleep is a problem. Getting proper rest and going through all stages of the sleep cycle is necessary if you want to be productive. This isn’t negotiable. A lot of us mistake sleeping with getting proper rest, but the two aren’t equivalent. If smoking is disrupting your REM sessions then we have your smoking gun (pun intended) I won’t go into how sleep works, there are a hundred videos on YouTube who will do a better job, but a quick and dirty hack is ti ask yourself if you’ve stopped dreaming at nights. That’s usually a good sign that you haven’t engaged in proper REM sleep in a while
You don't need motivation. You need discipline. As Joe De Sena (Spartan Race founder) says, "Discipline is doing the work when you don't feel like it." Here's all the motivation you need: Get the fuck out of the restaurant industry! You hate it. It takes your fucking soul. Your college is the best way out of it. So tough it out now, or you'll be stuck there for the rest of your Goddamned life.
That’s absolute bullshit. You only need discipline to create systems where you don’t need discipline. Discipline is a myth. We can’t just "pull ourselves together" at will. It’s a question of energy.
Discipline is a framework, you dont suddenly decide to have discipline. You have to build it. Telling someone to just have discipline when they haven’t built up to it is very similar to telling a depressed person to just be happy. It is possible to have grit/willpower/motivation and to take on what you need to do, that is a thing but that tends to be momentary and finite. So when you run out of motivation without a framework, you end up in the same place. Thats why its more productive to suggest strategies rather than to just tell someone to get off their asses. Although you have the best intentions, It works sometimes but not for most people.
Tactical framework like the Pomodoro technique or the one minute discipline techniques are fine, but you can find that information anywhere. This guy is asking how he can do work when he doesn't feel like it. There is no substitute for brute force discipline: Do hard shit. No one cares how you feel, just do the work.
When someone feels like they dont want to do work it may be typically because they dont have the energy to deal with mental strain. While being able to ignore what you feel is possible can lead to motivation from that itself as you see youre being productive. But again thats finite and for someone to be able to keep up that supression has to do with a lot of other factors: did productivity reduce a lot of your stressors? Did you feel more stressed after being productive?, etc Thats why its not as simple and its why it works for some people and others it wont.
Ask for help. You seem to be overloaded with stuff to do.
Online classes. Do what you can to at least attempt to start your homework. The feeling of not being finished may be enough to convince you to get it done. Never underestimate the value of turning in incomplete work. Less points is better than no points. Talk to your professor about your work load. Most college "professors" these days are just grad students trying to get their masters or PhD. They know what it feels like to be burdened with work and school better than someone who has been teaching for 25 years. I once churned out 7 papers and a 15 page research paper in one week because my professor let me make up 7 weeks of late assignments for reduced points. On a side note, burnout is a sign. Listen to it. You need to rest when you need to rest. Smoking to relax is fine but don't let it be the cinderblock you've tied around your own ankles. Moderation in everything. Source: took me 9 years to get my bachelor's and I worked in restaurants the whole time. It sucked, but I knew what it meant to me. You got this.
Focusmate.com helps so much! Set an appt and work with someone else for 25, 50, or 75 min. Helps with accountability, distractions, and procrastination! Schedule appts to do specific tasks
I also keep a job while going through the semester and It's hard but focus on assignment dates and trying not to accumulate missing material until the end of the semester. I usually set a month before the end of the semester to start giving it a push to catch up, and during the testing season treat it like a marathon, running hard and fast and it will be over after the tests. Remember why you started the degree and what motivates you. and that during the testing season it's gonna be hard and that its not a time to recalculate a course and overthink things, it's a time to do your best and be done with it so later you can have time off to relax and an easier life. Smoking is fine but it can easily be taking up your study time. Try making it as a reward in the evening if you felt like you studied good or stopping during the testing season if you can, i know its not an easy thing to do for some. Also studying with other people and studying in the library helps set the atmosphere to a study vibe, and seeing other people study too so your not alone in this. Goodluck and remeber its only temporary
What keeps me motivated is knowing I’m wasting all the money I’ve spent on those classes if I don’t pass them.
You already know its the bud dude.
I would always go to the campus library or do homework with a study partner. It was always tough for me to study on my own, but when I found a good, dedicated study partner to work through everything with I was able to work much harder and for longer hours.
I generally put it off till the last possible day and let the wave of panic carry me to the shore. But I also quit smoking when I started school. Just graduated with a 4.0
Smoking in college already? That's gonna cause huge problems later in life man, try to get off that shit as soon as possible.
Weed can result in severe adhd, it does for me so when I need to get school stuff I gotta be clean for atleast a day but preferably about 4 days
I would create an environment that makes you comfortable and has something to look forward to, whether it’s having a warm drink by your side, soft music etc. also, doing something you enjoy right before you start and right after, even if it’s as simple as watching a tv show or dancing to your favorite song etc.
I worked food during college too, I'm putting my money on that job killing you
I never could get homework done at home. I would stay at my college after class and do my homework at the math center or in the library. If I needed to do homework on my day off, I would go somewhere other than home. I would go to a coffee shop or the library because if I was at home I couldn’t focus. Being somewhere else helps you hunker down and just get it done. Then go home and smoke :)
I do mine in between classes, or try and get up earlier on the weekend and just knock it out. It’s almost reverse procrastinating, where I’ll tell myself “if I do it now I can do nothing/anything I want the rest of the week!”
I finished my masters as a single mom to three kids while holding down a full time job. This is what I would advise: 1. At the start of each semester gather your syllabuses (sillabi) for all your classes and put the due-dates for major projects, exams, assignments, etc. on the calendar. 2. Schedule a block of time each day to dedicate to reading, assignments, studying for that particular class. 3. Work on your readings, projects and assignments during these study sessions a little at a time. Doing a little a time is much easier than trying to finish everything in one day. 4. Find a good, quiet, comfortable study area with good lighting and put away any distractions, like your phone. I liked using the Pomodoro method to keep me on task for reading and studying, since I tend to get very distracted. There's apps that you can download, or simply set a timer. 5. Don't forget to take care of yourself, eat well, get some exercise, or plan some fun activities once in a while so you don't burn out. I know this may be difficult because you need your job to pay your bills, but don't lose focus that school is the priority over your job right now. Is there some job that you could take that would allow you some flexibility over your schedule, such as a work study program through your school? This may help you have more time to study, better hours, or even not be burnt out at the end of the day so you can study every day instead of only a few days a week.
Too impressive for me. So... > Schedule a block of time each day How long is this time block, enough for readings, projects and assignments; yet the needs of your job, yourself, & 3 kids can't lay their hands on it? Just curious. Not to pry too much of your secrets, but you seem to manage to achieve flexibility between those needs (in clear boundary time block without intrusion I assume)
Some days I only had half an hour or an hour available, and only after the kids went to bed or before they woke up in the mornings. Usually on the weekends I could pull off longer blocks of time to study. If I had it on my calendar, it made it “important” in my mind so it was harder to procrastinate because that time was already allocated to study.
Thanks. I take it as real example, that **even as little as half an hour daily, is a slow but surely ways we can get into somewhere**. (No matter what, I definitely won't argue with actual deeds). (Of course the better the condition the quicker we can get, but I will look into the bare minimum in my pessimistic behavior)
Personally, I like to have busy days and free days. I'll try to do as much homework as possible on my busy days and then I do the rest on my free days, but I try to keep those days as stress free and relaxed as possible to get rid of some of the burn out. I know this is probably a terrible plan for most people, but it really helps me
Smoking won’t help you sleep. Smoking won’t help you with your homework. Smoking will help you procrastinate. Smoking will help you put on weight.
I tend to do things like this when I wake up. Then I can still enjoy my day after it’s done.
For me, starting is the hardest part once I realized that I just push a little to start my papers and once I get going it’s easy
I have struggled with this a lot. Leave the house and make a study date with yourself. Go someplace you like, a beautiful park, a fun coffeeshop. Someplace you can work but actually enjoy. Decide to stay 2-3 hours minimum, and don't take distractions with you. You can do it!!! You are almost there!
i do like an hour or two at night on ny work days. that’s easier than doing it on my days off.
I feel you, I work 6 days a week and even though my job is not a difficult one I feel burnout when I get home. I just do it eventually but procrastinating it is normal.