Why IB Students Procrastinate
We all procrastinate.
Often we don’t think about where it’s coming from. We think of it as "laziness" and leave it at that. But ending procrastination requires we honestly face the reason (or the emotion) behind it. Once we know what’s really going on behind the scenes, we can get over it and get on with our work.
The main causes of procrastination:
- Inability says “I don’t actually know how to do this.”
- Fear says “I can’t do this.” or “It won’t be good enough.”
- Perfectionism says “I can’t make any mistakes with this.”
- Confusion says “I don’t know where to start.”
- Disagreement with the task says “This doesn’t matter. It’s not going to help me.”
- Overwhelm says “I can’t even focus. I’ve got so much going on right now.”
Assignments can push us out of our comfort zone when they reveal our weaknesses and stir up emotions like insecurity or doubt. But if we need to get our work done, we have to face the underlying problem. Life is about progress, not perfection. We don’t have to be perfect or do perfect work. And sometimes the path forward is just being still for a while and reflecting on what’s going on inside.
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