The Cadre + 26 January 1999

Feature 9

Procrastination is...

By JEREMY NELSON CUP Prairies Bureau Chief

here's no such thing as a

deadline.”

More than a statement, this phrase embodies the phi- losophy of University of Win- nipeg student Mike Kolbus. While most other students put off writing an assignment from time to time, Kolbus makes it his sworn duty to hand in the majority of his assignments late. You might go so far as to say he is a professional pro- crastinator. In fact, since be- ginning his B.A. in 1995, the 21-year old History student has managed to hit deadlines only four times.

“Ill always be a pro- crastinator,” says Kolbus in a relaxed tone that mirrors his attitude. “I was born late and I'll die late -- that’s just the way it is.”

As to why he refuses to see deadlines as anything more than a suggestion, Kolbus sim- ply laughs and replies: “be- cause I can.”

“In high school the ex-

tensions had to be fought for thin,

really hard -- they were really rigid and stupid there,” he says. “| think one of the most valu- able things I’ve learned in uni- versity is how to negotiate stuff like how to hand in a paper a rock inge PN SRDS

Although few students are at ease with their procras- tination as is Kolbus, he is far from unique in the fact that he has a hard time managing his time. ing on how you define procrastination and which university you survey, studies have shown that 40-80 per cent of student procrasti-

nate y

It’s certainly the most common problem among uni- cae ge es. eae : Counselling service. “For some said OP style and it just causes them a bit of stress. But for some

individuals itdestroys their aca- demic performance and with it, their career possibilities.”

Justas seriously, Walker adds, procrastination can leave deep emotional scars as stu- dents gradually loose faith in their abilities because of low grades and missed opportuni- ties.

“The guilt is so self-de- structive that it can have really serious side effects if it isn’t dealt with,” she says. “Lack of self-esteem and faith in one- self are the psychological con- sequences of long-term pro- crastination.”

Getting your priorities straight

Simply defined, procrastination is letting low priority tasks get in the way of high-priority ob- ligations. For some this means watching T.V. instead of clean- ing the house or going to the bar instead of studying for a

ing,” he says with a laugh. “When I’ve got a lot of essa’ due, my room is probably cleanest it will ever be. M friends find I’m the most will- ing to go out and drop every- thing around exam time. Basi- cally, I'll do anything rather than do an unpleasant thing like write an essay.”

While the definition of procrastinetion aE SeSa the root of the problem is o complex, ranging from im- proper time skills to low self-esteem. Walker says that most procrastinators have any number of reasons for putting off necessary but unpleasant obligations but gen- erally most procrastinators fall into a combination of one of four categories -- the Perfec- tionist, the P , the Poli- tician and the isher.

“The first step to deal- ing with procrastination is al- ways finding out what kind of procrastinator you are,” she

mid-term. For Kolbus, procras- said

tination means any number of

gs. “T’ll do just about any- thing when I’m procrastinat-

of mind and even then their intense fear of failure often holds them back. Creative and astute, perfectionists often slip into fantasies as a way of putting off unpleasant or unex- pected situations or problems.

‘ostponers, on the other hand,

notonous. These procrastina- tors thrive on the difficult and surprising situations caused by deadlines and use procrastina- tion as a way to not feel re- sponsible for their own des-

tiny. People who base their ion of themselves on what others think of them are fall into the Politician category.

others that they take on more work than they can handle and then often put that work off for

fear of not the - ductoav/of Giners. Funiy, Pun: ishers are overly-self critical people who are prone to jump to extreme conclusions about They overestimate others’

Photo to be inserted here

Regrettably, the photographer didn't get around to taking a poignant photograph.

abilities and underestimate their own thus producing feelings of worthlessness and cynicism about their ability to manage their own life.

Pressure Junkies

One thing most procrastina- tors have in common is that they thrive on the pressure that comes with putting off everything to the last possible moment

Kolbus, for example, says that when an essay is duc in a month he can sit in front of a computer for hours and only

to write a single page, but if the essay was due two days ago he can write the en- tire thing in just a few hours.

“T have no idea why that is but it seems to work,” he says. “Pressure is what I need.”

Walker believes that the reason most procrastinators require pressure is because they are essentially addicted to the feeling of conquering over seemingly impossible

“The pressure charges them up, gives them an adrena- line rush and lets them stay up all night to get their essay or

done,” she says. “The

coupled with the sense of victory are both very motivators for the practice pro- crastinator.”

The best way to coun- ter this habit-forming system according to Walker is for the procrastinator to find other

pressures come, they can’t get their motivation up,” she explains. “So what we tell them to due is to chop their deadlines into chunks. Rather than having a paper witha big deadline, make mini-deadlines with the parts - - have a deadline for when your research has to be done, when your draft has to be writ-

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