This personal inventory is a bit different from others you may have taken. It incorporates very little about the usual bad habit suspects when it comes to the “P” word and includes more on the other reasons for such a habit, as suggested in the previous chapter as well as one or two other procrastination-inducers which have cropped up in our now social-media-saturated lives. Perhaps there is, in fact, more to your challenges with procrastination than the assumptions about laziness, disorganization, etc. See what you think. More importantly, see what you can do about it.
EXERCISE 18-1
For each item, circle one. And feel free to add any comments you wish. Sometimes quick-answer exercises like this just don’t have enough of YOUR personal response options, but try not to overthink things. This is, after all, a simple snapshot of where your beliefs and feelings are at this moment in time.
1. I admit it. Just like everyone else, I feel that I am lazy when it comes to getting my assignments and/or work done.
-
usually
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
2. I am disorganized when it comes to getting my assignments and/or work done.
-
usually
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
3. I get confused about what I am supposed to do for the assignment or task.
-
usually
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
4. I have a hard time saying “no” to others which puts me behind in my work/studies.
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most of the time
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
5. I have this sinking feeling that I will succumb to the usual reasons for procrastinating, no matter what they are.
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most of the time
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
6. I just don’t think I have the organizational abilities to be able to stop at least some of my procrastinating.
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most of the time
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sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
7. When I was in high school it wasn’t a problem studying for most tests the night before.
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most of the time
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sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
8. I work best under pressure, so I think that procrastinating is really good for me.
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most of the time
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sometimes
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rarely
-
never
9. When what I have to study or accomplish is just not that important to me, I find it more tempting to procrastinate.
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most of the time
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sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
10. I have a hard time talking myself into maintaining a better attitude about
not
procrastinating.
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most of the time
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
11. I think I have more time to finish something than I usually do.
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most of the time
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sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
12. It annoys me that some instructors assign so much homework when I have a life outside of school, too! So, I believe that it can be their fault that I have to procrastinate on certain things.
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most of the time
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
13. I am very social and spending time with my friends sometimes gets in the way of doing my work.
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most of the time
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sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
14. I can’t seem to stay away from social media.
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most of the time
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
15. Here is something (or perhaps more than one) not on this list that also causes me to procrastinate. (Possible issues might include a disability or some kind of learning challenge, homelessness or some other kind of living situation challenge, pregnancy, work hours and responsibilities, and/or personal life stress.)
_______________________________________________________________
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most of the time
-
sometimes
-
rarely
-
never
NOTE: This exercise is not graded on responses. The answer key to this personal inventory is to get right into helping the learner start solving some of these causes of procrastination.
As promised above, let’s get started with some immediate solutions as well as some perspectives that might, in time, help you adjust your thoughts and feelings regarding procrastination.
Licenses and Attributions:
CC licensed content, previously shared:
How to Learn Like a Pro! Authored by Phyllis Nissila. Located at:
https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/co...ocrastination/
License: CC-BY Attribution.
Adaptions: Removed one exercise, modified an exercise, removed information specific to Lane Community College, opinion article, and some hyperlinks for broader audience purpose.