Many students at Jesuit High School are often overwhelmed by their academic and extracurricular schedules. Procrastination is prevalent at Jesuit because students feel they have too much to do in too little time.

“I am a procrastinator sometimes because I have a lot of sports to play and I have no time to get all of the things done that I need to.” said Freshman Hayden Johnson.  Hayden works on the weekends to complete his assignments so that he doesn’t feel a lot of pressure during the week.

“[I procrastinate] sometimes, but then I get stressed out. I hardly procrastinate because I have sports everyday and need to get my work done.” said Freshman Antonio Mora.  He, too, works on the weekends to complete his assignments so that he doesn’t feel a lot of pressure during the week.

Why do students procrastinate?  How can students overcome the lures of procrastination? Some people procrastinate due to a lack of time each day to complete their tasks. With the average student’s homework schedule, extracurricular activities, and family obligations, it’s hard to settle down and keep up on school assignments and tests.  Its important that individuals remember to be efficient with their time as this can free up many hours of the week to get important things accomplished.

Students can procrastinate because they feel overwhelmed, as well. Sometimes, the assignments teachers give appear daunting and difficult. Students may feel that they are not able to do a task to a high enough standard, so they aren’t sure where to start.

To help alleviate procrastination, students need to realize that progress is better than perfection. Breaking down assignments into bite size chunks and then break them down even more and planning each part of the task so that the focus is on completing the sub task rather than the overall task. This helps individuals feel in control and not overwhelmed.

“Get the hard stuff out of the way, just face the problem and get it done. After you finish everything, then have your fun,”  freshman Nolan Zaslove said.

When students feel too tired to get started on assignments when they get home from school, they often take naps or relax so that they do not feel as tired. It is important to stay healthy to prevent this exhaustion, as exhaustion prevents work.

Finally, some students procrastinate because in today’s world, they find it very hard to stay focused with all of the external stimulation around them. With television, phones, iPads, computers, gaming, and social media, it becomes more difficult to stay focused. Students have to remember to stay in control of technology. Students can do gaming on their breaks, put their phone notifications on silent, turn the TV off while studying, or go to a quiet place to work on assignments. Basically, people need to put their technology down and do what needs to be done.

It is important to start work, as most people find that once they start, it is easier to finish.