Page 9 - ADU Voice
P. 9
SPRING 2023 · voice 09
Break down your tasks
“There is only one way to eat an ele-
phant: a bite at a time.” It’s easy to
feel overwhelmed when tackling big tasks
like writing a research essay or working on
a complex project. In such situations, try
working backwards and breaking your task
into smaller, bite-sized chunks, just like how
you’d eat an elephant. This will make it much
more approachable and easier to digest. Or
you know, work on.
Reward yourself for a job done well
Every time you finish a task, reward
yourself for completing it. A reward
could be something simple like treating
yourself to a nice cup of coffee, or watching
an episode of your favorite show (or both).
Having a reward system will help you stay
focused and motivated when working on
long, arduous tasks.
Don’t get caught off guard
Deadlines are like road bumps; if you
don’t notice them coming, you’re in for
to a particular task, or that you still haven’t a wild ride. To avoid crashing into your
planned all its details, remind yourself that deadlines, use a notebook, calendar, or dig-
it’s okay to begin with something rough and ital planner to keep track of your upcoming
work on polishing it later. After all, no one assignments, quizzes, and projects. This will
creates a masterpiece on the first try. help you stay organized and avoid the stress
that comes with forgetting an important date.
Take the first step
It’s tempting to put off work until And that, folks, is how you can ace your
the last minute, but starting early will deadlines while still keeping your sanity in
help you build momentum and avoid check. Remember, deadlines can be stressful,
procrastination altogether. So the next time which is why it’s important to prioritize your
you feel like putting something off, promise well being and ask for extensions if you’re
yourself that you’ll just do 5 minutes of work, struggling to meet them. Sure, every once
and get started. Once the 5 minutes are up, in a while you’ll have to embrace the rush
chances are you’ll feel much more motivated of completing a task at the eleventh hour.
to continue working. Or at least you’ll have After all, what can beat that sense of triumph
5 minutes worth of work done :). when you pull off a last-minute save?
