Very imortant topic to discuss and keep in mind, especially in this platform where as we interact and build communities we adquire more responsibilities than we can handle. If on top of that we tend to procrastinate, then we are in trouble.
I have been a procrastinator at several stages in my life and i have always wonder why.
It is as if our minds are hardwired against the idea of consistency and perseverance.
that possible explanation makes sense to me, but does not bring comfort :)
I agree with you that
All you need to do is acknowledge the fact that you indeed have this monstrous tendency and work on your inclination to put an end to it.
It's like alcoholism or any other addiction. If we don't acknowledge the problem first it is very unlikely that we'll do anything about it.
I do acknowledge my problem and at time fight it very well, so well people complain about what they perceive as compulsive disorder: you give me an assignment and 6 days to do it and I will have it done by the next day.
But it does not always work like that. For me, personally, that level of efficiency and enthusiasm is connected to other emotional factors. When those other factors are in misbalance, then my efficiency goes to hell.
As a grad students in the States I was very thankful at their educational system because they provide people with all one needs, including all kinds of tips and guidance. Sometimes they overdo it. But that helps a lot. It helps create good habits.
As a professor, I used to email my syllabi to my students with anticipation, along with reading time suggestions. For the fall semester (starting late September), I'd send the reading assignments by July and a page count divided by the number of days in between. That way, students would see how easily they would cover most of, if not all, the readings by the time the semester started.
Nobody ever followed that suggestion. And it was very hard to get my students read anything in time during the semester. You might call it a cultural thing. People say Latinos are irresponsible and terrible at being punctual.
I think we can make a difference at the individual level and if everybody is on the same page, then the difference extends unto the whole group. Yet, some parameters have to be imposed and some follow up done so that we feel the pressure to deliver.
You and your great comments! Thank you friend for your words!