As you watch the numbers count down to the new year on your TV or live during the ball drop, you eagerly wait for the time to reach 12:00, marking a new year. As you patiently wait in the last moments of 2024, you begin to think to yourself, “This year I’m going to be consistent in the gym!” or “This year I’ll focus hard on my studies!” However, what if I told you that only 1% of iSchool students actually continue on the same goal or goals before giving up? The other percentage would be the 57.1% of people who can only maintain their goals for a month and the 47.6% who end up putting them on hold.

While this may not sound as bad, think about how many students actually continue towards their goal after putting it on hold. By estimate, I’d say a quarter of that percentage of students actually do so. Knowing this, you can infer that some of us as a whole still struggle with maintaining and committing to our goals. This leaves us with the question; “How can one really maintain and achieve their personal goals?.” If you have similar questions to that, then you’ve come to the right article. 

Many of us feel compelled to be in our self-improvement season, especially with the new year being already here. Due to many trends circling in the media, there has been new and faster ways to achieve things when in reality the majority of us have found no use in participating in these rigorous and somewhat toxic ways of getting your yearly goals for the next upcoming year.

“Winter arc” is the perfect example of one of social media’s ways of pushing out this narrative that you should be ahead of the game before everyone else and even block any “distractions” that may be in the way of this. It might not be everyone, however, the way that some people have been treating it, is plain ridiculous. Rules like waking up at crazy early times and not allowing you to date and or break up with your current partner are just two out of the many other toxic rules. 

During my discussion with a current freshman Leo Porter, he said, “I am aware of the winter arc. Well, I think the concept is good, but  I wouldn’t personally recommend the current one because it just diminishes the point of self improvement. Self improvement should be used as a way to find yourself, not prove or push a false narrative on the internet.”

Leo’s response to this proves how often social media will take a positive idea and turn it into something negative. Therefore, trends like these are ones that you should be mindful of before participating in. One of the many things these social media trends don’t teach you is that you shouldn’t be trying to force yourself to put up high demanding habits that you’ve never done before. 

While it is important to put yourself out of your comfort zone, when you do it like how some of the unreliable media tells you to do it, you’ll always end up like the majority of us who don’t get any of their goals met and silently wait for the next year to “restart.”

The Psychology Behind Procrastination

Before we get into any advice or tips, you must understand that the only reason why you aren’t able to tap into your potential is your mindset. Thinking even deeper, let’s start with “What happens in your brain when you procrastinate?” 

According to the article “This is what happens in your brain when you procrastinate,” procrastinators tend to have a larger amygdala. The amygdala is a small part of the brain that plays a key role in helping us respond to threats or challenges.

The article states, “The brains of procrastinators have a larger amygdala, which is part of the limbic system known for fight or flight.” This means that in the brain of a procrastinator, they tend to have a larger Amygdala. Meaning, that their brains fight or flight response is more likely to be set off when they are put with tasks they don’t want to do. As a result, procrastinators develop behaviors of avoidance towards important tasks. Therefore, it is important to have strategies that align with our own brains habits, to keep our brain engaged for extended periods of time. 

This idea is supported in text where they state “What’s happening is what we call the ‘amygdala hijack,’”says Pychyl. “The procrastinators are reacting emotionally, and the emotion-focused coping response is to escape. It’s saying, ‘I don’t want these negative emotions I’ll experience during the task,’ and so it avoids the task.”  

Freshman Ella shared her insights into her own personal procrastination challenges. She explains, “I just feel like when I procrastinate I’m able to get my work done faster at the last minute. I feel like I work better when there’s very little time left.”  

A similar thing was mentioned during a Ted talk by Tim Urban, where he tells his audience that the reason we feel most productive when we procrastinate is because of the fear of the consequences that you’ll receive if you don’t do so.  Therefore this leaves most procrastinators to believe the solution to productivity is to wait till the very last minute to get things done most efficiently. 

However, this isn’t the most healthy and ideal way to go about it. Using this technique to get your tasks done can eventually become very toxic to your wellbeing, as there will be times where you’ll have tight deadlines to meet and you’ll have to sacrifice important things like breaks or sleep just to complete said task. You might still be wondering, “Okay, great but what can I actually do to stop my cycle of procrastination?” Well, it may seem easier than done but, first you actually have to give yourself the will to do these things.

 If not, you’re always going to end up at square one. Once you have that in check, you can start by practicing mindfulness. I know for many of us it might seem useless, however a mindset like that is what’s stopping you from getting over your procrastination. Instead, take the time to actually try it before you say you don’t want to use it.  

Sophomore Ashe shared that meditation was a part of what keeps them balanced and calm, along with going to quiet places like a library. “I’ve started going to the library a lot and I’ve been meditating in the morning.” They also mentioned later in our interview that it’s calming and helpful for them in the morning.

If that’s not convincing enough, research out of the University of Pittsburgh found that people can learn to control their emotions through mindfulness: “Participants practiced using nonjudgmental awareness over the course of eight weeks. The study found that their amygdala shrunk and the connections to the prefrontal cortex changed.” 

This idea supports that the amount of time you take with suppressing and controlling your emotions, the less control they will have over your decisions. Hence why the brain of the procrastinators shrunk, that part of the brain no longer was constantly being triggered for the wrong situations and helped these people be able to have a different outlook on important tasks. 

Disconnected and Unfocused: The Impact of Loneliness on Productiveness 

While procrastination may be often most seen as the main cause for unproductivity, it’s not the only one. Another key contributor is loneliness and social disconnection, when we procrastinate, we often isolate meaning from the task and others around us. This is related to the cycle of; the more disconnected we feel, it becomes harder to focus and stay motivated. This is why it’s important to keep yourself surrounded by people that you love and care about, or simply people you know that will support you. According to the article, “The surprising reason why you’re feeling unproductive,”  it says, “People who felt isolated also felt less motivated in their careers – which resulted in decreased productivity.” 

While it may seem tempting to get lost in the “grind” and feel the need to block everyone out, it will only lead to you feeling disconnected and later burnt out from things that once used to be important to you outside of work and or personal life goals. Thus, leading you to eventually question whether or not working on the important things to you is worth it anymore. Overall, this isn’t the way you should go about reaching your goals, as it can ruin relationships you had with people and cause you to carelessly neglect yourself. 

The article “The surprising reason why you’re feeling unproductive,” further explains that most people who feel unproductive have a sense of loneliness. This can come from being so absorbed in personal responsibilities, it can waste valuable time with family or personal likes such as hobbies etc. Other times it can be from the rise of social media influence and technology. This article states, “In fact, according to research, loneliness is associated with poor job performance.

People who felt isolated also felt less motivated in their careers– which resulted in decreased productivity. […] Long before COVID-19 forced us to sit at home, the rise of technology and social media has been creating a world where we’re connected 24/7 but disconnected from real human interactions.” This shows how loneliness and social media can have its effects on your productivity. It further explains how being absorbed in social media can cause you to feel like making new and deep connections with people in real life isn’t that necessary. 

Overall, this article suggests that if you confront your feeling of loneliness and trying to make human connections can boost your productivity and well being.   

Healthy and Sustainable Strategies to Get into for Productiveness 

When thinking about how to put your personal goals into action, you must understand that if your mindset is weak, your actions will reflect that.  

Jackie Woolley, a former student of the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, talks about in in A article made by a past student of the , by  “12 Essential Steps to Help You Develop a Growth Mindset”  that it’s important to not only have a strong mindset but a “growth mindset” meaning when a person focuses on growing and improving rather than believing that everything their doing it’s perfect as is. Having the mindset that there’s always room for improvement anywhere in your personal life. 

Woolley says, “A growth mindset refers to a mindset that focuses on growing and improving rather than believing that your personal talents, qualities, and characteristics are fixed.” This emphasizes that a growth mindset is always constantly developing and learning new ways to go about things, rather than a “fixed mindset” where a person would believe that nothing in their life needs to change or stop happening completely. 

She goes on to say that the most misconception that people have about growth mindsets is that you always have to be consistently positive. However, she combats this common opinion and says that the whole main focus should be  working through challenges, stepping out of your comfort zone and learning from your mistakes in order to truly reach that personal goal of yours. 

Now that you have a good understanding of what a productive mindset can look like in a person, let’s get into how you can apply better habits in your routine and its benefits. 

1. Staying off your phone: especially right on the wake up. Based on a video on YouTube about how to develop healthy habits, “Doom scrolling right when you wake up isn’t the most ideal thing to do, allow your brain to wake up and prepare itself for the day ahead. Being on social media so early in the morning could potentially fill your mind with insecurity and comparison whilst you scroll and watch other people start their lives while you haven’t even begun your day. Instead,  make a calm and simple playlist, upbeat and uplifting music that just gets you pumped and ready for the day.”

This shows that giving yourself time in the morning to wake up without chaos, can help your mind feel calmer and more prepared to start the day. Especially since we all know that social media can be toxic and not very useful for the very start of your day, unless you use it with the right intentions. 

2. Drink water: Before having your daily coffee in the morning or even a meal of the day. Hydrating is very important for health and can help your skin be nice and healthy. Having tea is also good to have in the morning instead of coffee as well. It’s much more relaxing and beneficial for your body overall. 

3. Journaling: in the video “How to STOP BEING LAZY and wasting your life away (no bs) + free schedule”  Faye tells us that using the gratitude journal book can be very beneficial to the start or end of your days. I’ve heard good reviews on this journal for those who have incorporated it in their daily routine. However, if you would like a faster and more immediate way to journal, I’d suggest using Apple’s newest app “Journal.” 

I personally do suggest the app Journal  because you can do voice notes, videos, photos,and normal typing, making your journaling experience more wide and full of different ways to express yourself. However, if staying off your phone is one of your goals, it’s highly suggested that you use “The gratitude Journal.”

4. Stop everything and take time out of your day to make time to do the things that you are passionate about. It’s one of the best ways to keep you away from your phone and keeping your focus on things YOU actually enjoy. If you don’t know what that one hobby might be, then it’s a perfect way to try everything and narrow down to the activities you like the most. 

5. Where you can make voice notes, videos and can type your entry’s. If you still want to work on staying off your phone I’d still highly recommend “The gratitude journal”  as the book itself can help you with your mindfulness and being able to be in the present and being grateful about where you are in life. 

Daily routines you can try on your own! 

Based on all of my research I was able to conduct elements of what a productive routine would look like. However before we go further keep in mind that depending on what time you get up and how much time you have in the morning, afternoon and or night., this may not work for you. Keep in mind also that you don’t have to do these in order, make yours personalized!. It’s highly recommended that you take something from this and put it in your own routine where you see fit.

Priority Morning Steps:

• Making up your bed

• Playing upbeat and calm music in the back to get you going 

• Cleaning yourself in the bathroom (brush teeth, wash face, etc.)

• Getting ready (never do this last minute!) 

• Movement:  It doesn’t have to be excessive or done everyday, you can alternate the days according to your needs. 

• Journaling: It can be on your phone or in a journal. 
• Making something small to eat: it can be on the way out or before you journal. 

Priority Afternoon Routine (For students coming home after school)

• Cleaning your area as soon as you get in.

• Making something to eat, it can be quick or a whole meal depending on what time you got home. 

• Studying a subject you’re struggling with or something you’re interested in learning more about 

• If you have time leftover try spending time doing a hobby or something you like that isn’t heavily on your phone. Going outside is also a great start.

Priority Night routine 

• Get all your clothes ready for school the next day

• Take a shower

• Eat dinner 

• Go over your study notes one last time (Making a short summary of what you learned, what you plan to work on tomorrow. 

• Do some small and relaxing movement that makes your body get ready to wind down. 
• Journal (optional, but suggested if you tend to have too many thoughts before bed. It’s good to journal them down instead of letting them clutter your mind.) 

True self-improvement comes from understanding your own needs, setting realistic goals, and building habits that can support your personal growth. Addressing setbacks like procrastination and instead focusing on mindfulness and connecting with those you love can help you obtain a more balanced and less chaotic environment for you. 

Remember, it’s not about perfection but progress, a commitment to growing, whilst still learning from challenges. With the right mindset and strategies, you can break free of any obstacles and make them meaningful learning experiences as you stride towards your goals.