72% of students say they procrastinate. Here’s how to stay on track

Sydney, As a high school or uni student, you might sometimes find yourself putting off study to do other tasks even when an important assessment deadline or exam is looming over you. 72% of students say they procrastinate.

Here’s how to stay on trackThis can look like doom-scrolling, texting friends, or checking emails for the seventh time. You might even turn to tasks you usually avoid, such as cleaning, to put off study. After procrastinating, you may feel more negative, guilty, or stressed because you know the task you put off is important.

So why do we still do it? And how can we overcome it? Procrastination is an unnecessary delay in starting or finishing a task. It's voluntary, but quite unhelpful. Any short-term feelings of relief that come when avoiding the task often have longer term costs for your learning and sense of self.

Procrastination is extremely common. In a US study, published last month, researchers asked more than 65,000 college students about 18 common lifestyle and health issues. This included finances, family, career, procrastination, ADHD, insomnia, anxiety, stress and depression.

Procrastination and stress were the two most prevalent issues in students' lives, with each experienced by more than seven in ten students. Procrastination was also the lifestyle factor most likely to harm students' academic performance and cause them further distress.

Procrastination is not simply a question of your willpower. It typically involves a failure in self-regulation. This is our ability to direct our thoughts and behaviours towards achieving specific goals. Self-regulation is also tied to how we see ourselves as learners.

When worried about underperforming, we may avoid challenging tasks to protect our sense of self. For example, you might tell yourself: While some students work well under the pressure of deadlines, others may find it makes their procrastination worse.

Knowing you are behind is stressful, and procrastination can be a way to feel more in control. Research suggests you're more likely to procrastinate about anything if you: find the task challenging or the rewards too far away in the future.

We are also more likely to procrastinate when we lack confidence in our ability to perform the task at hand. This can create a vicious cycle, where the skills or knowledge we most need to learn become the ones we practise the least.

But this doesn't mean it's all over. These are some practical ways you can get back on track. Sometimes starting the process of studying is half the battle. To help yourself ease into it, set aside five to ten minutes to start your work.

Keep the task simple too. For example, you might review a few notes or answer some practice questions. Taking the first small step can make the task feel less overwhelming and build momentum to keep learning.