5 Ways to Productively Procrastinate this Exam Season

It’s not all gazing out of the window or making cups of tea

You don’t have to spend every second of your day essay planning, poring over past papering or last-minute cramming.  You don’t have to feel angry and annoyed if you look up at the clock and realising 30 minutes have slipped past since you last did any actual work. In fact, procrastination can work for you.

The best kind of procrastination is productive procrastination.  Here are some of the ways you can justify a little mental break for yourself.

Make a Plan

Getting your head around the jobs you need to do is always a good first step to ensuring your revision stays on track.

For some of you, this might mean scribbling something on the back of your hand, or noting a few points in the notes on your phone.  If you’re more creative, check out bullet journal bloggers who share how they turn lists and daily plans into works of art.

Make a Move

It has been suggested that ‘regular, moderately intense exercise stimulates brain regions that are involved in memory function’. That’s something we’d all pay for, just before a big exam.

It’s hard to even class exercise as procrastination when it holds such potential to help our studying.  If you’re not a ‘moderately intense’ person when it comes to the gym though, don’t worry – walking to and from uni each day will release endorphins ready for a day of work. Walking home is a great way to shake off the day’s revision stress and is an excuse to leave the library a little early; no one  wants to be getting home too late do they?

Bake Something Tasty

Some of your favourite foods might be the key to increasing your concentration and memory (once you’ve stopped procrastinating and started revising).  Knowing that a 2008 study found that those who ate bananas performed better in an exam than those who didn’t, it will be hard to resist this banana bread recipe:

Simply combine 2 eggs with a 140g of butter, self-rising flour, sugar and a dash of baking powder. Mix in two overly ripe, mashed bananas and pop in the oven. After 40 minutes in the oven you’ll have a tasty snack, perfect for transporting into the library.

OK, this recipe may not be the whole key to making your brain smarter but a motivational slice of banana bread during a tough revision session is bound to replenish you for more hard work. Alternatively, dark chocolate is also classed as a brain food, procrastinate by heading to the shops to pick some up if you don’t consider yourself a baker.

Get Lost in a Book

This might not seem appealing if you’re spending 90% or your waking hours with your head in a book – as a third-year history student I don’t intended to read for a while after May. But, maybe you’re doing a science-based degree. In which case, picking up a book may be a nice break from whatever it is you usually do with all of those numbers.

If you’re going to procrastinate with a book, you need to think productive as possible. Think motivational; think life-changing; think advice books.  This genre is really growing in popularity with the younger generation, so you don’t want to miss the band wagon by prioritising revision!

A favourite of mine is ‘How to Own the Room’. You can also justify it as preparing for mastering any upcoming presentations, acing interviews and starting full time work:

Will knowing enough about the repeal of the Corn Laws really help you change the world? Probably not. Find out how you can make a difference to the planet with Will McCallum’s ‘How to Give Up Plastic’:

If you didn’t believe me about the whole walking thinking thing above, read ‘Jog On’ to explore the connection Bella Mackie found between physical activity and her mental health:

Call your Mum

Whether she still cries every time you leave home or has stopped paying your phone contract and is counting down to you reaching fully independent adulthood, your mum still wants to hear from you.

From personal experience, having a long natter with my mum about work, boys and more than the odd bit of gossip leaves me feeling happy and de-stressed, with a clear mind ready to head back to work.  It’s just a shame she can’t bring you a cup of tea like she does when you’re revising at home.

Now that you’ve managed to procrastinate 5 minutes by reading this, what’s the point in stopping, enjoy your productive procrastination and good luck in your exams!

 

 

Main image credit: Photo by David Fagundes from Pexels