OUR DIFFERENCES
Procrastination is a struggle for a lot of people. Whether they are preoccupied with something, or they are habitual procrastinators, it takes a lot of effort for them to move. However, a recent study discussed on Inside Higher Ed showed that apps which help against procrastination work. Most of the apps are a limited time a person does something which wastes time. In short, it allows these activities but makes sure that they are within allowable limits so that the person can work on their real tasks.
The idea behind an anti-procrastination app is a debatable concept, but if it can make people move from viewing kittens on the internet, then it should be something worth a try. For some people, the internet has done a lot to alleviate procrastination. Nowadays, people can just buy online things like cellphone batteries, or other iPhone accessories, instead of going to a specialty cellphone shop. Here are just some of apps which promise to beat procrastination.
- Finish is an iOS app which creates chunks of schedule for the work you need to do. The typical person would have long term, middle term, and short term tasks. What Finish does is to remind you of your tasks as the time allotted for the tasks diminish. If you have a long-term task for 10 days, and it becomes less than a week to the deadline, then Finish will start giving you reminders about it. If your mid-term task becomes due in two days, then the reminders become more frantic. This may be like a nagging mom, but it does serve to prioritize your tasks according to the time remaining until the deadline.
- Procraster. On the other hand, Procraster gives short term rewards for tasks done. It helps you tackle one project or sub-task at a time, and when you finish one task, it prioritizes the next one. Also, it also asks you if there is anything blocking your ability to work. Procraster then gives sage advice to handle the situation. It then asks you to focus on one item on your to-do list, and what incentive you want for it. You can choose from preset incentives or rewards, or you can add to the list. You can add your finished task to a list which can then serve as a motivation.
- Beat Procrastination. Another way where procrastination can be dealt with is through meditation. Meditation has proven to be a viable alternative to fighting this habit of putting off things. Trying to change the mindset is a big effort, however. It is not something that ordinary people would normally do. Beat Procrastination tries to put meditation as an app in your pocket. It attempts to change your unconscious attitude via meditation. To put it in another way, the app helps you fight procrastination via reprogramming your mind or attitude. Unlike other apps, it does not offer a reward or punishment for anything that you do. Rather it puts a new habit in place for you to associate the good feeling with task completion.
- Focus Lock. If you cannot stop checking your Android phone, Focus Lock is for you. First off, it keeps you focused on what you are doing, instead of constantly looking at your Android phone. It does this by blocking notifications on the apps you most use or most distracts you. After blocking for 25 minutes, it then gives a five-minute unlocked window. Based on the Pomodoro method, this has been a proven method to increase productivity. It makes the job a matter of sprints, with breaks in between, unlike a marathon where you are supposed to work for long stretches of the day. Alternatively, if you have the will power, you can put your phone in Airplane Mode for 25 minutes, take a look for 5, and then repeat.
- Focus. For those who have a hard time keeping to the task at hand, Focus might do the trick. The idea behind this is app to close off most other things on your desktop while you work on another. If you were to work on a spreadsheet, when you open Excel, it closes the browser and any other app which would distract you. You can associate apps to tasks, and close others which are not necessary to finish the task.
Procrastination is something which happens to the best of us. It’s like knowing the nearest iPhone repair shop, and yet not bringing your cell phone for repair, until you really have to use it.
References:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/2094846/read-this-now-7-clever-mobile-apps-to-conquer-procrastination.html
https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/anti-procrastination-apps-actually-work-study-says.html
https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/10-distraction-killing-tools-for-better-concentration.html
