How to beat procrastination and find your motivation

Having a regular schedule can help you feel more in control of when you’re working and when you’re not. This can help you feel more motivated in the future.

Making a realistic schedule includes making sure you’re trying to work at times when you’re feeling alert and relaxing at times when you don’t. More of a morning person? Try to plan in your revision for after you’ve woken up.

Remember, your schedule doesn’t have to be fixed, and it’s okay to change it when you need to.

Your schedule could include:

• Clear tasks or things you need to do, even if they’re not work
• Regular breaks, and times to do things like eat or take care of yourself
• Enough time to rest.

If you finish something on your schedule, remember to congratulate yourself.

If something takes effort, then it’s good to recognise when you’ve managed to do it.

Whether it’s finishing a piece of work, reading a page, or getting yourself out of bed, try to write down anything you achieve in a day, and then before bed take some time to reflect on what you’ve done.

Focusing on what you’ve managed to do can help you feel more motivated to keep doing it in the future.

Rest is essential for you to be able to concentrate. If you’re not getting enough breaks, sleep, or you’re pushing yourself to your limits then you won’t be able to keep motivated.

Rest includes:

• Taking regular breaks to do something new or that you enjoy
• Making time to talk to people you care about
• Getting enough sleep, including having time to wind down before bed.

Resting isn't lazy

Making time to rest and relax isn’t lazy, in fact it can help you to be more productive overall. Building breaks and time to relax into your routine helps people to feel more able to keep going.

Sometimes it might feel hard to start working or doing something after a break. If you’re starting to feel like you’re avoiding doing things, you can try our tips.

If you’re trying to do homework or revision, it can be good to find a space where you feel comfortable working. Try to think about:

• The noise level, and whether you’d want something in the background like music or white noise
• Whether you can take away any distractions or things that might take your mind off what you’re doing
• Having somewhere you can sit comfortably, and a surface to work on like a table or desk
• Whether it’s separate from where you relax or take breaks.

What if I don’t have an ideal place to work?

You won’t always have a perfect place to work. If you’re able to, it can help to speak to people at home about things that might help, or whether you could work in school, the library, or somewhere else you feel safe and comfortable. Sometimes it can be as simple as making sure a table is clear, or everyone knows when you’ll need it.