Good and Bad Procrastination

Paul Graham's take on procrastination takes a different view than John Perry's, since Graham clearly states that to-do lists of what's more important and what's not don't really work out in the end. Graham says to do what you want, even if they are small, do-nothing errands, at least you will get some pleasure out of doing them and seeing them be done. I like how right away, Graham says that there are plenty of other sources that try to "cure" procrastination (like the CalPoly article) but it is impossible and I totally agree. I have no shame in saying that procrastination will stay with me probably throughout my adult life. I've always wondered why I procrastinate when it comes to school work and why I even started. Graham takes note of this issue in students and it's a fairly simple and agreeable argument. He says that students just don't enjoy the work that they are told to do, so of course they'll find something else to do that they enjoy more (TV, video games, internet, etc.).

We live in a world where time if of the essence and if people feel as if they've wasted even 2 mintues of their time, they're pissed. Graham notes that some procrastinators might feel as if they wasted their time if they end up failing the assignment they were supposed to do. I don't really feel that this particular concept applies to me really because I wouldn't think of my time being wasted unless I really DID get a bad grade. Otherwise, it would be time well-spent. Some tricks that Graham gives that I think could actually work (more so than the CalPoly suggestions) was to work on somewhat smaller projects that could eventually turn into big projects, like doing just bits and pieces of a big project over time or to split the work evenly with a partner(s). I agree with Graham that some of the best work can be done through these methods and the best part is that nobody has to know that you used them.