Productive Procrastinating - It's a real thing!

I've never been one to deny that I am a procrastinator. I tend to do my best work under pressure, especially time constraints. It's much easier for me to focus when I have a looming deadline.

But... I also understand that I can't procrastinate everything. I do work on schoolwork and blog work throughout the week. I even set up a little schedule for myself, since I'm spending most of my time at home for the summer. (I don't follow it, but it sure looks cute hanging in my office!)

I get really distracted, though. I used to hate myself when I would start out reading about academically diverse classrooms (for my master's work) and end up searching Google for information about brag tags to implement in my classroom, or when I would be writing a paper and end up washing dishes because I went out to get a glass of water and noticed the full sink. It was so frustrating!

But then, I got to thinking: the things I was doing weren't necessarily useless. I do want to implement brag tags in my classroom, and needed to look up information on them. I did need to wash the dishes. While I do occasionally find myself surfing Facebook when I should be doing something else, I am usually doing things that are productive.

I did a quick Google search and found that this is a common thing! After researching a little bit, I have decided that productive procrastination is definitely the way to go. I've been intentionally doing it for a few weeks now, and I'm getting so much more stuff done! Want to know my secret?

A list.

(I love making lists.)

The secret is in the way that the list is set up. 

If you'll notice, the things on the left are the items that have a deadline. It's mostly schoolwork, with a little blog work thrown in. 

The items on the right are also things that need to get done, but these things don't have a deadline. Plus, all of those things can be completed in under 15 minutes, which makes them perfect for procrastinating from doing the things on the left. 

I can take a "break" from doing my time-sensitive work by doing something that's not as time-sensitive. When I sit back down to finish the tasks on the left, though, I will have still accomplished something, and I'll get to check that something off of my list. 

Naturally, there have been (and will) be times when there are many more time-sensitive items on the list than other things, but as I mentioned earlier, I work best under pressure and will be less likely to be procrastinating on those things, anyway.

Well, kids, I have to go. Didn't I mention that I'm supposed to be working on schoolwork right now? ;)

But, I want to hear from you! What is your favorite thing to do when procrastinating life's endless responsibilities? Let me know in the comments!