LOVED IT! must read!!!!!! I mean, so good I wrote a letter to the author and logged onto goodreads jus to review it. FOR EVERYONE! totally helped me
My cows:
I name my report:
GIVIN UP CALFINE
(get it CALF-ine, caffine.... baby cow.. yeah)
“I Don’t Feel Well Enough”
I have some extreme health issues. While they do often influence the things I can or can’t do, I think I use it as an excuse too often. With this comes the false belief that my health is just too bad to participate, that it isn’t my fault that I cannot attend school some days. While it is true that my health affects my attendance, I think other times I use it as an excuse to get out of it on the days when probably could make it. Rationalizing that I really do feel sick (which I do), but that doesn’t always mean I have to stay home. A false belief is that I am doing the best I can to get there.
I miss out on opportunities this way. Both social and secular when it comes to school. I get worse grades and even loose some friends. I feel worse and that creates a vicious cycle. I get more stressed about homework and have to do extra work at home instead of just doing it quicker in class. Again sometimes I can’t control it, but I am talking about the times I CAN control.
I could get better grades and learn more by going. I could establish better relationships with classmates and friends. Having that would be good and relieve stress. I would also get less stressed about make-up work. I can learn better people skills, and will have more stamina and energy.
Now instead of asking “Can I go?” I will ask “Should I go? Will it benefit me to go? How so?” and list the reasons why it would help me. This way I will know if I am really sick or just not wanting to participate.
“I Can Multitask and Get Just as Much Done”
When there is something I do not really want to do, I let myself do something I like to do while I work on it. Sometimes I watch a show, check my email, text, or listen to music. I tell myself that I can get just as much done, after all it’s only positive reinforcement right? If I can get myself to do homework I can watch a show at the same time. Maybe the show will even improve my work because I will be more creative. Those are some falsehoods I tell myself to rationalize. What happens when I do this is I end up not being able to focus completely on both and if I sit down and watch the exact same show with my full attention after seeing it many times before while multitasking, I actually notice things I never had, the same thing in the quality of work I do when I focus completely. You cannot physically look at two things at once. Sometimes we think that multitasking shows skill and is impressive. There is a study that said multitasking can actually decrease your productivity by about 40%. Which causes more stress and makes you need a break and so you multitask: taking your break while you accomplish another task just to complete what you need to. Then since you don’t get as much done while multitasking, you fall behind and the cycle continues.
When I multi task I lose concentration. Watching the show or doing something I like loses its meaning. It makes it less fun or relaxing. I become more stressed, and have less time to myself. Sometimes it is good to just do nothing. Relaxing isn’t sitting down to check an email, it is stopping and just breathing. If I stop multitasking I will feel more relaxed and happy, I will be able to calm down and focus my whole attention on the most important thing without thinking about anything else. That feeling of control will help me in school work and my personal life.
I will replace rewarding myself while I work on something with rewarding myself AFTER I work on it. Taking breaks every once in a while to fully relax before I go back to focusing on the main task at hand.
“ I don’t know where to start!”
This is one I think everyone uses from time to time. “I just don’t know where to begin!” Sometimes I have a lot on my plate and don’t know where to focus my attention first. With this comes the idea that I will be able to better ascertain the situation later, so I wait and probably do not spend that time as wisely as I can. I do not know how, so I will just put my life on hold until I do.
I miss deadlines this way. By putting my life on hold, I do not think about the other things that I can do only the one thing I cannot. I miss out on opportunities. For example, I find out I do not know how to do my math homework. I have to wait for my dad to get home so he can help me. I sit around waiting, since this is the most important thing on my list I obviously can’t put it aside, so I will just sit here staring at it. Finally he arrives and helps me. Great I feel so much better, but what about all of the other things on my to do list? I go into a frenzy trying to complete them, and if a fun opportunity like a party with friends comes up unexpectedly, I have to miss out because I spent so much time just sitting there.
Also If I think I do not have time to start, I might end up missing so much time just waiting. Thinking “he will be here any minute, why should I get up and start if I just have to come back and work again?” the real question is why not? If you do not know the exact time you have to work, you might as well start and get as much done as you can. I will get more done and have more time to myself if I spend that time better.
I need to look at my to do list right when I get home from school, and start with the most important thing. If I am unsure where to start on a project I will choose an area to work on and sooner or later I will get the big idea of things and be able to fit all the pieces together. If I do not know how to deal with the problem at hand I will make a plan of action, deciding how I could best figure it out and if that help isn’t immediately available I will move on to the next item at hand until it is. If I start working on projects when I have a few spare minutes, I might get more done than I thought.
“That Teacher Doesn’t Teach us Anything, No Wonder my Skills Suffer”
Blame it on the teacher or the class. Some classes just come easier to me, and it feels like I don’t learn anything. I could miss 2 weeks and still ace the quiz. Well surely that is the teacher’s fault that they don’t push me enough. They think we are stupid, and maybe some do struggle more, but not me, can’t the teacher see that? Sure maybe they aren’t teaching as much, but I’m realizing that doesn’t mean I can’t learn more.
If I start studying by myself more advanced things I can get even better grades, help classmates, and push myself! Then I won’t dread the class because I will think of the new things and questions I will learn more about on my own.
Now, instead of complaining about it, I will write down any questions I had during class, then when I get home I can get that information and study it on my own time. Also during class, I can focus more on teaching others the material, because this is how I tend to learn better.
I’m Already Doing Better than Everyone Else”
Sometimes it seems like I am the only one trying. So I sometimes rationalize that it seems like I am doing better than the rest of the world so why do I need to improve more?
There is always room for improvement. If I set more goals I will be able to realize this better. Whenever I feel this way I will think of the things I can improve on, this will help me to truly become the best person I can be and stop feeling alone in my efforts.
“There’s Still Time”
Procrastination. Why should I do it now? I have plenty of time to spare. I think everyone tells these false beliefs to themselves every once in a while. It might sound cliché for me to talk about it too, but it is a big difference. A false belief that presents itself with this is that we are capable of much more than we truly can accomplish. Belief that you can get just as much work done, in less time. Or even that you can do more work because of the last minute pressure.
Procrastinating makes me run out of time. It affects the quality of my work. I find myself sad and stressed in the end. If I stopped procrastinating, I would get everything done faster. I would have more time to myself and spend more time doing the things I love and the quality of that would be so much better because I would be worry free since I got everything done. I bet I could even sleep better at night. It would sure be more rewarding to finish everything and get to do the things I love without a care. That would bring a feeling of peace. Its like the quote: Happiness isn’t sitting around all day doing nothing, It’s when you had a lot to do that day and you did it all.
Instead of procrastinating I will choose to do work on time and reward myself for doing so by taking breaks.