This deck is for the course: Learning how to learn https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn

1. Procrastination
• Everyone has “instant gratification monkey” in
their head.
• As the name says, this monkey is only interested in
short term pleasures without worrying about the
future.
• Learning something new or difficult triggers pain
center points in our brain. This monkey comes to
the rescue and stops that pain. It diverts our
attention to things that are pleasurable for NOW
and hence we procrastinate.
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2. What not to do
• Don’t worry about procrastination
• Try to fight procrastination with will power
• Don’t track your progress on your fight with
procrastination
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3. How to overcome
procrastination
• Humans are creature of habits. Habit is something our mind
does without spending much energy or willpower.
• Habit has four parts
• Cue
• Routine
• Reward
• The belief
• Avoid things that are cue to bad habits/ habits you are trying to
avoid.
• Reward yourself often when you complete the tasks.
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4. How to overcome
procrastination
• Focus on the “process” and not on the “product”
• Pomodoro is a good technique where you focus on 25 minutes
at a time and do not worry about the ultimate outcome i.e.
product.
• Everyone is different. Keep a journal of what works
and what doesn’t work for you.
• Leverage your subconscious mind. Prepare planned
task one night before.
• Do the most difficult thing as first thing in the
morning.
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