How midterms expose our crippling procrastination
By NEVAEH KARRAKER— nakarraker@ucdavis.edu
It’s midnight already.
After burning through an entire pencil in three days and chugging energy drinks, time is nothing more than an abstract concept. Yet, as the hours blur together, I’ve barely finished a single assignment.
It’s a never ending cycle of work and the progress never matches the grind.
Next to me sits a thick stack of papers, study guides and practice problems — hours upon hours of work. And, on top of it all, midterm results.
“You win some, you lose a lot,” as my dad would say — a fitting description of college life. However, it’s one thing to fail because you didn’t try hard enough, it’s another to fail while sacrificing everything (including some of your sanity) and still coming up short.
I stare at the blank document for my essay due tomorrow, the blinking cursor on my computer screen lighting up the dark dorm. At this point, school seemed to be doing more harm than good — it was draining, and, quite honestly, futile.
One of the simplest ways to recharge often mutates into a distraction — divulging in random tasks or reverting to doom scrolling on smartphones. It’s a numbing brainless activity that triggers small bursts of dopamine with every swipe. Being consumed by something so insignificant momentarily silences the pressure.
This habit doesn’t seem to just apply to me; it’s a contagious disease. It’s rare to find an empty study room in the residence halls and the ones being taken up are not being used for their intended purpose. Bags of chips and empty sushi containers litter the room while someone props their foot on the table, FaceTiming a friend or watching Netflix.
So yeah, maybe it is the phone. An increasingly short attention span paired with several hour-long assignments makes it way easier to put off important tasks for later. Especially when the deadline is days or even weeks away — it feels like we have a surplus of time, so why not scroll just a little longer?
Then, all of a sudden, it piles up. Before we know it, we have exams, lab reports, homework and readings all due on the same day. Unsurprisingly, we become overwhelmed to find that not enough time exists to finish everything.
Progressively, shortcuts become the preferred solution. From using artificial intelligence assistants like ChatGPT to stealing the answers from peers, students justify their decisions by claiming they couldn’t possibly finish in time or understand the scope of the material. Deep down, we know we are manipulating ourselves — the fantasy we live in is assuming that we will always have more time.
All of us have thus been diagnosed with something terminal: a corruption of the mind. It’s one that relentlessly festers and only results in anxiety and frustration. When the outcome feels predetermined, the motivation to attempt treatment dwindles.
Once this conclusion is reached, the natural reaction is to panic — to succumb to a desperate fear that we haven’t lived our life fully, missing out on too many opportunities. In this state, we’re pulled deeper into the search for an escape, for anything that gives us temporary control or relief. Yet, these outlets are often unhealthy, self-destructive habits through which we tear ourselves down, only to find they result in the very outcome we fear.
The solution, or “pointless” treatment, is something unexpected: a positive outlook — a glass-half-full sort of approach. The kind of mindset that fuels action and gives us a reason to endure the struggle. It reminds us that we get to determine how we use the time we do have left.
Circumstances like this, while unfortunate, can be pivoted into necessary lessons — a wake-up call that procrastination is ultimately fruitless. This extends beyond putting off studying for an important exam and equally applies to handling daily tasks. The intention and dedication we put into minor aspects of our lives have a great impact, whether it’s the things we physically and psychologically consume — including food and social media — or how we speak to others. And, with each small, deliberate decision, we become closer to success and fulfillment.
Written by: Nevaeh Karraker—nakarraker@ucdavis.edu
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