Dear Graduating Seniors,
ongratulations Class of whenever! You’ve made it. You have endured 14 years (more or less) of 7 hour structured days, so that you would walk across the stage of education and receive your diploma. Not everyone has made it to where you are, and not everyone will.
You have now been thrust upon a journey that will become entirely your own: LIFE. No other person in the history of the world has had or will have a story exactly like yours.
You may be going towards college, maybe your next path is towards a specific skill set, or perhaps you’re headed to a job. Wherever you find yourself going remember that there will be those out there trying to help you as well as those intent on hindering you from your potential and your dreams.
Right now I am among your ranks, and as I am thrust into my own journey many have imparted their own guidance unto me. I find the best way to honor those who have helped me is to pass on their wisdom to those such as yourself.
Right now I am among your ranks, and as I am thrust into my own journey many have imparted their own guidance unto me. I find the best way to honor those who have helped me is to pass on their wisdom to those such as yourself.
Growing up in an elder dominated southern community, I listened to many different sayings that each have their own meaning, time, and place of use. Warnings such as “when the blind lead the blind, we all end up in a ditch” and “you won’t miss your water till your well runs dry” were used throughout my childhood and I find myself in many situations where they apply more and more often.
Sayings don’t only warn but they build character and skills too. My pastor loves to remind us that “it’s a poor frog that doesn’t praise his own pond.” While searching for what I want to do in life, it’s become common to hear “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.”
One character building saying that has stood out amongst them all and that I really want you to grasp, is to “never put off for tomorrow that which you can do today”.
To put it simply, don’t procrastinate.
Sayings don’t only warn but they build character and skills too. My pastor loves to remind us that “it’s a poor frog that doesn’t praise his own pond.” While searching for what I want to do in life, it’s become common to hear “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.”
One character building saying that has stood out amongst them all and that I really want you to grasp, is to “never put off for tomorrow that which you can do today”.
To put it simply, don’t procrastinate.
There will be many opportunities and choices to come your way. Wasting time and putting these off will only hurt you in the long run. You’ve just proven that you have the will to get things done, or you wouldn’t be receiving your diploma.
This letter is a warning for the non-procrastinators amongst you and a wakeup call for the ones who have already fallen into procrastination’s clutches. Anyone reading this whether being a future, past, present, or having never graduated should at least take away that procrastination stands in between you and your goals.
There will be many things to catch your eye and try to get you off your chosen path, but you have to stand firm. You may be tempted by intramurals and clubs, or relationships (unless of course that’s your goal). And, I’ll proudly admit that my marathon skills are getting better by the month, and by marathon I do mean the Netflix kind.
This letter is a warning for the non-procrastinators amongst you and a wakeup call for the ones who have already fallen into procrastination’s clutches. Anyone reading this whether being a future, past, present, or having never graduated should at least take away that procrastination stands in between you and your goals.
There will be many things to catch your eye and try to get you off your chosen path, but you have to stand firm. You may be tempted by intramurals and clubs, or relationships (unless of course that’s your goal). And, I’ll proudly admit that my marathon skills are getting better by the month, and by marathon I do mean the Netflix kind.
These all may become the things you prioritize before the actions that will bring you closer to your goal. Be wary of these seemingly simple tools, that could very well become your undoing. Small things seem insignificant until they aren't.
One of these small things that took the world by storm was the seemingly innocent dance craze Gangnam Style. In the year of 2014, the world was flooded by the dance phenom Gangnam Style. According to Economist.com, the music video received over 2 billion views on YouTube. The time spent watching that video equates to over 16,000 years. YEARS.
In that amount of time, the world could have achieved so many more meaningful and drastic changes. 16,000 years spent watching this video equates to the same amount of time it would take to build 6 identical copies of the world's largest building, which is over 160 floors high. Instead, we learned a dance and got a catchy tune (that I still don’t completely understand the meaning behind) stuck in our heads.
So the next time you get caught up in a craze, ask yourself if whatever you're doing is as important as reaching where ever you want to go in life. Sure some simple pleasures are nice to enjoy, but try not to get so swept away you lose sight of what you actually want.
In that amount of time, the world could have achieved so many more meaningful and drastic changes. 16,000 years spent watching this video equates to the same amount of time it would take to build 6 identical copies of the world's largest building, which is over 160 floors high. Instead, we learned a dance and got a catchy tune (that I still don’t completely understand the meaning behind) stuck in our heads.
So the next time you get caught up in a craze, ask yourself if whatever you're doing is as important as reaching where ever you want to go in life. Sure some simple pleasures are nice to enjoy, but try not to get so swept away you lose sight of what you actually want.
I am you right now. I’m a member of the Class of 2016 and I’m ready to take the world by storm. But I can’t do that, if I’m not giving my all, and neither can you.
At one point, I thought procrastination was a great idea. I’m smart and resourceful enough that it wouldn’t matter if I started early or waited till the last minute. Then I realized that I wasn’t showing my full potential by procrastinating.
Last winter, I had the opportunity to compete in a 4-H event called District Project Achievement. It’s a two part competition half of your score comes from a portfolio and the other half from an oral presentation.
I nailed my presentation. I had a bomb AF prezi, and I was well dressed and well spoken. My judges almost gave me a perfect score.
The part that pulled me back was my portfolio. A portfolio is a submitted resume of all the things you’ve done the year before. Before I went to the competition, I had no intentions on winning anything. So I waited until the week before the due date to make my portfolio.
I didn’t caption my pictures. I didn’t go into much detail. I just did one, so that I could go to the competition.
That came back to bite me in the butt. In my district, I placed 2nd even though I had a 1st place presentation score. My portfolio came in 7th out of 10.
I know I could have done better, and if I wouldn’t have procrastinated, I would have. I learned the hard way that procrastination isn’t the route to take. So take my advice and stay away from it if you can.
At one point, I thought procrastination was a great idea. I’m smart and resourceful enough that it wouldn’t matter if I started early or waited till the last minute. Then I realized that I wasn’t showing my full potential by procrastinating.
Last winter, I had the opportunity to compete in a 4-H event called District Project Achievement. It’s a two part competition half of your score comes from a portfolio and the other half from an oral presentation.
I nailed my presentation. I had a bomb AF prezi, and I was well dressed and well spoken. My judges almost gave me a perfect score.
The part that pulled me back was my portfolio. A portfolio is a submitted resume of all the things you’ve done the year before. Before I went to the competition, I had no intentions on winning anything. So I waited until the week before the due date to make my portfolio.
I didn’t caption my pictures. I didn’t go into much detail. I just did one, so that I could go to the competition.
That came back to bite me in the butt. In my district, I placed 2nd even though I had a 1st place presentation score. My portfolio came in 7th out of 10.
I know I could have done better, and if I wouldn’t have procrastinated, I would have. I learned the hard way that procrastination isn’t the route to take. So take my advice and stay away from it if you can.
Jobs and professors aren’t looking for slackers, and that’s what procrastination makes you seem like. At the time, procrastination seems like a harmless and okay thing. That 1 page paper or quick overview that you can whip out in a night is no problem to wait a few days to begin. This is a trap.
Procrastination can quickly turn into a black hole that will suck you in until you feel like you’ll never see light again in your life. That 1 page paper you waited on could easily be accompanied with a presentation or project, and then you also have to study for a mid-term in another course as well as make cupcakes for your club’s bake sale that’s the next day. Actions add up, and falling in the quicksand of work isn’t hard to do, but very difficult to escape.
Procrastination can quickly turn into a black hole that will suck you in until you feel like you’ll never see light again in your life. That 1 page paper you waited on could easily be accompanied with a presentation or project, and then you also have to study for a mid-term in another course as well as make cupcakes for your club’s bake sale that’s the next day. Actions add up, and falling in the quicksand of work isn’t hard to do, but very difficult to escape.
There are many “myths” that procrastinators tend to tell themselves in order to continue procrastinating. The Writing Center sponsored by the University of North Carolina has a list of them. One of these myths is that “I do my best work under pressure.”
Building up a list of activities, until there is no possible way for you to complete them, is not going to help you. This isn’t productive stress. If you were to fall for this, you’d only be digging the hole of procrastination deeper.
Procrastination is not the solution to your choices graduates. It’s an extra weight to carry along the long journey of life. Everyone already has baggage, so why add the unnecessary pounds that come in the form of procrastination. Don’t start, it will save you stress and heartache.
Building up a list of activities, until there is no possible way for you to complete them, is not going to help you. This isn’t productive stress. If you were to fall for this, you’d only be digging the hole of procrastination deeper.
Procrastination is not the solution to your choices graduates. It’s an extra weight to carry along the long journey of life. Everyone already has baggage, so why add the unnecessary pounds that come in the form of procrastination. Don’t start, it will save you stress and heartache.
This may seem like really dumb advice to those of you who’ve already started procrastinating. And it should, because you’re too far gone for this to have an enormous effect. You should go check out my other posts that give advice on procrastinating in a healthy way.
If you get nothing else from this letter, know that procrastination isn’t going to get you where you want to be in life. You’re at one of the most important times of your life. Don’t bring extra stress to your choices by procrastinating.
If you get nothing else from this letter, know that procrastination isn’t going to get you where you want to be in life. You’re at one of the most important times of your life. Don’t bring extra stress to your choices by procrastinating.