This blog post is SPECIAL!!!! This is a mystery post. Somewhere in the attached video is a hidden lesson for procrastinators in remission.
You have been given a report on the happenings of Procrastination-The Musical. Actually watching the video will be a way bigger help though, plus it’s super entertaining.
Given before the big reveal of the hidden message are a few clues and tools that can either be guides in this mystery case or diversions. Either way, it’s still up to you to figure out what can be taken from the video. (Or you can be lazy and read the end without guessing, but that’s no fun.)
So, happy sleuthing to you my dear detectives.
You have been given a report on the happenings of Procrastination-The Musical. Actually watching the video will be a way bigger help though, plus it’s super entertaining.
Given before the big reveal of the hidden message are a few clues and tools that can either be guides in this mystery case or diversions. Either way, it’s still up to you to figure out what can be taken from the video. (Or you can be lazy and read the end without guessing, but that’s no fun.)
So, happy sleuthing to you my dear detectives.
The Field Report
The characters of the AVByte brothers’ musical go through many situations that people find themselves in. It begins with a stressed out red head who is checking social media instead of writing a 20 page paper in Greek that’s due the next day. From putting off work by organizing things because one girl “can’t work until it’s done”, to gaming instead of doing household chores, the musical shows procrastination in many forms.
All of the activities used to Procrastinate hold importance to each character and pull them away from their desire to work. There were some overly dramatized situations, like the boy who lost his arm and wanted to play catch instead of going to the hospital.
Otherwise the whole musical shows off the good and bad of procrastinating while also giving examples of the way people think that leads them away from the actions they need to get done to things they would rather do instead.
All of the activities used to Procrastinate hold importance to each character and pull them away from their desire to work. There were some overly dramatized situations, like the boy who lost his arm and wanted to play catch instead of going to the hospital.
Otherwise the whole musical shows off the good and bad of procrastinating while also giving examples of the way people think that leads them away from the actions they need to get done to things they would rather do instead.
The Clues
A musical is a grand and exciting thing. There are the costumes, the story line, and the punny songs. PTM has some of that, but what it has in spades are rhetorical tools that make it more interesting and allows for a better connection with the audience. Pathos, being an argument made for the heart, is used on the entertainment side of things, and the musical used two flexible techniques throughout the piece. Like a designer using accenting colors to bring the focal points of designs out, pathos is used to strengthen and promote the topic of discussion. Continuing on the emotional side, the musical is also jam packed with desire, or rather the character’s desire to act or not act. These examples are pulled and backed by Jay Heinrichs in his book, Thank You For Arguing. And together all of these examples pull together to make procrastination seem very common.
The 1st of the pathetic tools used is STORYTELLING! Now many of you are probably thinking isn’t a musical a story itself? How can it use storytelling if it is a story? That’s just it, you wouldn’t put a clumsy person in a dance battle when you have a dance crew right behind you, so why not use the technique of storytelling in a story.
To back up this logic, Heinrichs gives us a piece of Aristotle wisdom. He says “the most effective mood changer is a detailed narrative. The more vivid you make the story, the more it seems like a real experience, and the more your audience thinks it could happen to them.” (pg 84) Storytelling as a rhetorical tool is essentially makes the audience put themselves in the character shoes, and I think the musical did that very well.
To back up this logic, Heinrichs gives us a piece of Aristotle wisdom. He says “the most effective mood changer is a detailed narrative. The more vivid you make the story, the more it seems like a real experience, and the more your audience thinks it could happen to them.” (pg 84) Storytelling as a rhetorical tool is essentially makes the audience put themselves in the character shoes, and I think the musical did that very well.
This tool helps the AVByte brothers to successfully make the audience feel included in a group, while also making them more susceptible to persuasion. The way that the scenarios were set up was so that people can identify with the characters and their forms of procrastination. The start, with the girl who laments about her soon due long paper that she really wants to start but can’t because she’s continually sidetracked, is great for drawing the most common procrastinators in even if it seems a little far fetched.
The 2nd pathetic tool used in PTM also uses humor to make the audience open up. “Humor relaxes the more fearful emotions”, according to Heinrichs (pg 99). This allows for people’s defenses to be lowered and for persuasion to take a greater effect.
Humor isn’t always a gut busting laughter inducer, some humor comes to just slightly tickle your funny bone. The over exaggerated scene with the boy who wants to play catch even though his arm is missing can be taken as a witty situation, and the banter that each individual has with their conscious is fairly funny yet relatable. I mean who hasn’t thought “ I’ll start a diet” and then“mmm, better not” because food is soooooo good.
Humor isn’t always a gut busting laughter inducer, some humor comes to just slightly tickle your funny bone. The over exaggerated scene with the boy who wants to play catch even though his arm is missing can be taken as a witty situation, and the banter that each individual has with their conscious is fairly funny yet relatable. I mean who hasn’t thought “ I’ll start a diet” and then“mmm, better not” because food is soooooo good.
Desire is the way to go to get things done. If people don’t desire something then they won’t care as strongly about it. The Avbyte brothers’ musical shows off the tool of changing a person’s desire to act.
The musical uses the tool like a grandmother uses a guilt trip. You may not want to do something at first, but you eventually do it because her pity looks and arguments about how she took care of you in your youth convince you that what she wants is less painful than you seeming ungrateful.
In the musical, the characters convince themselves that procrastinating is less painful than doing the actual work. In each individual's thought process, they lead themselves away from work and into procrastination.
Heinrichs believes that to get someone to actually do something, “ you need to convince it… that whatever you want them to do won’t make them sweat” pg 25. The character’s arguments fall right in line with this because they each believe the work will get done eventually, but not right then. Right then they are procrastinating.
The musical uses the tool like a grandmother uses a guilt trip. You may not want to do something at first, but you eventually do it because her pity looks and arguments about how she took care of you in your youth convince you that what she wants is less painful than you seeming ungrateful.
In the musical, the characters convince themselves that procrastinating is less painful than doing the actual work. In each individual's thought process, they lead themselves away from work and into procrastination.
Heinrichs believes that to get someone to actually do something, “ you need to convince it… that whatever you want them to do won’t make them sweat” pg 25. The character’s arguments fall right in line with this because they each believe the work will get done eventually, but not right then. Right then they are procrastinating.
All of these tools are just fine and dandy. Now you know why that musical was so appealing, besides the great show tune that took up the whole video. The storytelling drew you in, while the humor knocked down your defenses, and finally the desire they put forth to do nothing led you to continue procrastinating. But is this a good thing to watch for those of us in procrastination rehab? Not really, unless of course you can find the hidden lesson to be learned from the video.
The Big Reveal
Okay Super Sleuths here it is the great lesson to be taken from PTM. This musical is a great way to look in the mirror and see what you are putting off in favor of other activities.
Are you not doing chores by saying you have more “important” things to do? Are you not writing a paper because distractions come in many forms? Or are you not doing actual work because simple busy work is getting in your way?
The chart below covers a few more procrastination strategies than the musical, and includes almost all of the types portrayed in PTM.
Are you not doing chores by saying you have more “important” things to do? Are you not writing a paper because distractions come in many forms? Or are you not doing actual work because simple busy work is getting in your way?
The chart below covers a few more procrastination strategies than the musical, and includes almost all of the types portrayed in PTM.
Knowing the things you use to procrastinate can help you to control your time wasting. If you are a gamer have a timer set on parental control so you’re usage is limited.(Afraid you’ll be tempted to just throw the password in and continue playing. Have a friend set the code for you so they can only unlock it when you’re actually done with your work.)
If you’re distracted easily, find a setting where you can’t be pulled away from work. This may be the library for some, or maybe a friend’s house who doesn’t have internet for others.
If you surf the internet there are a large number of blocking programs out there, finding the one that’s right for you is the struggle. Simply Zesty has plenty of great examples if you are in need them in their post 8 top tools to help beat web procrastination.
If you’re distracted easily, find a setting where you can’t be pulled away from work. This may be the library for some, or maybe a friend’s house who doesn’t have internet for others.
If you surf the internet there are a large number of blocking programs out there, finding the one that’s right for you is the struggle. Simply Zesty has plenty of great examples if you are in need them in their post 8 top tools to help beat web procrastination.
After you identify your style of procrastination and a way to overcome it, that’s half the battle. Now the second half is all about your desire to act.
Find your strategy and stick with it, and if it’s not working find one that does. Being a chronic procrastinator isn’t always smiles and giggles like PTM makes it out to be.
That redhead who looks fairly shabby at the beginning could very well be you at a mild stage. Just think if she not only had that paper, but also a big event to plan as well as work for other classes. Something wouldn’t get done, but she’d still have to at least try. Don’t let that be you. Mysteries are fun and all, but wondering where all your time went, is no one’s favorite guessing game.
Find your strategy and stick with it, and if it’s not working find one that does. Being a chronic procrastinator isn’t always smiles and giggles like PTM makes it out to be.
That redhead who looks fairly shabby at the beginning could very well be you at a mild stage. Just think if she not only had that paper, but also a big event to plan as well as work for other classes. Something wouldn’t get done, but she’d still have to at least try. Don’t let that be you. Mysteries are fun and all, but wondering where all your time went, is no one’s favorite guessing game.