Transcription
You know what, let's darken the screen. Can you see your own reflection? Are you lying in bed? Maybe you're watching this on the toilet because you're so addicted to your phone, you can't go a minute without it. Or maybe you're just procrastinating on your assignment. I don't know how you're watching this video, but I can probably guess that you're in a constant state of guilt and self-loathing, disappointed because you would have achieved your goals if you just stuck to it.
So, if you want to change your life and stop this self-sabotage, the first thing that I need you to do is really simple: finish watching this video. Because if you can't even finish a 15-minute video, you cannot expect to manage your entire day, let alone change your life. I can promise you, by the end of this video, you'll know exactly how to stop procrastinating, how to stop being lazy, break free from your phone addiction, some unique tips, how to create a simple plan to stay organized, and how to overcome perfectionism so that you can actually start making real progress in your life. It is going to be hard. You're going to feel the urge to switch to a different app or even take some breaks, but that's okay. But you need to remember, bestie, the only thing standing between the current version of you and the dream version of yourself is you. And as a present for making it till the end, I'll be giving you a free downloadable package that you can use to overcome this rut. Let's go.
The first thing that you need to do is stop consuming relatable content online. So recently, I've had a lot of "finish my uni assignment in X number of hours" videos pop up on my for you page. I found them so interesting. I actually shared a few with my mom. But a lot of these videos were talking about how much they hated their subject and how they always left their assignments till the last minute. And as I scrolled and scrolled, I became numb to that behavior. And so suddenly, submitting my assignment late didn't seem like a big deal anymore because everyone else was doing it too. And so I realized that consuming relatable content is a trap. Yes, it definitely gives us comfort and community when we need it most. But it starts becoming harmful when this is a space that we don't want to feel comfortable in in the long term. You will start to become the content that you consume. And so constant exposure to not only content about procrastination, but things like insecurities, eating habits, self-doubt, all these things will keep you in a cycle of negativity that you want to break free from. Especially when a lot of the comments under these posts will talk about how they're feeling the same way. And so what I want you to do is to create a new account, whether that's TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram. Create a new account and only follow people who inspire you and are living the life that you want to live. We are humans, so I totally understand if you start feeling jealous or bad about yourself when you watch these people. But I want you to remember this: what's stopping you? Why can't that be you? I mean, people are just productive naturally. We don't pop out the womb running 5K marathons and typing 1,000-word essays, you know? It's an active choice that you have to make every day, and it's a choice that you can make too. So break that habit of only watching relatable content and start watching people that actually inspire you to take action. Subscribe if you're enjoying this video so far.
Next, overcoming your phone addiction. If you're someone that has consistently tried to stop their phone addiction but failed, it's probably because you've tried to cut it down from 8 hours of screen time to 2 hours. That's just too much of a jump. It's not going to work. Just like how smokers will transition from using cigarettes to nicotine patches to ease out of their addiction, we need to apply the same principle to our phone addiction. We need to do it with intention. But how do you do that? If you have a lot of work to do but just can't stop scrolling through TikTok, don't fight it. Keep your phone with you, but tell yourself that you'll start the work. Maybe it's just writing one sentence or getting your supplies. The point is to begin, even if our phones are right there, because our goal right now is to make progress and not to be perfect. And more about this in the last tip.
Another way is to make your phone go from a distraction to a tool. And the only thing you need to do is switch to a more productive app. You don't even need to get up. For example, you can choose to learn a new language instead of scrolling on TikTok. Personally, I have no interest in learning a new language, so I prefer using an app called Brilliant. I'm pretty sure I've shown myself using this app a few times before in my vlogs, but basically, Brilliant is this website/app that takes complicated subjects like engineering, programming, computer science, or AI, and they turn it into game-like, bite-sized lessons. During the pandemic, I actually tried to learn how to code, but it was way too boring and I completely lost interest. Since then, I've actually switched to Brilliant just to learn the basics of coding here and there throughout university, and I find that much more fun. But this year, I'm actually really enjoying the critical thinking and problem-solving lessons because it really just feels like a game. And a lot of you actually told me that you're enjoying the lessons too. But if you're a student, I think you'll find Brilliant even more helpful because one, you can get a hit of your peers by doing the basics of different subjects during your holidays, and two, you can use this app to get an introduction to complicated subjects like engineering and see if that's actually what you want to pursue in university. Honestly, just by dedicating about 15 minutes a day, you'll be amazed at how many new things you learn. You can actually try it for free for 30 days using the link brilliant.org/sfafilms. I'll leave it in the description box below, and you can also get 20% off the annual premium subscription.
Next, please stop rushing everything and everywhere. Why are you always late for everything, bestie? When we rush something, we're always thinking to ourselves, "Hmm, let's just get this done and over with," or "That's just good enough for me, I guess." But if you keep doing things last minute, these statements are no longer just statements, they become our personality. It is a never-ending cycle. Constantly needing to do everything quickly will just drain your energy and motivation, and it's going to make it really hard to stay consistent in the long run. Another thing, when we're rushing, the quality of our work drops, right? And then we don't get the results that we want, which makes us upset and unmotivated, which makes us not want to start the work again. It's a never-ending cycle that will ruin your life. Slow down and start earlier. Slowing down lets us pay attention to detail, recover our energy, and produce work that we're actually proud of, whether that's in our hobbies, our personal life, or anything else. Productivity isn't just about how fast you can complete things, but also about how efficiently you move towards your goals. It's not a flex to be able to finish five lectures a day if the only reason you accomplished that is because you started late and you had no other choice. So bestie, start doing things earlier. And in the next point, we'll learn how to do that.
Next, have a monthly plan. Let me know if you're the same, but sometimes I feel like a daily plan can be really overwhelming, especially when I'm just not feeling it. And when I don't get anything done, I feel even worse. If you struggle with that, I want you to get yourself one of these. It's a monthly calendar, and I'll leave a few of my favorites in the description box below. Every month, outline what you have due. Start by writing down your big commitments like exams, project deadlines, or important events. Once you've marked those down, plan smaller tasks around them. For example, if you have a test at the end of the month, set smaller study goals for each week leading up to it. I find that a lot more manageable because you can just decide which day you want to start since you already know what you need to get done that week. And to make your life easier, I've actually prepared a free printable monthly template that you can download and print immediately while you still have the motivation. I'll link it in the description box below. And the payment that I need from you is for you to subscribe and comment down below: "I will start working towards my goals today." And it is my birthday, so feel free to leave a like on this video as a little present. A small tip as well: if you have something due in the first week of the next month, like my test here, make a note of it in the previous month because there's nothing worse than flipping the calendar and then being caught off guard. Remember, predictability brings peace. You won't be caught off guard by sudden deadlines or unexpected errands, and you'll feel more in control of your life. And when you note down special occasions, it's something for you to look forward to.
Next, reduce decision fatigue. A lot of your problems will be solved if you just keep one thing in mind: reduce decision fatigue. Basically, the more decisions you have to make throughout the day, the more your mental energy gets depleted. You know when you're just sick of thinking about what you want to eat for dinner every night? That feeling. And you want to know the best way to feel decision fatigue? Having a messy space. It's not even about hygiene anymore, it's just that when your space is constantly messy and disorganized, you're always making little, little decisions that will wear you out over time. And this is completely avoidable. "Where is this? What do I need next? I'm already late, and I can't find my purse." And when it gets really bad, we won't want to get out of bed because even going to the toilet means you have to move the chair, move the blanket, step over the shoes, move the clothes. And it's really unfortunate because we don't even realize how much our space affects us until our mental health gets really bad. So I'm going to give you two things, just two, that you can start doing now to reduce decision fatigue. They're super simple. One: when you're working or being productive and you want to take a break, set up your workspace for your next task before you leave your desk. What I mean is, open the tab that you'll need, organize your desk, and make sure everything is in place. That way, when you sit back down, all you need to do is start. You can just jump straight back into your work without any hesitation. This will especially help you if you have trouble with procrastination and getting back into work after taking breaks. Second thing you need to do is put your space to sleep every night. Just spend 5 minutes tidying up before bed, preparing your clothes for the next day, and setting up your environment so that it's ready to support your best self. And try to make it a habit to write a to-do list every night before you go to sleep so that you wake up knowing exactly what to do and you don't have to think about it. Reducing decision fatigue is not just about making fewer choices every day, but also about setting yourself up for success. If you want more tips on how to increase productivity effortlessly, I did make a video on this that I'll link up here and in the description box below. An advertisement might play in the next few minutes, so if you would like to support this channel, please do not skip the ad. Thank you.
Next, have fixed commitments. If you're absolutely hopeless at being disciplined, then create a schedule that resembles a high school timetable. What do I mean by this? Basically, sometimes we just need to create deadlines for ourselves. For example, meeting our friends to work or study. You're most likely going to show up because you don't want to let your friends down, and you're going to also get some work done. I hope you can also go to the library two to three hours before it closes. This is another effortless deadline. Just tell yourself that you can only leave after the library closes. If you don't like exercising, try signing up for exercise classes. You're probably not going to skip because that's just wasting money. And that's just a few examples of what I mean by having fixed commitments. When you have scheduled activities, you don't need to decide when or where to start. You simply don't have a choice, kind of like high school, you know? We didn't have a problem studying eight hours a day because we simply didn't have a choice. And now three hours at university feels like a lifetime. If you want more tips on how to be disciplined, I did make a video before. I'll leave it here.
Next, break the all-or-nothing mentality. I want all my chronic perfectionists to listen. One of the best advice that anyone has ever given me was from my mom. I basically told her that I was sick of doing the laundry, I just couldn't be bothered to fold all of them, and she said one simple thing: "Who says you have to fold all of them now?" Huh? Yeah, why do I have to complete a task once I've started it? Tell me if you feel the same, but sometimes as a perfectionist, I feel like my worst enemy is myself because sometimes I feel like I only have two choices in life, which is to either do it perfectly or don't do it at all. But more often than not, it just leads to burnout and procrastination. The truth is that progress does not have to be perfect. So instead of thinking, "I have to do this perfectly right now," I've just learned to embrace the idea of doing just something, even if it's just folding half the laundry, washing one dish, writing one paragraph of my essay, or working on a project for 10 minutes. That small step is still progress, and it's much better than nothing. Plus, if you woke up late, that does not mean that the entire day is wasted. I did make a whole video on this that you can also check out. The key is to just start. I promise, bestie, once you let go of that all-or-nothing mentality, you'll feel a lot less pressure, you'll accomplish more, and you'll avoid that procrastination trap that comes with chasing perfection. If you have made it this far, comment down below: "What is one small task you've been putting off that you want to start today?" Remember to subscribe and turn on notifications and set to all so that you don't miss out on future uploads. Thank you for 1,210,000 subscribers, and I'll see you all in my next video and in my shorts and in my reels. Follow me on Instagram as well. Bye.