Everyone has been there. You have an hour to kill so you decide to start that one show your friend has been bugging you to watch. Suddenly one episode turns into two, two turns into three and by the time you find yourself standing up to go to the kitchen you check your phone and see it’s 3 a.m and you have a test in five hours. Do you study, sleep or finish those last 20 minutes of episode three?
As college students we are prone to procrastination. Deadlines means nothing until we’re staring it right in the face with no time to catch up. It’s a problem that has to be addressed and this writer is here to help you with that:
Plan, plan, plan – You know that planner you write your daily assignments and homework in, you may have your work schedule or important appointments scribbled throughout it, that thing, you’re going to want to use that to plan your episodes. Scatter your episodes amongst your free time. If you see a generally free evening in your future, plan to finish up those last few episodes of season two and maybe start season three.
Use the buddy system – Things are always better when done with a friend. A friend will be there to go with you, just as “casual fans” to that one panel in L.A. or Burbank with the cast and crew of the show. But mostly a friend will be there to remind you, or for you to remind them, to press pause and go to the library so you can finish researching climate change patterns for that earth science paper.
Know your limits – As a human being with physical, psychological and emotional needs, you must realize that when you press play and you’re telling yourself “just one episode” you are realistically going to sit through at least two episodes. Your mind needs rest, sleep resets the brain and “charges” it for another day of binge watching. Also keep yourself hydrated on things besides coffee and energy drinks or you’ll find yourself waking up in a hospital bed severely dehydrated and looking for Doctor McSteamy.
Mix it up – Sitting in your bed with your laptop for a whole weekend finishing up the last two seasons of Breaking Bad sounds like a great idea, but it’s really not. Try and be productive and put your multi-tasking skills to work. If Walter White can live a double life, so can you. Watch some episodes on your computer while eating your well-rounded meals of ramen and gatorade, maybe listen to some on your smartphone while jogging on treadmill at the gym or play it on your television while folding some laundry. Be productive and you’ll find yourself in a good place when you run out of episodes.
Keep reality in focus – Just because Olivia Pope is covering up for all these White House scandals and destroying super secret spy agencies all for the sake of the Republic, doesn’t mean this is really happening in our nation’s capital. Shows like Boardwalk Empire, Mad Men and Rome play with historical facts more oft than not. Just because you see it in the television show doesn’t mean it necessarily happened. Shows are written with added drama and situations are often exaggerated for you the viewer.
You don’t have to sacrifice your sacred tv shows and marathons, you just have to learn how to manage them and intertwine them within your day to day life. Multitasking is a skill you can practice now and use in the future when instead of procrastinating on your history paper, you’re procrastinating on your work reports.
Taking care of yourself is key. For all that daydreaming about running with the pack on Teen Wolf you’re probably going to want to hit the gym to look as amazing as Tyler Hoechlin.