On May 14, the Language Center at Tsinghua University hosted a productive English Corner session focusing on the pervasive challenge of procrastination. Facilitated by Dr. John Berra, the event attracted 26 students from diverse disciplines, all keen to hone their English communication skills while exploring strategies to overcome the tendency to delay academic tasks.

This session started by establishing a clear definition of procrastination, with participants then comparing why they procrastinate. Factors cited included fear of failure, poor time management, and media distractions. To combat these negative behavioural habits, students worked in groups to debate the efficacy of selected productivity hacks: The Five-Minute Rule, Task Decomposition, The Pomodoro Technique, “Eat the Frog” and Temptation Bundling. Their energetic yet reflective discussion emphasized that overcoming procrastination not only requires identifying personal triggers, but also determining the most personally suitable way to initiate action.

To achieve its goal, the session culminated with each participant making an impassioned commitment to starting a deferred project or task. This pledge transformed fortified knowledge into palpable momentum, ensuring that participants left both the conceptual framework and renewed motivation to sustain their academic progress.

This was the fifth of six English Corner events that LCTU is hosting this Spring Semester. For more information on the English Corner schedule, please visit: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/UCFBj0XyfOk4bcYigQQNjw

Writer: John Berra

Photographer: Zhi Hui