The Little Procrastination Guide: How to Avoid Your Thesis

These past two weekends, I've intended to get some work done on my thesis. Last weekend, however, going out for two nights in a row led to quite a comatose, unproductive weekend. This weekend I did manage to get a few things done, but nothing too notable. So, to anyone else working on their thesis, or something similar, here are a couple of ways to procrastinate, while still feeling like you're doing something worthwhile and work related:

1. DIY - Make a nice cover for your diary
A couple of years ago I remember my friend Anna having covered her diary in photos of her friends, so I thought I'd do the same. I got myself one of those diaries that let you make your own covers, printed out some (really bad quality) photos, and this is the result:

Front cover

Back cover

Despite the crappy quality and the uneven pictures, I have to say I'm really pleased with how it turned out! And it makes me smile every time I see it.

2. Time management
I tend to be a lot better at planning my time than actually following those plans, but that doesn't stop me from trying. I've seen a couple of friends making monthly calendars from post it notes on their wall, especially when there are lots of deadlines or things to get done during a certain period. It's also a great visualisation tool, so I thought I'd use it for my master's thesis (see, I was sort of working on it, right?). I've picked a deadline for it, which is mid-December, and I made this to keep track:

It covers a period of 15 weeks, starting on 3rd September, and I'll be marking all major deadlines, meetings with the professor, exams etc. on it. I'll also be removing a post it note every day, which hopefully will motivate me (not long to go now!) and not stress me (oh crap, there's no way I can finish it on time!) - it could go either way...