Almost every highschool student has felt this sickening feeling, knowing they had things to do, but for some reason could not find the urge to do it. This is the definition of procrastination.  

Procrastination often affects people who have a fear of failure, lack of focus and energy, and perfectionists. Procrastinators are often seen as lazy and half witted when in reality they are usually some of the smartest and most driven people. These people challenge themselves as they attempt to balance their immense amount of work, after school events and social lives. 

“It just feels like there’s so much and that I just can’t start somewhere,” said Emma Leven. 

Many students simply don’t have enough time to do what their assigned while trying to get the recommended amount of sleep, get the proper amount of exercise and spend time with friends and family. Today’s impossible standards put the idea in students mind that a single bad grade or missing assignment can ruin their chances of getting into college, which has become a fake standard of success. 

Pressure makes even the brightest students stressed, anxious and worried. Ironically these feelings make them crack under such pressure and drives their self-esteem into a deep abyss, where they constantly doubt their capabilities and intelligence. 

“ I feel like…everybody expects me to do everything I need to do right when I need to do it, so I don’t do it,” said junior Joseph Steele.

Students are so pressured by parents, teachers, and themselves, that they simply don’t feel like doing anything, because they are afraid of failure. If you can’t do it well why do it at all? Pressure often doesn’t affect lazy students while it makes driven students flustered and stressed.  

“When there’s pressure I feel more overwhelmed by the amount of work I have to do and can no longer focus on the things that need to be done,” said Leven.

Where there is a fear of failure there often is perfectionism. I can attest to the fact that  these pressures make kids feel an immense need to be perfect and when they aren’t they feel moronic.

This generation has been raised to be either perfection or a complete and utter disappointment. Our whole lives we’ve been told to work hard and we’ll be fine or don’t and fail, leaving this innate sense of worry and anxiety in us from an early age. We have essentially been raised to be procrastinators.