“I don’t want to school.” “I’ll just call in sick.” Whatever the wording may be, it is common for seniors in either high school or college to lose the push at the tail end of their academic careers. Instead of working on any upcoming assignments, they would much rather doomscroll through their phone or spend time hanging out with friends. Is there an issue with either of those things? Some students feel that there is not harm in procrastinating, a view which may or may not be true for them-- but what causes this almost automatic laziness or lack of effort?

The issue with that question is that, in many cases, the usual process of identifying senioritis is claiming that it is laziness and nothing more. Can it be accounted for as lazy? Yes, but it is not the same as the normal “typical” laziness. Take this particular Scroll article, for example, in which the writer has pushed the assignment back for so long that it has slowly crept up on him and he has now found himself rushing to finish it in one day. Did he put any effort into trying to write before the deadline hit him? No, but, he also found himself stuck on the first paragraph. Sometimes, students need a push to get through senioritis, whether that be through consequences via parents or personal inspiration.

To all the seniors out there (or the ones who will read this): good luck. It is not easy to deal with procrastination and a loss of motivation (as a professional of both), but taking each day one at a time can help stun those difficulties. Take the time to enjoy each moment, and also never forget to make those moments special by going on that “grind” beforehand to make it more like a reward than a crutch. At the very least, just try to work on the assignments that are due today.