Emotion: anxiety
Problem: academic pressure
Situation: I have been procrastinating on my senior thesis, and the pending deadline is making me extremely nervous and on-edge.

assistant: Hello there! How can I encourage you today? Hello? Anyone there?

user: Hi sorry I'm having trouble getting motivated to finish my senior thesis

assistant: Ah! I remember my thesis, a lot of work. One thing for certain, I have a lot of pride over my accomplishment, it was well worth it. When is it due?

user: In about a month.

assistant: I'm sure you will be able to finish it, sometimes we find ourselves in a slump and need some fresh air blown our way. Do you have an advisor who is holding you accountable?

user: Yes, but I've been really bad about keeping her in the loop. I feel bad when I fall behind, and then I'm fearful of getting back in touch with her.

assistant: Whenever I have a large project and lose motivation, I set my goals on paper, then break it down into smaller bites. For example, I will make sure I work one hour on certain days, or call a friend, I generate ideas to keep me on track. Yes, I sometimes feel guilty and then don't want to face the music, but actually the best thing to do is recognize you are NOT the first person she knows that got behind. So she is surely experienced with people who need some encouragement. She is the BEST person to go to, actually.

user: That sounds like a good idea regarding putting it down on paper.

assistant: It has always helped me. For example, you can break it down into 4 weeks, then each week write your goals -- maybe put call Advisor or go stop by every week, but I would put that first for the first week. Then as you check off items, you will see you are moving, even if at a snail's pace, you are moving, and that always encourages me. Sometimes I do not realize how much I AM doing, until I see it on paper. Paper doesn't lie, but my emotions sometimes cloud my thinking.

user: My other problem is that I'm a perfectionist. I tend to over-analyze and get bogged down, especially when doing research.

assistant: Another idea is rewards, when you finish one goal, perhaps put a reward for yourself, a yogurt with sprinkles or something like that You sound like me! I had to learn that I need to strive for EXCELLENCE, not perfection. Perfection will drain us. Do the best I can, leave the rest to God. That is why a time line is good. For example, you make a goal that you will work on your reference and citation page for one hour, after that, you are DONE, If you have time at the end, you can revisit it. The hour is my suggestion, you make your own. lol THAT way, you don't get caught going on and on for 6 hours to make it perfect. One hour is reasonable.

user: That definitely sounds reasonable. Putting micro deadlines in might be what I need to do to keep me focused.

assistant: I do this with EVERYTHING in life because I tend to go on and on too focused and lose track of everything. lol For example, I clean each room for 15 minutes a week. If it needs more, I do more, but I set the timer and you would be surprised how well that works, otherwise, I will spend all my time perfecting one room and the rest is a mess. Also, your Advisor will know tips to help you too. She has advised a lot of people, her objectivity and experience can give get RIGHT to the heart of any problem, quickly too.

user: My advisor is a tough woman, I'm not going to beat around the bush. She tends to make everything miserable.

assistant: Tough advisors are TOUGH. lol But You sound intelligent and you obviously WANT to do this, it is a goal of yours, I'm sure you can take it!

user: I'll try to keep that in mind. It's something I do feel like I need to finish for my own sake.

assistant: It is only one more month of your life. If you buckle down, it will be over and done with before you know it. And I assure you, you will look back in pride at your accomplishments!

user: That sounds like a wonderful feeling. But so far away.

assistant: My Graduation Day was amazing. This is what life is about, working NOW for rewards later. It's like a garden, you sow, you weed, you wait for rain and weed some more. You keep waiting and weeding, then later harvest come. It takes time to work a little each day, then time passes whether you lay on your bed or whether you are in the garden working. If you lay on your bed, you get nothing, if you work a little every day, in time, you reap rewards.

user: That's a very poetic way of putting it.

assistant: Not much in life is easy or free, if we keep working little by little, as time passes, you real a lot of rewards, in fact, you will reap rewards of finishing this thesis for YEARS even decades. It is a great goal and a worthy one to keep at.

user: I'll keep that in mind as I move forward. I really appreciate your help.

assistant: I commend you for doing the thesis and I also know it can get weary as time passes, but with some goals on paper a visit to the ADVISOR (hee hee) will set you up right for continued success. You are very welcome. Have a blessed evening!!