Question

How to Overcome Procrastination (拖延症)

If you've ever put off an important task, you know it wouldn’t be fair to describe yourself as lazy. This is just procrastination.

“Procrastination” is derived from the Latin verb procrastinare — to put off until tomorrow. But it's more than just voluntarily delaying. 1.. It means doing something against our better judgment.

We must realize that procrastination is about emotions, not productivity. 2.. Nor are we able to overcome it only by learning ways of self-control. It has to do with managing our emotions in a new way.

3.. This is what researchers found. Students who were able to forgive themselves for procrastinating when studying for a first exam ended up procrastinating less when studying for their next exam. They concluded that self-forgiveness might guarantee future success. It allows students to move pass their improper behavior and focus on the next exam without burden.

Another choice is to make your temptations (诱惑) less attractive. 4.. We can put obstacles between ourselves and our temptations to create a sense of frustration or anxiety. If you keep checking your social media, say, your WeChat, delete those apps from your phone for a while.

Researchers also suggested that we make the things we want to do as easy as possible for ourselves. 5., sleep in your exercise clothes.

A.That may be easier said than done

B.One choice is to explore our curiosity

C.If you feel like running early in the morning

D.So we can’t just download a time management app

E.One option is to forgive yourself when you procrastinate

F.Procrastination also came from the ancient Greek word akrasia

G.It’s still easier to change our surroundings than changing ourselves

Answer

1.F

2.D

3.E

4.G

5.C

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。如果你曾经推迟过一项重要的任务，你就会知道说自己懒惰是不公平的。这只是拖延。文章主要说明了一些克服拖延症的方法。

1.根据后文It means doing something against our better judgment.可知，它意味着做一些违背我们更好判断的事情。由此可知，本句是说明了拖延症起源的词语，后文对其含义做出了解释。故F选项“拖延症也来源于古希腊单词akrasia”符合上下文语境，故选F。

2.根据后文Nor are we able to overcome it only by learning ways of self-control. It has to do with managing our emotions in a new way.可知，我们也不能仅仅通过学习自我控制的方法来克服它。它与以一种新的方式管理我们的情绪有关。由此可知，本句也是在说明一项不推荐的做法，如不能下载一个时间管理应用，也不能仅仅通过学习自我控制的方法来克服它。故D选项“所以我们不能下载一个时间管理应用”符合上下文语境，故选D。

3.根据后文Students who were able to forgive themselves for procrastinating when studying for a first exam ended up procrastinating less when studying for their next exam.可知，那些能够原谅自己在准备第一次考试时的拖延的学生，在准备下一次考试时的拖延就会减少。由此可知，本段是在讲在拖延的时候原谅自己。后文中forgive可对应到F选项中forgive yourself。故E选项“一个选择是当你拖延的时候原谅自己”符合上下文语境，故选E。

4.根据后文If you keep checking your social media, say, your WeChat, delete those apps from your phone for a while.可知，如果你一直在查看你的社交媒体，比如你的微信，那就暂时把那些应用程序从你的手机里删掉。由此可知，我们可以通过改变环境来达到减少诱惑的目的。故G选项“改变我们的环境比改变我们自己更容易”符合上下文语境，故选G。

5.根据后文sleep in your exercise clothes.可知，穿着运动服睡觉。由此可推知，如果是想在清晨跑步，那么晚上就穿着运动服睡觉。故C选项“如果你想在清晨跑步”符合上下文语境，故选C。