It’s the middle of May and you are in your last year of high school. Your English teacher is explaining how to write your Senior Thesis. Dozens of topics come to mind, desperate to manifest themselves on paper. You pay no thought to the grueling work you will be putting into these ten pages because you are more excited about having the opportunity to write about anything your heart desires.

As you sit down at your computer to begin writing your thesis, you notice the sun shining through the window blinds. Spring has faded to summer, and the forecast predicts a string of warm, sunny days. You decide to ignore the assignment.

Procrastination is probably the only thing stopping you from completing any assignment. In fact, the reason I have written this article is to explain my challenge of overcoming procrastination at AYC 2008. Delaying completion has always been a major issue for me. Although I have been aware that this bad habit has prevented me from attaining the highest quality in my writing, I have procrastinated in breaking the habit of procrastination.

I thought I could put off the writing assignment I was given at camp.

In fact, I did.

But unlike school assignments, I knew that this one demanded the kind of quality and content that reflects the God of quality. As an ambassador youth, I realized that I could use this opportunity to help others overcome laziness. Thus, I forced myself to be stubborn—too stubborn to let anything or anyone distract me from completing this editorial assignment to the best of my ability.

Personally, I feel that camp has done the most to help me overcome procrastination, not only in regard to writing assignments, but in my own time management and punctuality.

For example, the organized schedule at camp has helped me to see the benefits of dividing time. I found that by planning and timing daily events beforehand, and following through with a schedule, safeguards time for the completion of necessary duties, and also yields free time. Following such a pattern at camp will help me to overcome procrastination in my daily routine.

To exemplify the structure of camp, consider the routine of a typical day: 6:30 a.m. was the first wake-up call and 7:00 a.m. was the second wake-up call. We could take showers during the 45 minutes of free time after the second wake-up call. Breakfast was from 7:45-8:30 a.m., a 45-minute lecture at 9:00 a.m., and then an activity starting at 10:00 a.m. Lunch typically began at 12:30 p.m., depending on the length of the morning activity. Then from 1:30 to 6:00 p.m. we engaged in an afternoon activity, followed by a 6:30-7:30 p.m. dinner, free time from 7:30-9:45 p.m., personal time (for showers and personal care) from 10-10:30 p.m. And precisely 10:30 p.m. was “lights out.”

We should be grateful for having the opportunity to develop skills absolutely essential for being a leader. As a leader, people will depend on your time management abilities when you are faced with time limits.

Although it may seem like a lot of work, writing can be enjoyable. Writing is like momentum: you need an initial force—inspiration—and some hard thinking to get you started. However, you will notice that after much preparation the ideas will often begin to flow out as you write—sometimes so much that it can be difficult to write the thoughts down on paper quickly enough.

For those who want to pursue higher education at college or into any field of work, writing is a vital component. And remember, thank God and His human instruments for providing a chance to develop that skill His way at Ambassador Youth Camp!

Because of the emphasis on timeliness at camp, as well as the revelation of my apparent weakness in “getting things done,” AYC 2008 has truly allowed me to take an upper hand in overcoming procrastination in every form.