The speaker reflects on his college experience as a chronic procrastinator. He discusses how his brain's "instant gratification monkey" often interfered with his work, leading to last-minute rushes to meet deadlines. He humorously presents the concept of the "panic monster" that motivates him to work under pressure. The speaker emphasizes the negative impact of long-term procrastination without deadlines and urges the audience to be aware of their own procrastination tendencies and make the most of their limited time in life.
Sure, here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The speaker was a government major in college and had to write many papers.
2. Their normal approach to writing papers involved spreading the work out over time.
3. They initially planned to work on their senior thesis in a structured manner but procrastinated.
4. They ended up writing the 90-page senior thesis in just 72 hours.
5. The school later called them about their thesis, but it was not as successful as they hoped.
6. The speaker is now a writer and blogger for a blog called "Wait But Why."
7. They decided to write about procrastination and its impact on people's lives.
8. The speaker introduced the concept of the "instant gratification monkey" as a symbol of procrastination.
9. They explained that procrastination can have both short-term and long-term effects.
10. The speaker encouraged everyone to reflect on what they might be procrastinating on in life and take action.
Please note that these facts are summarized from the provided text, and opinions have been excluded.