So, here we are. In a totally new situation, with a lot of new challenges. How to study at home? How to become productive with temptations like Netflix, Facebook or your bed so close? How to stay in contact with your friends, study mates and relatives? In the upcoming posts we try to help you with these questions and support you to make the best of it. This time on how to deal with the blurriness.
Blurriness
Since we cannot move around that much anymore, we work, sleep, eat, study, eat, hang out and maybe even sport at home. Because everything is so close by you might experience that your daily activities and your use of time become less structured. Everything tends to become blurry.
Negative impact
The negative effect of this blurriness can be guessed. For example:
- A lack of focus when doing things, because you do other things in between.
- Less satisfaction because you can’t easily pinpoint what it is you have done or accomplished.
- Feeling of busyness or stress: you don’t stop to have breaks, you just keep on going.
To prevent your activities to mix up too much, we collected 21 tips for you.
Massive action
Below is a list of 21 tips you can implement into your daily routine to mark transitions from one activity to another. Experts on personal effectiveness teach us we should take massive action. And then check what is working. What doesn’t work you can leave behind and what works stays and becomes part of your habits. So check the tips and implement as many of them as you can.
List of 21
Before you start studying:
1. Start at the same time every day.
2. Tidy up your bed after sleeping.
3. Thank your bed for the comfort last night and tell it you will return when the work is done. Your bed is your friend, so it will probably understand and support you.
4. Dress for the occasion. Dress like you were to go to university.
5. Step outside, take a stroll or bike a small round as if you were going to University.
6. Set up your room, how can you make it look like a library? Clean up, let some fresh air in, put some studying music on, create the light that goes well with studying.
7. Tell yourself:
Now is the time to be productive.
I am a real performer.
Stand by study, here I come!
During studying:
8. Study at your desk, not on your bed.
9. Put your phone in silent mode.
10. Implement effective breaks. Move your body and take some fresh air in.
11. Follow the rhythm of the dishwasher, the tumble dryer or the church bells. Agree on working until these machines stop or until the next time the church bell rings. Setting an alarm on your phone works as well.
After a day of studying:
12. Stop at the same time every day.
13. Set up everything for the next day, make sure you have everything ready to make the next day just as effective as today.
14. Put on your favourite song and turn up the volume to mark the transition.
15. Put your laptop in the closet.
16. Schedule an online meeting at the end of each day, celebrating results with your friends. Award those who did a really nice job and share tips.
17. Change clothes for the occasion. Dress to sport, cook or relax.
During free time:
18. Make your evening worthwhile.
19. Decide on what to do in the evening: watch a movie, paint a wall, play a game, call a family member, learn a new skill, run a distance, read a book, taste a special beer, anything goes but set it as a goal to achieve.
20. Take time to cook a special dinner and enjoy it without your phone or tablet.
21. Take a walk or bike to this place at sunset. Last week there were 16 (!) deer in the meadows behind the trees. Maybe they feel like showing themselves to you too?
Good luck!