11/7/15With school in full swing, and classwork showing no sign of slowing down it is important to keep up with all of the homework given. I am sure I am not the only one though that just wants to spend free time browsing the internet rather than writing papers or studying. It isn't easy to just sit hours on end doing homework when there are so many better things to be doing. There are also times when I know I need to be getting work done, but I just can't bring myself to start it. There will be days however when realty comes crashing down and I realize how much I need to do and how little time I have to do it, and that is usually when I buckle down and get to work. These are some of the things I do when I am in these situations where I am stressed and need to stay focused. Of course these are also helpful if you are just lazy and not necessarily stressed out. They are just simple tips that can be used to increase your productivity and I thought I would share them to help out any stressed readers.
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My first tip seems kinda dumb or pointless, but hear me out. My first tip for becoming productive is to change out of your pajamas. This is especially true if you are having trouble working up the motivation to get started working. Now I know pajamas are comfy and there are nice to wear so aren't sitting around in skinny jeans trying to write a paper, but you most likely have other comfy clothes that aren't pajamas and just wear those. There is something about being in your pajamas that makes you want to just sit around and do nothing, but when you change into actual clothes your mindset changes and you feel like you should start doing work. Now this could just be me, but I know a major tip for people who work from home is to change out of your pajamas and get ready for the day, so even though it is weird it most likely works. Now like I said you can still wear comfy things, but have them be actual clothes and not pajamas.
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Now this next tip I know will not be as easy for many of you, but in my opinion it is one of the most important tips. This is getting up early and starting your day. Now I am a morning person so I especially like to get up early and start working since I work best in the morning, but it is beneficial for everyone to get up early and to start working. If you get up and complete a bunch of things in the morning, even if they are just simple things like picking the clothes off the floor, changing out of your pajamas, or unpacking your backpack, you will still feel productive. When you start working in the morning by lunch you have gotten some stuff done and you day is only about half way over, if that. Now I do realize that waking up early for school everyday is awful, and the last thing you want to do on a Saturday is get up and early to do homework. However, being awake when the sun is up is really motivating and even if you are night owl, you can at least try and get things done in the morning and then you can still stay up late doing homework, so really you get the best of both worlds, and then just sleep in on Sunday. Like I said I know most people hate getting up in the morning, but if you are really stressed or have a lot of work to do it can be so helpful.
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When your working it is good to work with small breaks now and again since it helps give your brain a break and makes sure you won’t burn out. This is especially helpful when you have really long boring tasks to do. Now I wouldn’t say use these small breaks to check social media since that is often leads to being sidetracked, but getting up and doing something else for a few minutes helps when you need to go back and focus again. Another tip I have is to use a system I call long task-short task, which is where you do one small easy thing first and then go an do something longer and more difficult, then you go back and do another quick task and you keep switching back and forth. The short tasks keep you going and motivated, while the longer tasks are more rewarding once they are done. Doing short tasks after completing a big one is a similar idea to taking short breaks since it takes your focus away from the previous task, but you are still getting things done at the same time. Sometimes if I take a short break to do something fun I become less motivated to go back to working, so by doing small tasks you are still working but it gives you mind that break it needs.
My next tip is to organize and clean your space. A clean and organized room leads to a clean and organized space which leads to more productivity. Now if you are like me and you can't think if the room is messy than you can start by cleaning, but if it doesn't bother you as much you can use cleaning your room as a short task for the process I just talked about. Cleaning and organizing is great because you can feel productive while not having to think a lot or do homework. If you want to try and get up early but you can't bring yourself to start homework right away you can clean first which again will make you feel productive and after you are done you might be in the mood to start homework then. Similar to the getting up early tip, this may not work for everyone the same, but I still encourage it since I find myself getting distracted by things I see in my room and on my floor while doing homework if things aren't put away. Cleaning can be thought of as a way of procrastination, for people, but I don't see it as that, because I see it as still beneficial to doing work because at least for me I can get more done in a clean room than a messy room, so organizing is working towards increasing productivity and therefore I don't see it as procrastination. Or at least this is what I tell myself as I clean my room while I should be writing papers, just kidding I usually clean my room each night so I can wake up to a clean room and be ready to work.
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My next tip is to make lists. Like I said I use a planner each day, but I write and rewrite to do lists multiple times a day since writing down the things I need to do helps keep me on task and helps keep everything I need to do fresh in my mind. Although not all your lists have to be to do lists, you can have done lists as well. If you feel unproductive when creating to do lists make done lists instead where you write down everything you have completed and as the list grows you become motivated to do more and seeing everything you have done in a day can help make you feel more accomplished and ready to work more the next day. I think it all depends on the type of person you are and what you find most motivating. For me seeing everything I need to do and checking them off is motivating enough.
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Finally my last tip is to schedule out your day, very ordinary but very important. Visualizing what you have to do and when you have to do it is very beneficial and it helps make the tasks you need to complete doable. I use a planner everyday, but when I know I have a lot going on I will rewrite everything down and into a way that fits best. For example in this picture I scheduled out two days and separated them into morning, afternoon, and night showing what I needed to do and then put a to do at the end for things that didn't have a specific time. Scheduling out each day by the hour or by just chunks of time, really does help you become more productive, because you have a realistic goal of what you need to do and how you are going to get it done. It is very beneficial in times of stress.
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There are of course tons and tons of other productivity tips out there, these are just the ones I like the best and use the most. Although if you want some more I have included a video from one of my favorite youtubers at the moment on how to be productive, which I highly recommend.