#productivity

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I was doing a little mental spring cleaning and had this little talk with myself. You are welcome to listen in. Transcript below the image on my website.

elvenpriestess:

don’t you hate it when you’re being interviewed and they’re like, “tell me about yourself”?

ma'am, i do not have enough of a sense of self to accurately describe myself. in fact, i try very hard to avoid self-perception. but i swear i can do the job, please hire me

dduane:…Just storing this where I won’t lose it. (transcription: “Today’s not-so-vague writing vague

dduane:

…Just storing this where I won’t lose it.

(transcription: “Today’s not-so-vague writing vaguetweet: Wordcounts & daily time “worked” are useless as metrics to judge the value, success or validity of your work (or others’). Someone dictates process to you? Kick them to the curb and get on with writing in your own way and at your own pace.”)

(For those who’ve missed it: today our buddy John Scalzi shared this tweet

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…to which there were numerous salutory responses. My favorite:

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…So anyway: back to work. (With the day’s moral, if it needed one: Ignore the writer!baboons showing each other how big their daily wordcount is / how many hours they worked today / how red their butts are. Do your work, get writing done,however you do it, and let that speak for you.)


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Reading homework whilst drinking a cuppa

Reading homework whilst drinking a cuppa


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It’s my first time to drop by in months and I’m so so sorry to everyone who sent me a message here but didn’t get a response!

I think I’m in a good headspace to answer some this week so you’ll see some posts from me pop on your dash! I’ll be choosing and answering questions related to art, organization, productivity, and work/studies! In case you want to add more questions, here’s the link to my ask box.

Please keep safe and take care of yourself!

July 2018 FreebiesStay focused and organized with this month’s freebie bundle!The printable&rs

July 2018 Freebies

Stay focused and organized with this month’s freebie bundle!

The printable’s minimal design will inspire you to move forward with your goals and keep your days on track. It also lets your creativity and individuality shine since you can add your own designs. Pair it with this artsy wallpaper, and you’re one step closer to making this month your own!

Download links:printables/desktop wallpaper

+ I’d love to see how you use these freebies in your day-to-day activities! Please tag me on Instagram @arialligraphy or use #arialligraphy / #thearialligraphyproject here on Tumblr so that I can feature your post!


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soft-study-vibes:

It’s important to learn how to be alone. Whether you be heading to university, or living in your first apartment. Even when you have a partner, and close relationships with your friends and family, there will be times where you’ll be alone. Use this opportunity to get to know yourself better. Learn to change those feelings of isolation and loneliness into ones of positivity and independence. Take the time to watch your favourite shows, try that new recipe you’ve been holding back on. Dance around your room to those nostalgic 00’s bops. Being alone doesn’t have to be a negative experience! So take these moments and let them be filled with new experiences and self-love more than anything else.

staedtlers-and-stabilos: If this is the 700th tumblr post you’ve seen today, you need this post. 

staedtlers-and-stabilos:

If this is the 700th tumblr post you’ve seen today, you need this post. 

Practice Scheduling

  • Schedule a particular task in the morning and once in the evening.
    • The task should not take more than 15 minutes.
    • Wait for the exact scheduled time. -when the schedule time is due, start the task.
    • Advantages: Scheduling helps you focus on your priorities. 
  • Focus on starting tasks rather than completing to avoid procrastination.

Use Routines

  • Instead of devoting a lot of hours one day, and none the other and then a few on an another day and so on, allocate a specific time period each day of the week for that task.
  • Don’t set a goal other than time allocation- simply set the habit of routine.
  • Apply this technique to your homework or your projects.

Have Daily Scheduling

  • When you first begin your work day, or going to work take a few minutes and write down on a piece of paper the tasks that you want to accomplish for that day.
  • Prioritize the list.
  • Immediately start working on the most important one.
  • Try it for a few days to see if the habit works for you.
  • Habits form over time: how much time depends on you and the habit.

Find Successful Role Models

  • Observe the people in your life and see to what extent self discipline and habits help them accomplish goals. 
  • Ask them for advice on what works, what does not.
  • Don’t replicate their ideas, come up with your own plan. 

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collegerefs: I know everyone just wants to relax during the summer, but you shouldn’t just let tho

collegerefs:

I know everyone just wants to relax during the summer, but you shouldn’t just let those 3-4 months waste away! Stay productive and you will thank yourself in the fall. Here are some ways to stay productive and continue challenging yourself in the summer! 


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universtudy:

I am making this post based on a request by an anonymous user, but as soon as I heard the idea it really resonated with me. When you are a perfectionist, like I am, procrastination comes very easily. As soon as I have a single doubt about what I am doing, I stop and turn to something else, which leads to a lot of unfinished assignments and unnecessary stress. So in this post, I’m going to give you my best advice on how to avoid this very thing and get back to work! 

Methods of Planning

You  need to start by addressing how you are organizing you time and if it needs to change. 

  1. Daily study schedule: This is my least favourite, and in my opinion leads to the worst kind of overplanning. This is when you schedule out your time hour by hour, down to what time you will study, eat, workout, etc. I understand that this works for some people and if you find yourself to be very disorganized, it can work for you. However, I personally find (and I think many would agree) that it ends up giving me anxiety and guilt when I don’t do something exactly at the right time. 
  2. Weekly or monthly schedule: This is ideal for people who like to plan ahead a lot, but don’t want to be too constricted to an hourly schedule. This method involves writing down what you need to study each day, but not declaring a specific time that you need to have it done by. I really like to use this for exam periods or before a big test, so I know that all the topics are covered by a certain point. 
  3. Daily to-do list schedule: This works for a ton of people I know, including myself. It is low-key, but also allows you to know what you have to do and actually get it done. This is what most people use in a bullet journal, which is obviously a very successful technique! It blends together the planning of the daily schedule with the fluidity and low-stress of the monthly schedule. I highly recommend this if you tend to overplan! 

Overall:You might need to re-evaluate the way that you organize your time and find something that is more productive. My personal favourite is the daily to-do list, but if you need more structure in your life, feel free to look at others. 

Dividing Tasks

One big thing that leads to procrastination is not being able to focus on the most important tasks that need to get done. If you put too much stuff on your to-do list or into your hourly schedule, it might actually end up taking away from more important tasks. 

Learn to prioritize. List tasks in order of their importance when you are creating a to-do list or other type of schedule. You can use a numbering system, or colour code them if you need more help:

  1. Red = Extremely important: Things that are due in the next day or two, studying for upcoming tests, steps in a process that needs to get done by the end of the week, bills that need to be paid, chores that have to get done before your home becomes a wreck. 
  2. Yellow = Pretty important: Things that are important to your schedule, but it wouldn’t be tragic if they got pushed off one more day. Re-writing or typing notes, writing out flashcards for a test a week away, working on an application or deadline that is still a while away, chores that aren’t going to affect you if they aren’t finished tonight. 
  3. Green = Filler stuff: Things that would be nice to get done, but aren’t urgent. Cleaning, organizing your desk, finishing a book or movie for pleasure, etc. 

Avoid Procrastination

After you have organized yourself and prioritized tasks, you need to be able to focus on actually getting them done. 

  1. Set firm deadlines. A lot of times, this is easy because teachers or bosses set them for you. But if they don’t, learn to set your own deadlines and stick to them. Write them in your calendar and make note of them in the days leading up to it. 
  2. Make mini to-do lists for an assignment. If you have trouble following deadlines, or value to-do lists as much as me, breaking down assignments and large tasks into small pieces can be super beneficial. For example, if you have an essay due, create a checklist with the intro, body paragraphs, conclusion, editing, typing, and final draft all as separate tasks. 
  3. Find ideal study setting. A lot of people have trouble focusing on tasks when they get distracted easily. I find it really helpful if I’m in an environment that gets me in a studying mood! Going to the library or a quiet coffee shop really motivates me. Finding somewhere with few distractions, limitations on how much noise you can make, and being able to see other people being productive is the ideal way to focus yourself. 
  4. Avoid social media and TV. This goes hand in hand with #3… Being in front of the TV or the computer (when you aren’t actually using it) is super distracting! Go somewhere that doesn’t have these distractions. 
  5. Start with small tasks. Sometimes, tackling your to-do list is easier if you start by completing a few small tasks. When I’m not in the mood to study, I try to do some household chores and update my bullet journal to get the ball rolling.  
  6. Use the Pomodoro technique, or something similar. Use a Pomodoro timer or another type of scheduling to stay focused when studying and take breaks when needed. If you find that breaking it down minute by minute is too stressful, try setting goals like “as soon as I am done studying this chapter, I will get up and make a snack,” and stick to them! 

Everyone has their own quirks. And you know what those are for you better than anyone else. And when it comes down to me, I have a few things I do.

  • Don’t take notes in class. Well, not unless it’s completely necessary, like an equation with some key example that I can use for further reference. The reason why this works for me is that I see lectures like a conversation with my professor. If you’re in a conversation with your friend, you’re not going to type or write everything down. Instead, you try to follow what your friend is saying, right? You’re not going to remember everything, but you’re gonna remember the key aspects that make the story. I used to take notes in class but I noticed that I focused too much on taking notes instead of the actual content. 
  • Take notes a day or two after your class. This will force you to recall what your professor said.  According to a psychologist, Jeffrey Karpicke, simply practising and recalling the material, students learn far more and at a much deeper level by recalling than using any other approach. First I like to write what I remember down on a page. After, I start reading the textbook and make notes at the margins of other examples or anecdotes the professor used. If I paid attention, all these things will pop up into my mind. Just trust your brain on this one, you’ll be surprised by how much you actually remember. (I certainly was!) And then I take these 2 notes and make my final notes on the subject.  
  • Get your pets and talk to them (Or yourself). After I am done with the notes, I like to wait a day or two before I go back to them. I often open the book on the index page, where you see the chapter’s title, paragraph and sub-paragraphs and use this as a shortcut page to my presentation. I stand up before a whiteboard. I make sure Burger (my cute-ass doggo) and Mr Fantastic (my grumpy cat) are on my bed. I take a deep breath and I start explaining the concepts to them. The idea here is to recall and make sure you put the concepts into your own words. What do you remember? What is it about? Can you explain this with an example? What are the practical uses of said concept? Most importantly, use that whiteboard. It’ll make you feel like a professor and that you know your shit. Once I start talking, I’ll realise what information I truly don’t know. Then I’ll pick up my final notes and go through them and see if I talked about everything. After I’m done with my talk, Burger looks at me like “Shirou, where’s ma food?” and Mr Fantastic is fast asleep or looking at me like she truly can’t be bothered.

So experiment! See what works for you and what doesn’t. Not sure where to start? Then I truly recommend you to check the free online course on Coursera “Learning how to learn”. It truly helped me to lay a basis of getting my shit together. 

How to beat procastination in vacation


Let’s be honest, procrastination has hit us all one way or another. Even the best of us sometimes fall victim to it. We must remember that we all make mistakes and there will be times in which we will procrastinate. However, we should try our best to improve.  So how can we try not to fall into procrastination?

1. Understand what makes you procrastinate. This step is very essential so we can come up with solutions.

In my case, reading made me procrastinate. Reading isn’t necessarily a bad thing but once you’re reading instead of actively working on your priorities, it truly becomes a problem. I would spend nights reading on my phone and had lack of sleep. Therefore I was also very tired and couldn’t perform as I needed to.

2. Define your goals. Writing down goals is very important as it gives you a specific end to work to. The goals are your expectations and having SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-Bound) will help you work effectively.

I decided I must do up to 5 tasks related to my priorities each day. I can’t read until I finish those tasks.

3. Identify possible courses of actions. This is the stage in which you’ll come up with ways to achieve those goals. The solutions you come up with have to help you find a way to overcome the reasons why you procrastinate.

Each week I must plan an overview of relevant goals I want to accomplish. Each night, as part of my night routine, I must write down important tasks I have to do the next day in order to achieve those goals. These can’t be more than 5 and I must make sure I can absolutely do those tasks. In order to avoid reading, I downloaded an app called self-control on my phone and laptop in order to avoid the sites I read stories on. In case I fail to accomplish this and decide to read, I must give my mom my phone for a day. My night routine starts at 6 PM, which means I can read till 6 PM in order not to disrupt my sleeping cycle.

4. Identify when you are the most productive. Some people are night-owls while others are early-risers. What time are you the most productive? When you know this, you can schedule a time to work on your priorities.

I work best in the early morning. Most people find my waking hours atrocious. However getting things done as early as 3 AM does wonders to me. Most people are already asleep at that time, which means no distractions coming from mobile notifications. The internet is crazy fast at that hour. And the quietness of everything makes me go real deep, real quick into my work.  

5. Keep track of your habits. This will help you see how you’re actually working and it’s also the perfect time to reevaluate if things are going the way you want. Here you can also give yourself feedback. And if necessary, you can also go back and repeat the process.

It’s important to remember that each one of us has their own ways of working. What works for me, might not work for you. I encourage you all to experiment with all sorts of things in order to find a way that works for you and kick procrastination’s ass like a boss.

  • Brainstorm! What is being productive for you? If you start with no concrete idea of what being productive means to you, then you’re off to an awful start. What would you like to accomplish? What do you wanna learn?
  • Write your goals down! According to research, people who write down their goals are more likely to accomplish them.
  • Be specific. A good idea for when you’re writing down your goals is using the SMART method. Which stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound.
  • Track your progress. This is why Measurable goals are important. Being able to track your performance, gives you a good overview of how well you’re performing and in which areas you can improve.
  • Make sure to treat yourself. Treating yourself can keep you motivated and help you find a balance between the things you’ve got to get done and your free time.

How do I do it?

I like to brainstorm ideas with my friends. I often ramble to them about things I wanna do and they often give me good ideas and tips. After that, I write them down using the SMART method. I take my time to design trackers, look for additional information and other things. Very important to do research at this stage. After all that, I make sure to write down a to-do list for the day and make sure to write down a reward for myself after I get all my tasks done. It motivates me to finish all my tasks! Sometimes, it’s reading that new manga update or watching the new upload of a YouTuber.

Useful tip: Write your to-do lists in visible places. If you spend a lot of time in your bedroom and have a board, write it there so you can see. If you spend a lot of your time on your browser, consider downloading an extension such as Taskadethat allows you to see your lists everytime you open a new tab. You won’t forget that way!

If you’re struggling to get through something particularly challenging, come up with a reward that you’ll give yourself when you finish the task. It can give you the extra motivation you need to keep pushing on.

Hey friends! I’ve decided to make a studygram! I’m not sure I’ll completely stop using this studyblr, but insta feels like a more conducive platform to what I want to do with my content! If so inclined, you can follow it here!

sigrastudies:

8•29•20

I’ve been pretty inactive on here lately cause my summer term ended and I was giving myself a couple week break before the start of the fall semester!

Well, that time flew by and I’m already staring down Sept in the face.

Also thanks for just shy of 300 followers!

Past 300 now! Thank you! The

9•1•20

Hello, September!

School begins for me today with two philosophy classes- Intro to Ethics and Elementary Logic. I’m really excited for this semester, even though it will all be online

8•29•20

I’ve been pretty inactive on here lately cause my summer term ended and I was giving myself a couple week break before the start of the fall semester!

Well, that time flew by and I’m already staring down Sept in the face.

Also thanks for just shy of 300 followers!

werelivingarts:

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Hi all, it’s werelivingarts. I just stumbled across this method called ‘eat the frog’, which means you get the most difficult or important task out of your way first. I actually have been using this method for a long time, hope this post gives you a new way of managing your time and productivity! ❤️

“If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.” – Mark Twain 

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