Time Management While Distance Learning

Over the course of time I have had this blog, I have learned new ways to be productive, and I hope my suggestions and findings have been helpful for those that have tried them. From trying various ways of staying motivated and organized to finding new ways to be motivated and stay on track (though I have definitely struggled). One thing I have to say and remind others that feel like they are not doing as best as they think they should be - it's okay to mess up. Let me tell you about the ways I have become inspired and motivated during these tough times. 

Staying Productive in Quarantine: Products and Suggestions Words cannot describe the number of times I have wanted to study and do my work in a coffee shop or in my university's library just for a change of scenery. Working from home in my room at my desk for the last year has been far from ideal, and I have tried my best to make it comfortable and designated for work so that my room that once was only meant for relaxation and sleep. Because I miss the comradery of working with other students and around other people, I have made some more changes to encourage myself to feel motivated and productive while working from home. What Have I Done to Boost Productivity? I have struggled to stay motivated working from home. My at-home workspace was far from ideal, so I often would go to a local coffee shop or go to my university's library before the pandemic hit. When I was in those environments, I felt like I had a designated work area and very little distraction, which is what I did n...

 I have talked about a few productivity and focus apps on this blog and I have found that although I did enjoy using each of them, none of them really worked for me. Flora is fun for those that have the money to donate and enjoy the incentives of keeping your tree alive, but I am a broke college student and can't use the app in a way that I would like. I enjoy Study Bunny, but I found I am not completely focused on my tasks when using it because of everything going on, it is a bit distracting for me. So, I went on a search for bare-bones productivity/Pomodoro/focus apps that would be nice to look at and are user-friendly.

Hello everyone, my name is Celia! I am a Study Bunny and my job is to motivate you to stay on task for a chosen period of time. Let me tell you all about my app.

In my previous post, I wrote about the Pomodoro Technique and the ways that it can be helpful for those that have issues staying on task. The premise of the technique is that you work on a designated task for 25 minutes, take a 5-minute break, then repeat 4 times to allow yourself a 20-minute break. The technique definitely piqued my interest, especially when I found that there were apps made for the technique, many with thousands of positive reviews (on the Apple App Store). So, I decided it would be fun to try all the apps I could find that was related to timers and/or the Pomodoro Technique and relay what I found interesting about each app here. Since we are focused on Time Management here, I hope that these various time management and focus apps will be helpful to you. So to begin my review, let's start with Flora.

Too Many Suggestions I know that I have given a lot of suggestions for productivity and time management aids, but using all the suggestions I have given may be overwhelming. For me, the combination of things I use work, and because I am not a creative person, I have had trouble using other forms that I have read and heard are very helpful for students and working professionals. Let me introduce you to Notion.

Productivity Is Down In Quarantine   I have been wanting to increase my productivity lately, and as I am sure you are aware, being productive during this time working at home is hard to do. We are working in our homes and in our bedrooms that are normally meant to be the places where we can relax. In one of my psychology classes I have taken, I learned you are not meant to send children to their room as a punishment because they will begin to correlate their rooms with punishment and no longer a place of peace and comfort. We can take that same concept and apply it to our current situations working and learning from home. So, how can we make the most of our time working and learning from home when it is already so difficult to do?

  Covid Changed The Way I Work I thought I had my school routine all figured out when I started my Spring 2020 Semester. I had my school planner and my work planner all set up, my google calendar with my class times and work schedule all synced with my devices, and I had my routine altogether and it worked well for me. I knew when I needed to leave my house for class and about how long it would take me to drive to work from campus and I knew about what time I would be home each day to begin my homework. Since covid happened, I have had to change the way that I learn and the ways I keep a productive school schedule.