Talk About It Tuesday: Steps on How to Be Productive at Home!

By Amy Leon

It’s easy for our days to get blurred now that we’re all learning virtually. It’s a completely different learning environment that requires more attention. There are lecture recordings that are being posted on Blackboard for students to watch, Zoom class meetings for certain classes, and if you need help you have to take the initiative to use your resources. These are some great tips on how you can be productive during this time.

The first step of being productive from home starts with creating a healthy schedule for yourself at home. Write out your daily tasks for the week and continue to add to your schedule to make it specific as possible. It’s likely that you will start working on your english paper if you write down a specific goal you want to reach every single day. Instead of writing work on english paper, write down do english paper page 1. When you change how you look at an assignment you can help to overcome those mental roadblocks. You can do it little by little planning out your time instead of doing the entire paper the night before. Don’t overwhelm yourself by doing it all at once! 

The next step in creating a healthy schedule for yourself is using the time in your day productively. It’s easy to stay in bed all day when you have nowhere to go and waste your time watching netflix at 1pm when you should probably be watching a lecture. There’s no class you need to be at and ultimately you are the one that is holding yourself responsible. You are the one that has to be constantly checking from assignments updates that might be posted, emails, etc. To make sure you are using the time in your day wisely it is really helpful to set your alarm the night before. It’s nice to sleep in every now and then, but you want to keep a healthy sleep schedule that will give you enough time to complete your work during the day.

Similar to keeping a healthy sleep schedule, keep a healthy diet. Make sure you’re eating nutrient rich foods that allow you to be energized throughout the day. Since you are at home you’ll most likely be home all day and will need as much energy as you can to keep you going strong. Give yourself breaks while you eat and snack through the day so you can feel good and keep that mood strong during your day. 

Lastly, another really important step is to make sure that you have a designated work space. If you have a desk in your room, set up your work station for the day there. Maybe you don’t have a desk, go sit at the kitchen table or outside, find a place where you are able to work without being distracted during the day. One great tip that helps with staying out of your bed is to make sure that you make your bed in the morning. You are less likely to get underneath the covers until night time and it sets the tone for your day. You’re telling your mind that it’s time to work, forcing yourself to become focused.