According to the Collins English Dictionary, the world of the year 2020 is “lockdown.” It is not surprising, taking into account the pandemic, social distancing, and self-confinement measures. However, all students and schoolchildren would agree, that there are other words worth being called the words of the year 2020. “Productivity” is one of them.
Distance learning didn’t facilitate the process of studying. Moreover, students are receiving more tasks than usual. Under these circumstances, productivity became more important than ever. In this article, we consider general ways of boosting your productivity and give you some interesting tips you have never seen before.
What Is Productivity?
The general notion of productivity consists of the number of tasks students can perform within a specific period of time. For example, you should have heard someone saying that they had a “productive day”. Usually, this means that they have performed more tasks than they normally do.
However, this notion is only half correct. Productivity is the ability of a student to keep the study-life balance, deliver necessary tasks without being distracted, and have a sufficient period of rest.
Work and Rest
As you can see, productivity among students is always confused with task performance. We don’t usually say that the days when we had a great time with our friends or family are productive; but they are. If you can see the results of your day or feel the satisfaction of what you did, you can count this time as productive.
It means that pushing yourself on the edge of task performance is not productivity.
Ways of Boosting Productivity
We have analyzed the tips given by the coaches of personal development and productivity to students who want to be more productive. Some are not actually well-meaning for you; for example, if you see that you need to limit your social interactions with friends to 1 or 2 hours a day, and use the saved time for work or learning, you must leave the resource you see it on immediately.
Here are three common ways that will help students boost their work and studies productivity without harming the other aspects of their life.
1. Master Time Management
It is great advice for everyone, not just students. Those who manage their time are always on time, and they never miss any deadline. This skill is of prime importance under the conditions of remote learning because online classes are easy to skip. You should not wreck your daily routine even if you are at home 24/7.
2. Have Enough Sleep
This aspect contradicts the general notion of productivity in students’ life. It is believed that a student can sleep 6-7 hours a day and save these 2 hours of sleep for something “more productive”. Those who have tried it will tell you that it doesn’t work that way.
If you don’t get the necessary 8 hours of sleep, you will not be able to focus on the activity you need to perform. It will result in a lower speed of your work and, thus, a lower level of productivity. We know that it is tempting to wreck your sleep when you are at home all the time, but you should not do this.
3. Eat Well
Don’t skip your meals and don’t replace a good plate with a burger. At least, don’t do it too often. Our body needs all products, both good and bad ones, so you should not give up sweets and McDonald’s, but eating only this food will leave you with low energy.
Your food must be well-balanced. It is the investment into your health and, consequently, your productivity.
Other Ways of Being Productive
We understand that you have read all these tips: as we have told, they are common; but we couldn’t skip them because of their importance for student productivity. In addition to them, we have compiled a list of 5 more tips and tricks for boosting creativity for students. These ways are fun and out-of-the-way.
1. Compete with a Friend
It is always interesting to have a challenge; when it is a competition, the process gets even more fun. You can start a game with your friend and compete in productivity. Make sure to establish the rules: count not only the tasks you have delivered but also the rest and fun activity you had. Give points to each other, and then choose a winner.
As an encouragement, you can set a prize: for example, the one who has lost buys a coffee for both of you when the lockdown is over.
2. Delegate
Sometimes students get tasks that are not useful for their skills but take a lot of time for performing. There is no sense in pushing yourself into work to find productivity: you can delegate! This is a secret tool of all great entrepreneurs – they have a team they trust. Team members work on everything, while the leader just navigates the process and stays productive at the same time.
The best way for students to delegate is to order their essays online. There are many services, but if I needed to find a website that could write my essay for me, I would trust only the best.
3. Take a Rest
We all have weekends, but students usually spend them working on their assignments. Don’t do it. Everyone needs to restart from time to time, and two days of complete rest is exactly what a student needs during remote learning.
There are some conditions for this to work: no learning, minimum gadgets, maximum fresh air, and physical activity. If you needed rest in normal life conditions, gadgets would not be a problem, but you spend all your time in front of your screen now, so putting it away for a couple of days is a perfect idea.
4. Reward Yourself
A reward system works with everyone, so think of anything you want. It may be a chocolate bar or a new book, a run outside, or a season of your favorite TV show; as long as it is something you want, it fits. Set a list of tasks you need to perform and reward yourself when you cross everything.
5. Listen to Music
If you work on a difficult task that required concentration, this tip will not work. However, if the task is not complex, listening to your favorite music may help you be more inspired. Some people may argue that this is not good for productivity, but it works for a lot of students.
Productivity is not a goal you need to reach; it is a way you reach your other goals. If you like what you are doing, you will be productive without the need to boost your energy. That is why students need to find the major they like, and studying will not be a burden.
Take care of yourself, work on getting satisfaction from whatever you do, and your productivity will significantly go up!