Article by Molly (Thien Minh Begu)
1st-year student at Creative Business
Hello, I am Molly, 1-st year student at Creative Business. Every since I moved to the Netherlands, I’ve noticed the differences between my expectation about the Dutch culture and how it really is in reality. Today I’d like to share with you the few things that I believe very interesting and might be useful. Enjoy the read!
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The way we work, study, and communicate has been changed significantly in the past decades, and even more in this year of 2020, when the pandemic bursts out. The digital environment has became more familiar to us, we shop online, communicate online, work online, and study online. Apart from the obvious benefits of convenience and multitasking, there are also obstacles that stand in the way.
The most popular culprits that cause ineffective work is distractions. When you work from home, no one watching, no rules, and no punishment, therefore, you have all the freedom to do whatever you like. You can still join a class without turning your mic on, meanwhile, you may cook, have some meals, clean the room, and even check out what it’s new on Instagram. However, that can leave you behind, not knowing what has been taught and what you should do next week. You may think it’s just a short term confusion, that you can revise the lesson and figure it all out later, but that “later” sometimes lasts forever.
Let’s see what can we do to minimize those distractions and deliver the most effective work.
- Create the environment
The first thing that you should take notice of, is the studying condition. It’d be much better to check your equipment in advance, see if your computer is full of battery or if the mic and the sound is good enough. Also, because noise can be a distraction, consider choosing a quiet spot so you can focus only no your work. That way, you wouldn’t be disturbed by annoying external factors such as running screaming kids or the blender from the kitchen. Another thing that can make up a good working environment is pretending you are really at work. Keep your corner clean and organized, change your pajama, and put on neat clothes, isn’t it better to be more motivated and have the fresh energy? As a bonus, if you’re in the meeting, it will also show that you’re very professional.
2. Learn Actively
Work is not gonna be effective if you are just being passive. It is important that you actively learn and interact with other people in the online class. Taking notes is a very simple tip yet shows noticeable productivity, while taking notes, you’ll have to listen, you have to paraphrase what is said in the most logical and most condensed way. You’ll also need to engage your mind, figure out what should be dived in deeper, what can you relate. Testing yourself to see if how that knowledge can be applied, what can you remember from the lesson, and what should still be worked on. Involving actively is really a way to make work more productive and help you to quickly remember and understand what was mentioned.
3. Concentrate
Saying “concentrate” is vague, here are a few tips to make it more clear. Firstly, stop multitasking. Just focus on what you are doing and it only, I’m sure it’s not gonna waste any more time. You can also put a distraction notes beside you, so every time something pops up in your mind, just note it down and do it after you finish the work. Secondly, if it’s harder for you to focus on the digital articles and you keep finding yourself coming back to the first sentence, printing out the study materials can be a good idea to take into consideration. Thirdly, be disciplined, no tips and tricks can help you if you cannot control your self. It’s important that you realize what should be focused on and what should not.
4. Take breaks
Finally, take breaks. This is undoubtedly very essential, how can you work and focus on the work if you are all stress and being overloaded with the pile of works? Take small breaks during or a big break between each plan, whichever suits you. All you need to do is relax your mind, treat yourself good snacks or do some small exercises. It is advised that the phone shouldn’t be used in the break, just incase you see some videos or news that’s so interesting and then completely fall into it. However if you are well disciplined and you’re sure when to stop and get back to work, it’s not a problem. As mentioned, breaks are necessary and whichever suits you, whichever you feel as an effective energy charger, it’s all advised.