Hi everyone, this weeks blog post includes a tonne of tips, tricks and free resources for students and anyone who needs organisational resources, productivity tips and advice. I have recently finished my Master’s and accepted a new role – woohoo! I pride myself on my organisation skills ~ enjoy this helpful post!
How To be productive?
You may be thinking… duh Lauren? Put away your phone and just get on with work and you are right, however, there’s more to being productive and doing good work than this. I’ve found myself getting so burned out recently and it’s because I didn’t take breaks until I was so stressed and burned out, I had no studying/working schedule.
I recently read ‘Working Hard, Hardly Working’ by Grace Beverly and I cannot recommend it enough. It’s very insightful into millennial and generation Z expectations, how and when to work, how and when to take breaks.
In Grace’s book, she shares some clever diagrams and tips for productivity. I’ll include a few below, she discusses when to take a break, how to avoid imposter syndrome and the guilt of taking breaks. Also, the book is broken up into two sections, how to productive and how not to.
Keep reading to find out my personal tips, tricks and some free organisational resources.
Tried and tested, trust me!
Everyone’s brain works differently, for me, I find it best to work for an hour and then take a ten-minute break. I work best in the mornings so get the bulk of my work (especially my most important and brain tiring tasks) done then, have an hours lunch break and work one hour on ten minutes off until around five or six.
I personally like to use atmospheric videos with time scales. You work for an hour then a new sound plays for fifteen minutes which insinuates a breakpoint. There are so many variations and videos on YouTube however me being me – a Harry Potter fanatic, this is my favourite one linked HERE. There is a playlist HERE. Also, I like this one!
For me, treating my master’s degree like a 9-5 job really did help to avoid that burnout feeling. Of course, with all jobs, sometimes you will work later and on weekends. However, it is important to know when to take breaks before you feel burned out and exhausted. When to switch off and RELAX + refresh!
I didn’t work on weekends – this applies to my blog too! No blog posts are written on weekends and Social Media activity is minimal unless I feel like it. Weekends are my detox, calm, relaxation times to catch up with friends, family and my boyfriend. It is so important to take the weekends to refresh and rejuvenate yourself.
Project management or task management is a very key skill to reducing stress and increasing productivity. Work out your most important tasks and start from there. Take it one step at a. time, no one can manage five thousand things at once. If they say they can, they’re lying. Don’t overload yourself! I have included some free templates to help with this later on in the post…
I will talk more later about some ways to relax and switch off.
A schedule and routine help – you don’t have to be too strict about it and rigorous but schedule yourself time with breaks and prioritise your work. Schedule in lunch, when you will stop working etc!
I personally feel that there is such a high standard for always working and being your best self. That is important of course but you should not feel guilty for taking breaks, no one can be productive all the time. If they tell you they are, it’s a lie! I read once, those who are most successful are the ones who work even when they don’t feel productive. This is true, but so is the fact that these people know when to switch off and stop working.
I’ve included some technology below and free templates, later on, to help you out.
Must have productivity aid*
AD SPONSORED FEATURE
Recently, I was gifted a Focus wearable from Foci. The wearable tracks your emotions and working habits, letting you know when you’re focused, stressed, distracted and more. If anything it is so interesting to track your study moods and emotions. The more you wear your Foci, the better it is at assisting your study habits, concentration and focus. There’s a setting for deep work and deep focus, both custom to you.
Also, I received a little book – SKILL of DEEP FOCUS. It is basically a guide in order to help me find my personal working habits. You answer some questions and learn a bit more about deep focus and how to achieve it. It is so so INTERESTING and helpful to achieve your best studying!
Organisation Templates
Below, I have included some free, customisable templates to organise your studying, tasks and more!
Click on the image to customise however you would like to on Canva – It’s free!
10+ Ideas for successful & relaxing brain breaks.
Take a bath, listen to music, take a walk outside, read a non-academic book, do some arts & crafts, do Yoga, Meditate, Workout, Run or Jog, Coffee & Cake break, Explore somewhere new, Meditate, Call or meet-up with a friend, watch a new TV series, Have a movie or pamper night, Tidy up, Organise your space, Create a mood or motivation board, Plan your Instagram feed, Take photos, Play with your pet (if you have one), Do some colouring, Ride a bike, Watch the stars, Try a new hobby, Sit in nature, BREATHE.
I hope this blog post helped any fellow students or those working. Feel free to share your tips with each other in the comments below. We can all help each other girl boss our daily lives and be our best selves!
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