Hello my fellow quaranteens. I’m sure everyone is aware that a deadly virus has wreaked havoc upon the world, leaving most of us stuck at home in self isolation. This may be forced or voluntary, but either way it does not look like any of us is throwing a fiesta anytime soon. Many of us are now struggling to cope with piles of homework and assignments, unable to cross the chasm from the comfort of our bed to the boring study desk. This is completely understandable, we are living through an important time in history and we have lost all sense of certainty and structure within our lives, making productivity an impossible feat. Hence, I arrive with my first post, explaining some quick tips to boost productivity this not so festive season!
The triple threat list
. As mentioned above, it is incredibly hard not having a sense of structure at home as the world battles a pandemic. Fortunately, this modified “to do lists” helps remedy this situation. I start every morning journaling, that’s right, journaling. However, I create a structure for what I write, which is:
. H: This section is meant to be your highlight for the day. It is, simply put, THE thing you want to get done today. Accomplishing this implies that your day was productive, because your Goliath has been slain. For example, I woke up this morning and decided that the most important thing to get done today is writing this blog post. This helps us focus our tasks from a menial to do list to a more exciting “highlight”.
G: This is where you jot down what you are grateful for today. This can be something as simple as being grateful for having WiFi today or complex like being grateful for your existence. The point is to reflect on what are the positive things in your life during this troubling time, and ground yourself to it. This will have a multiplier effect on productivity as thinking of something positive at the back of your mind motivates or boosts your stamina to retain focus and attention.
L: Here, write something you want to let go. Similar to the section about being grateful, attempting to let go of an unhealthy habit or attitude releases a burden, enabling you to be more focused on what you have to do and be the best possible version of yourself.
Suit up!
.
. One of the biggest challenges to being productive at home is that we have conditioned our brains to think of home as a place to rest. Chilling in your pjs and trying to do homework might just become a recipe for disaster. I know it’s painstaking, but imagine you’re getting ready for work or school, except at home! This means making your bed the moment you wake up, take a shower (don’t be a nasty!) and wear something you’d never wear at home! For obvious reasons, I wouldn’t advise an actual suit, but my personal favourite are a pair of jeans and a shirt. It’s what I wear to college, and it reminds me that I’m here to work. Ladies (and gents), if wearing makeup makes you feel confident or work ready, do it! Not because a certain political authority said so, but only because it makes you feel like you’re at work!
Draw your borders, soldier.
. Imagine this. You just finished a 10 hour day in college. 6 hours of college and 4 hours grinding in the library. It takes you an hour on the public transport system and a brisk walk to get home. All you want to do now is rest on the sofa watching Netflix. As we juggle our social lives with our responsibilities, our homes have become our only escape. Now however, our homes are our nightclubs, gyms, library, work and everything.
Have you felt that you seem to be working longer now that you’re working at home compared to before? Chances are, you are. Parkinson’s Law states that work expands to fill the time we allocate to it. This is probably also why you seem to work better when you procrastinate that assignment until the night before. Now that our home is officially our workspace, the lines between home and work have been blurred so you seem to spend every hour working. I don’t need to explain how mentally exhausting this can be.
The best way to cure this is to establish boundaries. Designate certain areas of your home as “work spaces” and certain areas as a “lounge”. Take me for instance, my study table is now just for work. Even if I feel like reading for joy, I will not sit there because my brain associates the table with work. Establishing clear distinctions helps us separate our lives and retain some sort of sanity. So the next time you’re trying to do homework in bed, remember that you are not going to sleep there so you want to clear your sanctum from such toxicity of work.
Relax!
. This might be one of the most important tips of them all. A lot of instagram quotes I have come across this past month try to push this notion that you are being useless if you aren’t taking this time to be “productive” by learning a new language to reading more etc. This is an incredibly toxic narrative and must be rejected. We are in the middle of a deadly pandemic. It is a social, political and economic disaster, it is okay to rest. For some of us, we spend the days working on school work and the weekends on extracurriculars, this is the time for us to recharge. Remember that its okay to take a day off to relax. Watch a movie with family, talk to a friend. The most important thing is that you are safe and healthy, so make sure you check in on your mental health as well.
.