School; The word that has several meanings to us. To some, it can mean Seven Crappy Hours Of Our Lives. To others, it can mean the complete opposite. Regardless of the meaning, it always comes with our worst nightmare: Work. Whether it be classwork, homework, or job work, they all have one thing in common: Difficulty. Difficulty not necessarily because there is a lot of work to complete, but because of the amount of Focus needed. Schoolwork becomes a passive slouchy activity because we do not Prioritize it.
If you are like me, you struggle to complete work because of the daily reoccurring notifications from either YouTube, TikTok, Netflix, Instagram, or even your family. It can be friends messaging you, your favorite YouTuber uploading a new video, or even your siblings yelling for your name. Whatever the case is, I found a few steps that helped me and may help you in prioritizing schoolwork. Here’s what you can do:
–Get In A Quiet Setting: First and foremost, your environment is crucial. It is impossible to focus in a loud and hectic setting. It can simply be a public library, a cafe, or a park. I find the Baruch library to be a great setting. (Your room may not be the best option because your bed is right there, instead of getting motivated to work, you’ll find yourself getting motivated to sleep)
–Put Your Phone Far From Yourself Or Away: When completing Schoolwork, your phone is your worst enemy. You can say you’ll only check one thing, then find yourself scrolling through TikTok for hours. When you set your phone far from you, you cancel out all of those urges to check it.
–Set Your Phone On Focus Mode: This not only helps you focus, but it decreases your screen time. It is healthy to limit your screen time. When you set your phone on personal mode, you can mute unimportant notifications and only receive notifications from important people/things.
–Music: This one is optional. For me, music is the foundation of focusing. Lo-fi music, or study music can help me feel the work. You kind of just vibe through the work, and time goes by faster. It helps me think faster. (Try not to play your favorite rap song, or else you’ll find yourself singing your study time away)
There are many ways to helping yourself focus. You just have to find what’s best for you. Im glad that I was able to share these methods to you, and I hope that you take them into consideration. Remember: “The ability to concentrate and use time well is everything.” -Lee Lacocca
Hi Melvin, I liked how you chose to go in a different direction with this assignment and write about tips on focusing when doing schoolwork. I think I could see part of who you are as a person through this writing as I can tell you really personalized it in a way where it brings out some humor. I also struggle to focus a lot when trying to get homework done because I always get distracted by my phone. It got me thinking that if I prioritize my sleep so much that I put my phone on sleep mode so I don’t wake up by notifications, I should probably do the same and set my phone on focus mode when I am trying to get homework done.
Ha–this is funny and creative. Nice work. Good writing.
Who’s that guy though???