© Sanja Gjenero

As I write this post, I’m decisively low-tech. Not by choice, I hasten to add, I’m having problems with some computer hardware so the computer’s off and the most technological device draining power in my room at the moment would have to be the light bulb.

It made me think, what happened to the lost art of writing with pen and paper. What I’m doing now has for the most part, gone. Replaced by computer and keyboard, or even ‘ePaper’. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not afraid of technology (I’m a blogger, how could I be!) but I think people often forget that technology can be a burden, as well as a blessing.

So why is pen and paper so great?

You can work anywhere
Pen and paper are staggeringly portable. You can all tell me a laptop is portable, but I don’t see many laptops that weigh about the same as a piece of paper, and can be folded to fit in your pocket.

The benefit of paper being portable is, you can change scenery without lugging round a load of computer equipment. The park; a cafe, in the middle of a field, take your pick with where you want to work.

The great thing is; the change of scenery can really help invigorate you. During exams, I actually took some revision material into the local cafe and found it a great change from my desk.

Much easier to focus
With technology, comes a wealth of distractions. Instant messaging; social networking sites, e-mail and internet, it’s easy to lose focus on what you were doing, I sometimes find myself forgetting what I set out to do in the first place by the time the computer is loaded up and my IM account has started itself up.

With pen and paper, there really is no excuse for losing focus, sure there’s background noise, but it is rare that this can command your attention as much as a new e-mail in your inbox.

Improved spelling and grammar
When working on paper, we consider what we are writing much more. Mistakes feel much more final, because if anything is being written out as a final copy, a mistake could mean having to start again. This means you’ll be trying your hardest to make things sound their best, and they’re more likely to do so.

Also, so much of our work has to be typed up anyway. This means, once you go back to type up your work, you will notice the spelling and grammatical errors made the first time around, which can then be corrected. Often, the use of computers make us so reliant on spell check, we do not even check our work through. By using pen and paper, you are likely to tweak and improve things as you type your work up.

Nothing gets deleted by accident
There is nothing like the frustration of having written half an essay, only to have a power cut and lose it all. With pen and paper, this isn’t going to happen. Of course, there’s ways your paper could be destroyed; the dog ate it and spontaneous self combustion, but these are much less likely in comparison to the probability of a computer going wrong. That I think we will all admit.

I urge you all to go back to using pen and paper every now and again. Don’t let writing become a lost art, reap the rewards. And that’s not just when the computers broken!

 So many of us are engaged in an endless quest to become “productive”, yet never ask ourselves, why?

Why is it important to know why we want to be productive?

Firstly, the danger is that if we don’t know what we are doing it for, what will we do once we are more productive? For some people, their lives just become more crammed with endless lists of unfulfilling tasks. If we are to pursue productivity, there must be a purpose or a reward at the end of it.

Secondly, if it’s a goal to us, how do we know we have fulfiled it. For those of you who know about goal setting, you may have heard of SMART goals - Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time Related. We must know when we have met the goal (that it’s measurable), even if it is just through a feeling, such as fulfillment.

What do you want from productivity?

There are many things we want to achieve through productivity, and there is no one size fits all approach. Some of us want to get great grades whilst having a great social life, whilst others want to start a business or change the world as well as go to school.

It really is up to you what you want to achieve, but make sure you aren’t just pursuing productivity for the sake of filling your life with more un-fulfilling tasks.

I will leave you with a quote, which I feel summarizes this post quite nicely, reminding us to make sure we do something worthwhile with the time gained through being productive, even if it’s just having a great life full of adventure and enjoyment:

“Never again clutter your days or nights with so many menial and unimportant things that you have no time to accept a real challenge when it comes along. This applies to play as well as work. A day merely survived is no cause for celebration. You are not here to fritter away your precious hours when you have the ability to accomplish so much by making a slight change in your routine. No more busy work. No more hiding from success. Leave time, leave space, to grow. Now. Now! Not tomorrow!
(Og Mandino)

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This is Carl Hickson’s regular “Tuesday Tips” column, writing on all aspects of student productivity to help you become a more effective and stress free student.

One of the biggest “productivity killers” we encounter is having big projects sneak up on us. You’ve got a nice, organized system set up for keeping track of all of the things that you need to devote time to; to-do lists, calendars, planners, sticky notes. But then, as you commence working on a big paper, you suddenly realize that the deadline for that study abroad application is in 2 days, and you’ve got 3 projects connected to your extracurriculars that you need to deal with. Suddenly, you’re swamped with work that you hadn’t anticipated.

Enter the yearly outline. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve been digging through the archives lately, trying to find some of the best posts on GearFire to showcase. As is often the case with blogs, the best posts written get burried and are never read by newer readers. Here’s a short list to take a look at when you get the chance.

Three tips for processing piles of junk

Get rid of workspace clutter

Seven important factors in choosing a good work environment

Why you should wake up early and five tips to do so

Killer notes cut study time

If you enjoyed these, and want to take a look through the rest of our archives, they can be found here.

© Sanja Gjenero

How many times have we spent longer planning something than it would take to just do it? I know I have. Revision is my favorite task to apply this method to, because you feel like your getting something done whilst still putting it off. I’m sure you can all remember times you’ve done this, where there are glorified plans put on the wall, but nothing that actually achieves results has been done.

For some projects, it’s best to just get started. Set a limit on the time you’ll take to plan something so it doesn’t eat away at the time you have on hand to do it.
For real Zen Planning, look at what you have to do, pick something, and start doing it!

Note: I am on holiday when this post is published, therefore I will be unable to respond to comments until Thursday 31st of July.

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This is Carl Hickson’s regular “Tuesday Tips” column, writing on all aspects of student productivity to help you become a more effective and stress free student.

© scol22 (Stock Xchng User)

Just a quick list for you all today. Although it might seem a bit of a simple post to a lot of you, it’s amazing the small things you forget. Things worth having include:

The Basics

• Pens
• Pencils
• Erasers
• Ruler

Plus

• Calculator - If you’re doing any sciences, this is probably a must
• Folders - A4 Thick Ring-binders are usually best, depending on what level you are studying at. If you’re doing A-Level, those thinner folders will be filled with one subjects work within a term
• Notepads - Lined A4 are usually best
• Highlighters - Helps you remember important points on handouts
• Diary - Used for keeping track of deadlines and assignments.

Others

• Bag - Make sure that you get a decent bag to carry all of your stuff around with you. It can be a nightmare walking around all day with a bag too small to fit half your stuff into.
• Pencil Case - Keep all of your smaller stuff together in here, it can be a nightmare looking for a tiny rubber in the bottom of a bag filled with rubbish.
• Inbox - I love the idea of having one of those plastic/metal trays on your desk to act as an inbox. It keeps everything that is coming to you (notes, letters etc.) all in the same place so you can process it later. It’s a good idea to get one if you haven’t got one already.
• Umbrella - The weather can’t always be predictable, and you feel a lot more together when at least when you arrive at a lesson, you’re relatively dry.
• Printer cartridges - We often forget how little ink was left in our printers at the end of summer, do yourself a favor and buy a couple of spare ink cartridges for when that multi-page essay needs printing at late notice.

As summer begins, now can be the ideal time to shop for the back to school essentials.

Whats on your back to school shopping list? Let me know in the comments section below.

Note: I am on holiday when this post is published, therefore I will be unable to respond to comments until Thursday 31st of July.

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This is Carl Hickson’s regular “Tuesday Tips” column, writing on all aspects of student productivity to help you become a more effective and stress free student.

© Sanja Gjenero

Summer gives us the chance to do those things that we never get round to during term time because there’s just too much on our plates. Here’s some ideas for things to do if you’re out of ideas.

Get a job
The more you work during the summer, the more cash you put in your pocket and you lower the hours you will have to work during term time, leaving you with more time to study.

Travel
With such an extended time-period off, this leaves a range of options for places to visit, from locally to internationally, travel is a great way to broaden your horizons, see new sites, de-stress and have a great time.

Read
There are numerous novels we see in bookstores and in advertisements throughout the year that we think “Yes, I should read that” but never get round to it because we’re just too busy. Take the time in summer to catch up on some of those “must reads” whilst you have the chance.

Unpaid Internships
These can be a great opportunity to gain some industry contacts. Networking is something you should be doing already because it’ll help your career in the long run (possible future post if anyone wants one). As well as this, you could get involved in some interesting projects and work.

Start something
Some projects are just to big to start during term time, you need the extended time to do it. Things such as starting a business. Now is your chance to start something big.

Have fun
Head to the beach, Go to parties, BBQs, have friends over, enjoy spending the evenings sitting outside with your friends. Some of our finest memories won’t be planned events, but that deep conversation in the garden, sat out whilst the sun descends slowly painting a glorious sunset against the sky. Don’t make summer all about achieving something and being frantically productive, we get enough of that during school.

Don’t let summer escape…
Before long, we will all be asking where summer went. Do something worthwhile this summer, take the time to relax, and make it a summer you’ll never forget.

What are your plans for summer? Let me know in the comments section below.

Note: I am on holiday when this post is published, therefore I will be unable to respond to comments until Thursday 31st of July.

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This is Carl Hickson’s regular “Tuesday Tips” column, writing on all aspects of student productivity to help you become a more effective and stress free student.

© Jose Fernando Carli

How many of you are just approaching the end of the academic year? I’ve finished a couple of weeks ago, and many students are starting to break up for summer in the coming weeks. You’re all imagining it already, the great (or not so great) weather, the BBQs, the parties and proms. With all these temptations, it’s easy to put off those essential tasks that make summer more relaxing and getting back to work next year a lot easier to stomach. Although it might seem like a pain now, you’ll be thankful for it later. The list below should cover the basics.

Things to Do

Return all textbooks borrowed from School

The last thing you want to deal with over summer is letters and invoices for textbooks that you’ve borrowed and should have returned. Do yourself a favor and return them to the right people after you’ve finished using them.

Cancel any subscriptions you’ll no longer need

Perhaps you’re dropping a subject next year and you’ve got a subscription to a journal related to it. Make sure you cancel these and save yourself a bit of cash!

Tidy your workspace

This exam period can be a stressful period and unfortunately, for many of us, with stress comes mess. Make sure your work area is tidy, filing systems sorted (see below) and that you could work at it if you needed to. The last thing you want is a messy workspace cluttering your home when it isn’t even being used.

Sort out filing systems

Get all of your notes organized now, making sure everything is ready for next year. This includes throwing out notes you really don’t need (remember, if re-sits are likely etc. – keep the notes) and making sure they are all in the correct places.

Sort out computer files

Almost the same as the above on sorting filing systems out; make sure your computer system is not neglected. Archive files that you aren’t going to need to refer to regularly and make sure you have a clear file structure in place. Now might also be time to do some computer maintenance you should have been doing.

And finally…

Enjoy summer

I’ve got 11 weeks off this summer, and I’m sure going to take a break after the stressful exam period has finished. For some tips on how to make summer worthwhile, see Maria’s post on “Summer Goals” and check out my post published next Tuesday entitled “Things to do during summer”.

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This list isn’t exhaustive, if you’ve got any other tips for things you do to wind down for summer, please share them in the comments section below.

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This is Carl Hickson’s regular “Tuesday Tips” column, writing on all aspects of student productivity to help you become a more effective and stress free student.