Lessons I’ve Learned: Find a spot that works for you (and makes you work).

There are always two key obstacles to my attempts at getting things done. The first is time. Making time to get all of my homework/projects/tasks done is a constant challenge, and it’s one I will address in great depth on a number of occasions in the future. I want to talk about the other key obstacle today: location.

A lot of people seem to underestimate the importance of setting to productivity. I maintain that a good study spot is absolutely invaluable. If you can’t get comfortable, or if something smells bad, or if there’s too much noise in a space, there’s no way you’re going to be able to focus.

Of course, the ideal space is different for everyone. My perfect spot changes depending on the weather. On a pretty day, a small garden at my favorite coffee shop inspires my very best writing. In gloomier weather, I have a few places on campus where I can take refuge. Finding your own little study haven is one of the biggest favors you can do yourself.

So what should you look for in a good work area? There’s not really a one-size-fits-all answer to that. You know better than I do what kind of conditions you can work in. But here are three key tips to help you start looking:

1. Find a quiet place. Lots of noise is distracting, and, if you can’t focus, you’re not going to be doing your best work.
2. Look for good lighting. Dim light is more conducive to sleep, and it’s pretty hard to get anything more than dreaming done when you’re dozing. (Not that dreaming isn’t important, but that’s a blog for another time.)
3. Play a bit of hide and seek, and find the best hiding spot ever. If you can be found, you can be interrupted.

The rest is really up to you. Personally, I usually need a spot with an outlet, so I can power my laptop. I also work better to music, and headphones become uncomfortable over long periods of time, so I look for places where I can open up iTunes without disturbing anyone.

Once you find a good place to work, you’re on your way to being downright productive. You just have to start doing it. More on that soon, I promise.

Something greater this way comes… I hope.

I’m going to steal a page from kindacarsick on Tumblr and present a brief inventory of my abilities.

Things I Can Do:

• Survive an intense writing program at a prestigious arts high school.
• Move a person’s livelihood from one apartment to another at the drop of a hat in the space of about 36 hours.
• Navigate the metro system in Tokyo.
• Explain sexual orientation, sex, gender identity and gender expression, as well as the continuum associated with each, to any given class of college students.
• Edit a 500-word news story down to 280 words. (I’m on my way to being able to format and design the article for publication, too.)
• Write an entire, functional web site in straight HTML.
• Write an exceptional resume for any position.

Things I Can’t Do:

• Make coffee.
• Wake up on time.
• Grill a steak.
• Speak another language.
• Create a dynamic web page.
• Efficiently advertise myself on the Internet.
• Deliver a good impromptu speech.

Obviously, I’m decidedly more competent in matters that require some degree of intellect or skill than I am in the simplest, most sensible tasks. There are a lot of things I can do quite capably–and the list gets longer all the time–but there are still a lot of things I don’t know or haven’t tried. I work every day to improve myself in any way that I can, and that is the focus of this blog.

Over time, I’ve found a lot of resources that have helped me accomplish my goals. I’ve learned a lot about creating a professional identity and about growing up without actually, well, growing up. In SGTWC, I’m going to share some of the tools I’ve come across, as well as any practical advice I can dispense. I’m going to share a bit about my own progress, too; I’m still just a college student myself. I dream of doing great things: going to graduate school, of being published, of making a significant contribution to the current pool of human knowledge… I will do great things, and I will become a great person. I hope that, by sharing my progress here, I can help someone else out there do the same.

Yours,
Amanda