Another day, another korean study session 🌱

june 2022 / give me books, french wine, fruit, fine weather and a little music played out of doors by somebody i do not know.

middle of the week update: slightly starting to feel tired but we ain’t stopping on being productive in this house, no we don’t!

more on my instagram account: thomreads

What are days for? Days are where we live— where can we live but days?

sorry for always disappearing, im just not sure if i exist anymore and exams arent helping

21/11/18 (November 21st 2018)

Downtown by Tegan and Sara 🎧

If this essay doesn’t kill me, nothing will. I’m currently grappling with the concept of connecting Du Bois’ concept of double consciousness with post-structuralism. I don’t know whether I’m being very clever or very stupid. (x)

quiet autumn mornings in london 🍂🍁

your local mediocre student tries to be productive (aka finals are hard)

23.12.20 || It really has been a while! I finished my finals and switched my thesis topic- this was a rough quarter but hopefully the next will be better. I’m really hoping I can get into a course about Islamic art and architecture next quarter. I’m drinking a homemade thunderbolt (espresso in san pellegrino) - what do you guys think about them?

//Crowded Places - BANKS

If I speak, I am condemned. If I stay silent, I am damned!

You ask me what forces me to speak? a strange thing; my conscience.

Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

how i use notion ––

my sidebar

i don’t need too many pages because you can have pages inside pages, and that’s what’s going on here! i have my “home” which is my main thing for everything personal, my “school” for school, and my “social” for managing content. 

home

this is basically my dashboard! the minute i get on my computer to start my day, i go here. 

i go to agenda to see what is on the priority tabs for the day, and goals for what i should get done for bettering myself. 

my routines page is kind of a reminder of my organized day, i don’t match it exactly, but if i ever feel lost and confused, that’s a help.

bills are bills, i don’t want to fall behind on things. 

hiking has a supply checklist for getting our bags together, and trips i have planned. i’m excited for cooler fall weather and it’s the perfect time to start getting in the outdoors more!

as i said before…

my agenda is for major tasks of the day. i have the “task” section for a broad thing to do, and then the “notes” section is specifics on what to do for that thing to do.

my goals are separated my daily, weekly, and monthly. the daily and weekly parts are the short term things i want to achieve, and the monthly are long term things i want to achieve. 

school

this is where all i keep my academic stuff.

homework, school calendar, and clubs all stay at the top. i also visit homework everyday….because, you guessed it, i have it everyday.

first semester overview has all my classes, and i have the second semester overview below it, but i’ll just bump it up when the time comes. in those classes, i have unit overviews and syllabi.

social

finally, my social page! i have everything i need to manage my accounts on all sites.

my ideas and things to do are at the very top because they have things for all three sites i use (YT, tumblr, and insta).

then for each individual page, i have this layout. i just drag and drop pages when i’m planning or they’re in the process of being made. not the final layout, but it works for now. i also have plan templates and a checklist. 

09/07/2020 - so i’ve finally started to work on my masters thesis. it’s such a great feeling to be inspired by research and knowledge🌿

hey!! i used to have a huge problem with procrastination but i would say i’m holding up pretty okay these last days and doing a good job at balancing out my days. i’m by no means perfect and still waste time every so often but i hope i can help some of you hehe.

do what gets you in a “productive“ mood 🍊

for me, it’s getting ready and putting on a fun outfit, for you it may be working out in the morning or completing some quick tasks like putting some things away etc. figure out what gets you started. this helped me a lot, especially after i laid in bed doing nothing, it’s much easier to do these kind of tasks than just start studying.

have a fun morning routine 🍊

something to look forward to. i love breakfast and listening to an audiobook. you can try to incorporate journaling, playing with a pet, listening to your fav music, doing fun makeup, … it will get way easier to get up in the morning.

maximize your space / use it in a smart way 🍊

i have a sofa bed so i make to sure it’s in the sofa state when studying, so i don’t get tempted to lay down. you could also make your bed in the morning and make a rule it’s only for sleeping. when you like to work in bed just change the layout like moving the pillows. make your brain associate studying with certain things. turning on a specific lamp, candles, certain music, idk even smth like putting your hair up. also best invention ever made are theses thingies making your books stay up (how are they called???). first of all your neck doesn’t hurt as much anymore, books take up less space and they’re also really practical for your laptop.

practice 🍊

when doing exercises you already have the answers to, try doing them without help and then correct yourself like a teacher with a red pen. i find i then know which mistakes are typical for me and remember the correct answer better.

be flexible 🍊

if you make a plan and find it doesn’t work out for you, change it. adjust your studying for subjects. i can read for 50mins but i can’t revise flashcards for that long. that may be completely different for you. i also don’t really like making a schedule because it just always seems to get interrupted. you may work fine with one. just try things out and find what works for you.

have things to look forward to 🍊

i need breaks. i like to take a midday break and watch youtube or a show and i study in 50min tacts with 10min breaks in between. i rest in the evening and do something i like. organize your days in a way that doesn’t make you burn out.

get enough sleep!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🍊

hear me out. i didn’t want to believe it. but it makes such a huge difference. i know this is (sadly) not realistic for everyone but ever since i sleep enough, i’m way happier? and motivated. i can concentrate better and in the end get more done than when i would sleep less.

revision 🍊

if you need to memorize material go through it trying to repeat it without looking. then mark the stuff you don’t know (highlight/sticky notes). if you go through your material later you will know what you really need to revise and save time.

and most importantly: be gentle to yourself. don’t overwork yourself. don’t compare yourself to others. forgive yourself when you are not “productive“. your worth is not messured by that!!! okay?