Focus Your Intentions And Stress Less

Pandemic teaching has required a fine balance as we navigate our everyday needs and responsibilities. Time on screen needs to be used in a productive manner to minimize the impact on our bodies. So…

How might we be more efficient in using our devices to maximize our productivity, while reducing our screen time?

 

You can listen to podcast, ebooks, and any text on our device rather than reading to reduce eye strain and create variability in your daily life.

You can make lists, schedule tasks, set reminders, and try strategies like using Calendly to have others book appointments in your available times.

You can create automated tasks using Shortcuts on Apple devices to quickly complete tasks that you do daily (timers, weather, attendance, email a group, block off an hour in your calendar, make a gif, etc).

 

All these little tricks and tips are great, but they aren’t helping me get the real work done.

I’ve tried focus timer apps that track your tasks and block time for completion like Pomodoro Timer , Forest , and many Google Chrome Add-ons to help me, but there is one missing element – accountability.

 

I tell myself that I am an “active procrastinator,” Keeping busy doing the things I want to do, while avoiding the things I need to get done.

Tim Urban’s TED talk is a wonderful look “Inside the Mind of a Master Procrastinator” (13 min.)

(Coincidentally, after embedding this video I watched it again, while writing the rest of the blog.)

 

 

 

Here’s what I discovered about myself = the key factor for me is accountability. A deadline isn’t enough, as I used to just wait until the end and get it done.

After the last two year of life (concussion/pandemic), I’ve had to readjust my strategy as I no longer can pull all-nighters, while also teaching during a pandemic.

The need to use our devices to make progress is essential, so I need to have clear intentions of tasks and time to be effective. I tried to use my phone for personal and computer/iPad for work. That helps, but if I take my email off my phone, then I won’t respond as quickly and I might miss something important.

 

So now what… Online Deep Focus Sessions

 

There are new websites that try to help with this by creating a virtual call with someone else who is also trying to focus on completing independent work.

Focus Mates is a service that allows you to set an intention of the work you intend to complete within the time allotted while being in a call with one other person who is also working independently. This setting simulates the experience of working with someone in a study group.

@rgarand was kind enough to share this experience with me today. We met up for a zoom call and silently attempted to write our blogs. Not only did this work for me but when the call was over I continued to work in a focused manner. Thank you Robin!

The official website will have you paired with someone you don’t know. You can work for the entire hour on one thing, or set up 2/3 sprints to get smaller tasks completed. https://www.focusmate.com/

 

What if you work best in a group setting?

Cave Day is a group workspace where you are in a room of people you don’t know and everyone is working independent while muted in a video conferencing app. This is to simulate the experience of working in a coffeeshop or library.

The TAG line is “Positive Peer Pressure to Get Your Sh*t Done.”

You can sign up as a squad and have a coach who helps you plan out your work. All of this sounds like an excellent student study success program to me. Are you ready to become a cavedweller?

 

Both of these services are paid, but maybe this becomes a Cohort21 Project and we create this for students across CISOntario @scraig ?

Both options can be incorporated in our schools. The idea of a Homework Hubs, Study Pods, or Buddies would work well to allow for drop-in spaces. Similar to those in our physical schools that students miss seeing others in the community like a library, common space, or cafeteria. We have a peer tutoring program at my school, but this is different and it’s about creating the space for independent work in a social forum.

I’ve used this idea in class with breakout rooms to complete tasks, and sprints to vary interaction with more students. It’s beneficial to take the time to have them post their intention and they must keep their camera on. They don’t have to complete the entire assignment, which models chunking and time management.

 

I would love to hear from you. Do you have programs similar to these at your schools?

Have you experienced FocusMates or gone into the Cave?

@psenior @mwilcox @rporteous @rfoster @iliu @mbarone @nselvanayagam @jmedved @gnichols