Sunday, February 2, 2014

Adventurers Guide To College: Social Media Distractions 101

By Hedrick Lepsch


As a college student in the 21st century, it is no easy task trying to keep yourself focused. With new cool gadgets coming out every day, it is just getting easier and easier to spend time on the latest tablet, phone, or game. Everyone is connected with devices such as these and trying to keep yourself focused while studying and keep these distractions out can seem like running up a river. But there is hope! Below are a few of the game changers to help you deal with this impossible task and pick up your grades in doing so.

With the technology that exists today, you can stay in touch with family easily. Whether it is through the occasional text message, email or phone call you can let your family know that you are thinking of them. Unfortunately you cannot communicate with home pets this way but you can use Google Hangout or Skype to video chat and see your family and pets that way.

You may not want to completely rid yourself of the outside world of social media so perhaps the first thing you could do is turn off your notifications on your phone. Every chime, noise, or signal can leave you losing your train of thought. Plan times when you can check your phone and stick to them. Keep yourself on a strict schedule.

As important as it is to take your mind off of home, it is also important not to forget it. Sometimes the best way to make yourself feel better about being away from home is planning the next time you are going to go back. Budget how much money you have and how much you will need for travel costs.

You may want to rationalize how this can affect you but the bottom line is that your studies are more important than looking at what your friend had for lunch on Facebook. Turn off your phone completely, not just vibrate, and plan to turn it back on at the end of your class or when you are done studying.

One important thing to avoid is taking the same classes, just for the sake of being together. You should find the program that you're each most interested in.

Studying at your apartment can make it easy for you to cave when your friends are around indulging in what you want to be a part of with phones, etc. Rid yourself of these temptations. Try studying at a park on a blanket, or go try out your public library. You will have a much more enjoyable and liberating study this way.

It doesn't matter if you are studying Business Administration, Accounting, Property Management, Event Planning, New Media Marketing, or Programming; we are all eventually susceptible to the pangs of home sickness. Everyone deals with it in different ways but what is important to remember is that it is possible to overcome. Once you are able to find your place in your new surroundings, you will not have the same feeling of home sickness you had before.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment