Well, I guess we’re attending college from home now.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been struggling to keep my productivity up. None of my classes have scheduled meeting times, which sounds great, except that it puts a lot more responsibility on me to not fall behind. Of course, grades and deadlines help keep students on track, but being at home with so many distractions makes it easy to procrastinate. I think this has to do with willpower: you need less willpower if things are structured and more if they aren’t.
I’ve made myself a schedule, but it’s not always easy to stick to it. The structure is there, but motivation is missing. So I’ve decided to see this semester as an opportunity to internalize my motivation. Or, in other words, I want to stop relying on external factors for motivation.
It might help to think about it like a business. If a business controls the means of production, they can sell their product at a cheaper price and boost their sales. In the same way, if motivation comes from within, productivity will be boosted. Just as the business no longer has to rely on a supplier, neither would I have to rely on outside factors for motivation. Having this kind of readily available motivation is what I would call willpower. It’s something I don’t have a lot of, and something I really want to cultivate.
Here’s my approach; I think it really boils down to goals, action, and accountability.
I will be setting myself a goal each day. The goal should be productive enough that I don’t feel like I’m slacking, but not so difficult that I miss it. I’m not sure I can hold myself accountable for achieving my goal every day, so I will be looping in friends who I know won’t let me slack off.
Ever heard the expression “fake it ’till you make it”? I’m sure it will seem almost impossible at first, but hopefully if I keep “faking it,” it will become gradually easier and easier each time I achieve my daily goal. Eventually, it should become so easy that I won’t need a friend to push me. At least that’s the plan; it’s sure going to take a lot of dedication and practice. Hopefully, I will look back at this as at least one good result of taking classes from home.