How do I stop wasting time?

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

So most of medical school I've gotten away with probably checking my phone every 30 minutes or reading news or doing something maybe every hour. But now I'm honestly doing it every 10 minutes and probably a quarter of the time I spend studying is wasted on random junk.

Is this just burn out or do I legitimately need to figure out some way to concentrate myself and block out distractions?

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[673441]

Probably a little bit of both. Had the same issue so I started using the Pomodoro method. Helps, but you need to make a fervent effort to get up and walk away when you're supposed to. It also involves shutting down all electronics until you begin an official break.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

What on your phone are you checking?

literally anything. I'm distracted and honestly I feel more like me and relieved when I'm not studying.

 

[whatisthisstuff]

I don't think there is a magical answer here. You just have to block out the distractions. From my own personal experience I feel like inattentiveness breeds more inattentiveness. Its tough today when we have the phones that we feel the need to look at every second. I have the urge to stare at my phone every time I'm at a stoplight and its pathetic. What did I do before I had a smart phone? In my opinion the real answer is...think. Not having something to distract us forces us to think...which if you think about it...its pretty sad that we all feel this constant need to distract ourselves from thinking.

So in my opinion try practicing sustained focus/not mindless distraction in all aspects of your life and it will carry over to school as well as make you a more fulfilled person (imo). But as far as little tips for school...I often throw my phone to the other side of the room, try to make studying task oriented (Ex: Not going to do anything else until I finish something specific), delete distracting favorites from your tool bar (Facebook, SDN), or put time limits on yourself. I've actually noticed I study much more efficiently (and make better grades) when I'm a little crunched for time. Forces me to get things done. I haven't done the Pomodoro thing, but I'm going to try it for a few things I find really tedious.

 

[AndyB1994]

I would suggest not having your phone with you at all. If you go to the library, leave it at home. If you are studying at home, turn it off and leave it in another room. If it's really THAT bad that you can't do these effectively, you may want to ask a friend to hold your phone for a few hours and not give it back until you're done studying. Although I don't start med school until this August, I've found that it works for me (at least in undergrad).

 

[Carbon090]

Probably a little bit of both. Had the same issue so I started using the Pomodoro method. Helps, but you need to make a fervent effort to get up and walk away when you're supposed to. It also involves shutting down all electronics until you begin an official break.

Interesting concept. May give this a shot.

 

[cellsaver]

Dr. Sherry Turkle from MIT has great insight on your situation. Her TED talk is dated but she is basically a prophet in many ways.



Suggestion: turn off the phone, leave it home, and check it twice a day: when you wake, and when you get home from lectures.
Leave the phone home. Mindfulness is the key

 

[Goro]

Try leaving the phone at home.

So most of medical school I've gotten away with probably checking my phone every 30 minutes or reading news or doing something maybe every hour. But now I'm honestly doing it every 10 minutes and probably a quarter of the time I spend studying is wasted on random junk.

Is this just burn out or do I legitimately need to figure out some way to concentrate myself and block out distractions?

 

[Mr Roboto]

https://selfcontrolapp.com/

Only thing that has worked for me.

 

[Mr Roboto]

And I totally understand what you mean here. It sucks.

literally anything. I'm distracted and honestly I feel more like me and relieved when I'm not studying.

 

[Dr Tony T. Chopper]

studying with others helped me eradicate my procrastination. when everyone is working hard through the night, the guilt is more than enough to keep you off reddit or your phone.

 

[Hannah Faulkner]

Primarily you need to have strong commitment to yourself. Remember you cannot be in two places at once, so you have to choose what matters most now. I recommend using Pomodoro Technique and most importantly you need to work out the schedule, dedicate time slots for different tasks in specific days. Give it a try..

 

[Beezlebub]

Leave your phone in your car. 99% of the time there's nothing important.

 

[cellsaver]

.

 

[Beezlebub]

^^^ clearly this one has no friends. feel the love much?

Who are you

I only care about getting sht done. If there's a distraction, identify the problem and solve it. This is medicine, not a little kid's game.

 

[Goro]

What did beezle do to get nailed by the Banhammer???

 

[Username555]

I set a timer for an hour and take 10 minute breaks in between each hour. I used to put my phone at a distance where I would need to get up and walk to it if I wanted to use it, but now I just keep it on me and I don't check it until each hour is up. I leave the ringer on because if it's important enough whoever wants to will just call me. I know there are some softwares that will block certain sites for certain periods of time. I haven't used any, but I imagine those would be helpful too.

 

[673441]

I set a timer for an hour and take 10 minute breaks in between each hour. I used to put my phone at a distance where I would need to get up and walk to it if I wanted to use it, but now I just keep it on me and I don't check it until each hour is up. I leave the ringer on because if it's important enough whoever wants to will just call me. I know there are some softwares that will block certain sites for certain periods of time. I haven't used any, but I imagine those would be helpful too.

Haha this is literally the Pomodoro method... quick insight since I use this daily, I do exactly what you do except I use Anki. I do 60 new cards per 30 minute block. I set a timer. If my 30 is up and I'm not done, I add the new 30 to my existing cards that I didn't get done. What I find happens, over time you start to pick up the pace... you end up finishing quicker and quicker and quicker till eventually you're shocked at how many new cards you just did!!! (Granted, this was more for those who use Anki)

 

[Crayola227]

What did beezle do to get nailed by the Banhammer???

I know, he was my favorite. His personality was the exact counterpoint to my own.

I PM'd with him, and all the times he acted like a sex-crazed bro he was just kidding.

I just reviewed the last few days he posted, he said some stuff about midlevels but nothing that bad.

 

[Mr Roboto]

I know, he was my favorite. His personality was the exact counterpoint to my own.

I PM'd with him, and all the times he acted like a sex-crazed bro he was just kidding.

I just reviewed the last few days he posted, he said some stuff about midlevels but nothing that bad.

So disappointing 🙁 he'll probably be back soon under a new name

 

[intubesteak]

Cold Turkey is another good distraction blocker. I use it on my computer but I think they have an ios version as well. If you pay for the full version you can make it completely shut down your computer for a specific scheduled time which basically forces me to exercise (pretty scarey to give this thing so much control...but worth it for me). SDN is one of the websites on my block list 🙁

 

[Light at end of tunnel]

What did beezle do to get nailed by the Banhammer???

They did have a tendency to pseudo-swear.

 

[Spectre of Ockham]

Probably a little bit of both. Had the same issue so I started using the Pomodoro method. Helps, but you need to make a fervent effort to get up and walk away when you're supposed to.

God that's such a good method it boosted my productivity by over 200%. I owe a lot of thing to time management. I would never be able to run a business , succeed in med school and have personal life without it.

When I do things well it all falls into a splendor of a path where grades are 100% , business is humming , I go to the gym everyday , I'm in the ER working every weekend , I take care of chores , I participate in the local party meetings , I have a few dozen minutes to speak at my favorite NGO , I work on my research projects , my fiancee is happy , my family is happy and I have a tiny bit of time to go out and enjoy life for a few hours. God I love that perfection.

When I do it wrong stress plus burnout are eating me alive and I down spiral back to smoking a cig or three per day or I binge some stupid video game or series.

Here's my two cents - go to Lynda.com and watch Dave Crenshaw's Time Management Fundamentals and there's another course called Overcoming Procrastination. Watch them and live by them. They will most likely change your life. Also get OneNote on your laptop and phone , that program is a life saver.

If you lack self control just use a firewall to block yourself from junk websites like cnn , 9gag , youtube etc. You can't really block FB since it's essential for the academic life these days.