Studying-Matt

As a personal (but serious) project, I am ensembling a team for an archive of the 1900s. Specifically the early conflicts, such as WW1 and WW2.

I am looking for anyone invested in this time in Modern History. From enthusiasts to Graduates. If you have language, programming, archival or any other related skills, feel free to contact me at: [email protected]

Introduce yourself (real or pseudonym identity), what you want to offer, or anything you deem relevant.

Ideally, we need:

- French Speaker

- German Speaker

- Dutch Speaker

- Italian Speaker

- IT

- Archivist

- Treasurer(eventually)

- WW1 Speciallist

- WW2 Speciallist

- Assistant

This doesnt mean that other people that dont fall into these categories are not welcome!

As this is a personal project, remuneration is not yet possible, so it's a volunteer-based Archive. If that is not something you can afford, I would appreciate it if you could pass the word to someone who you might think could be interested.

Thank you!

E.A. Deverell - FREE worksheets (characters, world building, narrator, etc.) and paid courses;

Hiveword - Helps to research any topic to write about (has other resources, too);

BetaBooks - Share your draft with your beta reader (can be more than one), and see where they stopped reading, their comments, etc.;

Charlotte Dillon - Research links;

Writing realistic injuries - The title is pretty self-explanatory: while writing about an injury, take a look at this useful website;

One Stop for Writers - You guys... this website has literally everything we need: a) Description thesaurus collection, b) Character builder, c) Story maps, d) Scene maps & timelines, e) World building surveys, f) Worksheets, f) Tutorials, and much more! Although it has a paid plan ($90/year | $50/6 months | $9/month), you can still get a 2-week FREE trial;

One Stop for Writers Roadmap - It has many tips for you, divided into three different topics: a) How to plan a story, b) How to write a story, c) How to revise a story. The best thing about this? It's FREE!

Story Structure Database - The Story Structure Database is an archive of books and movies, recording all their major plot points;

National Centre for Writing - FREE worksheets and writing courses. Has also paid courses;

Penguin Random House - Has some writing contests and great opportunities;

Crime Reads - Get inspired before writing a crime scene;

The Creative Academy for Writers - "Writers helping writers along every step of the path to publication." It's FREE and has ZOOM writing rooms;

Reedsy - "A trusted place to learn how to successfully publish your book" It has many tips, and tools (generators), contests, prompts lists, etc. FREE;

QueryTracker - Find agents for your books (personally, I've never used this before, but I thought I should feature it here);

Pacemaker - Track your goals (example: Write 50K words - then, everytime you write, you track the number of the words, and it will make a graphic for you with your progress). It's FREE but has a paid plan;

Save the Cat! - The blog of the most known storytelling method. You can find posts, sheets, a software (student discount - 70%), and other things;

I hope this is helpful for you!

I’m about to get new bullet jurnals and I’m super excited about it, cause I’m a huge nerd. So here is how I imagine my planning by far:

For the entire year

Legend (not necessary if you already know your stuff)

Contact list (Include teachers! It is important.)

Birthdays

Mood tracker

Productivity tracker 

Wishlist

Goals for the year

Seasons

Books to read

Movies to watch

Bucket list

Extra: Summer break planning.

Monthly

Goals for the month

List of goals for each week (Good for projects)

Projects (Page where you can plan certain parts of said projects)

Ideas (Empty page for ideas)

Weight tracker (Careful about this one. I have it for health reasons)

Period tracker

Habit tracker

Budgeting

Things I learnt that month

Weekly planner

Song of the day

Goals for the week

Gratitude

Memories

Decluttering and generally cleaning our spaces is very important and computers, phones etc. are part of said space.

Declutter your devices!

Make back-ups

Put things into the correct folders

Create new folders if needed

Delete old blurry photos (and all those selfies)

Delete apps you don’t use anymore

Cancel subscribtions to apps you don’t use anymore

Go through your emails

Delete old contacts

You can also expand said declutter to your social media:

Unfollow people who make you feel bad

Unsubscribe yt channels you don’t care about anymore

Delete old embarassing tweets/posts/photos

Answer messages that need answering

I am guilty of many mistakes while creating my own schedule. Over time I learnt how to organise my days correctly and today I will share some scheduling tips with you:

Try not to schedule your day unless it’s necessary

I like to keep 3 to-dos for a day. Not less and not more. For three tasks I don’t need to structure my time. 

If you do need to schedule often, make sure to have days where you can do whatever you feel like doing without having to follow a strict plan.

Be realistic with how much time you need for a task

If you give yourself too little time you will get behind on schedule and it will stress you out. At that point your organising will do the oposite of what it’s supposed to.

If you give yourself too much time you will end up procrastinating and slacking off, plus you won’t get done all the things you need.

Figure out how much time you need for regular things (15 minutes for stretching, 30 minutes for dinner etc.) and do your best to guess how much time you’ll need for things you usually don’t do (2 hours to write an essay…)

Give yourself time to be lazy

You will spend at least 5 minutes before every new tasks just being lost

Schedule in breaks that are long enough for you to actually rest

10 minutes is the minimum

Lists are sometimes better than setting specific times to start a task and end a task

Scheduling by time is often necessary but in days that are busy but not time restricted, try to avoid dividing things by time. Simply make a list of things to do in the order in which you want to do them.

Don’t schedule by the minute

If you need to know specific times, avoid making it too specific (like 12:30-12:35 think of new posts)

Put some fun activity into it

If your plan is all work and no fun all day, you won’t be able to stick to it or you’ll seriously exhaust yourself. Schedule in some netflix or something creative like drawing or writing.

Feeling in a slump? In desperate need of refreshment? After exhausting months of studying for exams like me? Well I have this plan to get my life together again and I thought I might share with you!

📚 Week 1: Rest and prep

Spend 3 days resting

No planning and no routines 

Don’t do anything you don’t want to do

Sleep in if you want

Binge that show or play that video game

1 day of cleaning your space

Keep it small and surfice level

Clean the dust and the floors

Change your sheets and towels

Declutter the things around

Let in fresh air

1 day of mental health reset

Focus on yourself and your mind with meditating or journaling

Go through your full routines

Read or be creative

Do your favourite self care activities

1 day of social media detox -no social media allowed

1 day of dopamine detox

You have to get bored

You are allowed to go for a walk or work out (no music tho!)

You can journal and meditate

A little bit of cheating: if you feel to desperate you can read

💖 Week 2: Family, friends and love

Spend this week with others as much as possible

Make small gifts for others

Hang out playing games or just talking

Make sure to tell people what they mean to you

🍓 Week 3: Body detox

Make sure to change up things in this part depending on your goals, health and your body’s needs!

No meat, bread (and other pastry) and sweets

No fried food

Drink water only

Fast for 16 hours a day (imtermittent fasting -a lot of you are concerned but don’t worry about me personally. It is safe for me. If you consider doing this do a proper research!)

Work out daily

Go for walks/jogging and spend as much time outside as possible

Take medications and vitamins properly

🧹 Week 4 and 5: Declutter and organise your space

Declutter and organise your closets and cupboards

Go through your clothes

Deep clean your space

Donate things you don’t want or need

😴 Week 6: More rest

3 days resting completely (like the first 3 days)

4 days of active rest

Follow routines

Be creative

Garden/clean/cook

Work out/go cycling/do yoga

Read or learn something new

🎨 Week 7: Be creative daily

Create something every day

📆 Week 8: Planning and new routines

Plan your future

Find new routines

Get into stable routine that makes you happy

1. Take a week off

First of all you need to get some rest. Take the first week just to be lazy if you can. Do the things you love and that will help you regain energy. No studies and possibly no work either. 

2. Clean, organise and get ready

Do a major declutter

Deep clean your living space

Reorganise things if you want

You could try a mjor makeover of your room

Now you have time to reorganise and prepare your space for being productive.

3. Get a summer job

Make some money, kids.

On the other hand it’s good to have some free time to rest, so make sure you don’t work all the time.

4. Have a routine

This one is really important okay? If you want to avoid procrastinating trhough your summer, you need to keep some kind of a routine.

Wake up and go to sleep early …ish

Make your morning routine a bit more complicated now that you have more time

Do something for your body (yoga, working out, walks in nature…) and make it part of your routine

Add reading into it cause heck ye books!

5. Make plans with others

Not only it is important to socialise but others will also hold you accountable of basically anything.

Have workout buddies, eating healthy buddies or simply “drag me out of the house” buddies.

6. Don’t leave studying for the last week of summer

Dude don’t.

How about studying one week, being lazy the other and the repeat?

Entire days sometimes roll by without us noticing. Sometimes we procrastinate through all day. Here are a few tips how to use your time better:

Track the use of your time -Try this for at least a week. Write down, in any way you want, how did you spent your day. When did you study? How long did you spend cleaning your room? When did you procrastinate? This will help you find the times of day when you procrastinate and which you could use better. 

Make schedules for especially busy days

Eliminate procrastination triggers -Put your phone away. Turn off your computer unless you truly need it for work.

Take breaks -I said it milion times and I’ll say it again.

Use every minute -20 minutes between classes? Do the small simple homework. 30 minute walk home? Listen to audio books.

Every task counts -Being productive isn’t only studying/working. It’s cleaning, self care and hobbies too. Keep that in mind.

Start on 3 -I use this method of counting to 3 when I really don’t want to do something. Just count to three and go. Get up and do it. Don’t give your brain a chance to stop you.

Enough sleep, enough energy

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Online classes have me getting whip-freakin’-lash and I have a mountain load of readings to do, and I thought hey, maybe you do too. So here’s a carefully curated list of what to do when reading gets tough. 

1. Read it again.

Difficult material is often easier the second time around. If you read an assignment, and do not understand it, DO NOT DESPAIR. Admit confusion. Sleep on it. Wake up fresh and read it again!

2. Look for essential words.

Mentally cross out all adjectives and adverbs. Focus on the verbs and nouns. It’ll be simpler then.

3. Hold a mini-review. 

Pause briefly to summarize what you’ve read so far. Stop at the end of the paragraph and recite, IN YOUR OWN WORDS, what you’ve read. Jot down notes and/or create a summary or outline. 

4. Read it aloud. 

Read a passage aloud several times. Use different inflections. Emphasize a different part of the sentence. Imagine that YOU are the AUTHOR talking. 

5. Stand up. 

Change positions periodically. It can combat fatigue. 

6. Use another text.

Find another text. Sometimes, it is easier to understand if it is expressed in another way. 

7. Pretend you understand, then explain it.

Oftentimes, we understand more than we think we do. Pretend it’s crystal clear and explain it to another person or yourself. Write that explanation down and you’ll be amazed with what you know. 

hey there!! here is a list of things you should try to get done before you go to sleep to make the next day/morning SO much easier!!

pick out your outfit. i like to do this the sunday before the week starts actually! i think about the weather and also what kind of activities i’ll be doing that day so i’m not over/under dressed. however, even if you do this the night before, your mornings will be so much better and you’ll have that 10 extra minutes to sleep in :)

pack the majority of your lunch. if you take your lunch to school/work, pack the items that don’t need to be refrigerated. also, for those that do need to be refrigerated, make them the night before so you can save even more time. but don’t forget them either! put them in a part of the fridge that you see right away when you open it.

figure out what you’re gonna have for breakfast. too many times have i been staring at the pantry or the fridge, trying to figure out what to have for breakfast while the precious minutes tick by. whether it’s overnight oatmeal that you make the night before, a bagel, cereal, or even eggs, having an idea of what you have is soooo much better than having to think of it on the spot. 

pack your bag/backpack. find all those loose items the night before so you’re not running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off trying to find your favorite lipstick or that pack of gum.

literally, take off your makeup. everyone says it. but, here you are, being lazy and not wanting to do it. well too bad. do it. you and your skin will thank you. 

meditate/read/journal. find something that takes your eyes away from a screen. no, don’t read on your phone. you want to but whether you like it or not, you’ll be tempted to look at social media *one* more time before bed and next thing you know, you’re scrolling through instagram and it’s 2am. 

clean your room. put that dirty laundry in the laundry basket/room. throw away all those empty water bottles scattered about your desk. fix your sheets so you don’t wake up wrapped up in a burrito like last night. you know what you have to do. 

brush your teeth/wash your face. this is a given. just do it. 

make your to do list for the next day. this just makes life so much easier. you actually will know what you need/want to do the next day

moisturize!!!!! whether this be your face, your lips (so they’re soft and kissable), or your freshly shaven legs, putting on some lotion/moisturizer will make you feel so much better about yourself. when you slip on your jeans or socks the next morning and touch your smooooooooth legs, you’ll be happy i told you to moisturize.

Hi, this is a masterpost of the-diary-of-a-failure and its posts related to productivity!  The posts people loved the most are highlighted, but I recommend you check out the ones, which didn’t get much love, too. Enjoy:

🍁 Hustle

Stay productive through the day

Setting goals (2019 edition)

Personal 2019 goals

Breaking down goals to actions

Get the best out of your time

Have a productive school/Summer break

New personal goals (2020)

How to build a bucket list

How to stop procrastinating

Get your life together in 8 weeks

🍁 Productive lifestyle

Make your mornings easier

Wake up early

Tips for better sleep

Spend less time on your phone

Keep your space organised

Be more organised

Declutter tips

Scheduling and organsing time

Things I always carry around

Digital declutter

Strive for perfection or half-ass it?

Workout tips for beginners

You do you for you

🍁 Routines

Weekly reset routine

Creating a routine

Monthly routine

After-school routine

Weekly routine

Building your own self-care routine

Cleaning routine

🍁 Staying on top of your game 

Prioritise in times of stress

Bullet journal ideas

Getting back on track after being sick

Turn lazy into productive

Bullet journaling tips

Getting back to work

🍁 Rest is important

Break ideas

Don’t overwork yourself

Taking breaks in chaos

Do what you feel like doing

How I deal with anxious days

How to push the reset button

🍁 Other masterposts

Studies related masterpost

Lifestyle and health masterpost

Art masterpost

A student tested guide to planning your shit

Yes, I’m back after months of absence. I’ve been horribly busy this summer, I started my internship, had to do some certifications and even started working as a freelance marketer aside from that. So, you can just imagine how many things I’ve gotta do. And I have to say what truly saved me, is planning properly. So these are the best practices I’ve learned that have saved me from going crazy. This method consists of 3 stages: Overview, Planning, Reviewing. In the end, I will also list some good practices that can help you plan better. 

Overview Stage

For this first stage, I rec you to grab a piece of paper and just jot down these things. Don’t write them directly on your calendar, with the exception of deadlines.

1. List your deadlines first. Starting with the deadlines is the easiest given the fact these are likely not to change dates. Include here things like presentations, exams, meetings. Also, do yourself a favour and list the expiration date of legal documents like ID, passport, license and such because most of us don’t do that and realise too late when its already expired. 

2. List your required tasks and the time it takes to finish. These are mundane things like cleaning, cooking, and other chores you usually do on a daily or weekly basis. Also, write down how much time you spend doing these things and when you usually do them. 

3. List things you do in your free time. This one is pretty straightforward: going out with friends, watching a movie or series, reading and whatever else you like to do in your free time. 

Planning Stage

1. Analyse. This is the most crucial part of the entire process so you have to pay close attention here. Deadlines are our number 1 priorities, and likely the ones to give us more stress. So we want to start with those first. Ask yourself questions like how long it will take you to complete a certain project? How hard will it be to complete this before the deadline? Is it time-consuming? Is it a group or individual project? If it’s a group project, keep in mind you should leave some time open for meetings and such. Talk to your teammates if you are going to meet, if so when and where. 

2. Set weekly goals.

Shit might happen and you may not complete your daily tasks and such. Which is why I prefer setting weekly goals. As the week progress, I schedule my tasks. I don’t like planning specifically every detail for more than 2 days, as shit might happen today or tomorrow or maybe I’m in a whole different mood and therefore do schedule my daily tasks in more detail the night before. I’ve noticed it makes me feel less stress and I have better control over what I can do instead of what I want to do in the day.

3. Don’t go nuts on the daily tasks.

We all would like to be productive af, and hustle with all-nighters and all so we can brag about how hard we work but man that ain’t healthy. At least, I know that shit doesn’t work for me at all. I set a maximum of 5 daily tasks. I’ve noticed that if I do more, chances are very high I won’t even finish my daily tasks and will get stressed instead. Take it easy. Don’t rush. Plus it gives me time to do other stuff after if I feel like it or if someone invites me to go out. 

Good practices

1. Have everything in one accessible place. I used to have a bullet journal and couple it with a digital calendar. Worst idea ever. Somethings where here the other half was over there. It was truly a mess. Just pick one and stick to it. This way you won’t be losing information and everything, literally, everything can be seen at a glance. I personally prefer using a digital calendar because I always have my phone with me, and it helps me minimize the things I carry. 

2. Try to plan ahead and for the worst-case scenario. Yes, you never know when shit may hit the fan so you better be prepared.