When you open the internet, what’s the first thing you type? 

Ok ok, I’ll admit it! During college and for years after I graduated, the first thing I’d type in my search bar was ALWAYS the letter “F.” Why’s that? Well, Facebook had the gravitational pull of an internet black hole for me.

Though I’m sure your roadmap to distraction looks a little different than mine, we all know what the process looks like: 

Mind wanders.

… 

“I’m bored…”

“Let’s see what else is out there on the internet?”

…

Clicks Instagram…

Scrolls through 28375950 pics of the beach, friends’ dogs, and delicious noms.

“How did I end up here again?”

Nothing kills productivity faster than being distracted. You could spend your time reading the world’s best productivity tips, but if you don’t quiet your mind and develop a system for protecting your ability to focus, then it’s all for nothing!

“Creating the right environment” is important, so check out ways to optimize your study space. Setting up your digital space is 1000x more important!

So while we all wait out the end of the apocalypse, if you’re ready to figure out how to actually focus on studying, let’s dive right in.

“We have essentially two versions of ourselves: our “best-self” that is motivated and has these things called “goals,” and another version of ourselves that would rather eat a nauseating amount of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos and watch Netflix ALL DAY.”

Step 1. Turn your smartphone back into a tool.

In order to be productive, you’ve got to use your phone wisely. Put that thing on airplane mode and turn off WiFi and Bluetooth. 

Now you can use your handheld super-computer for something useful like calculating, graphing, studying digital flashcards, looking up elements on the periodic table, and finding definitions for words you don’t know. 

“Nothing kills productivity faster than being distracted.”

Step 2. Install browser extensions that block or limit the websites you can use while studying.

I know, I know… I sound like a totalitarian dictator! But hear me out…

We all know that we are our own worst enemy in doing what we “should do” vs “what we want to do.” We have essentially two versions of ourselves: our “best-self” that is motivated and has these things called “goals,” and another version of ourselves that would rather eat a nauseating amount of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos and watch Netflix ALL DAY.

So why not recruit your best-self to help you protect your ability to focus when you need it? 

Here are 3 of the best tools I know of to help with staying focused while you work online: 

• WasteNoTime  - a free browser extension for Chrome browsers.

This is my favorite of the three because I like to use Chrome and it allows me to set a daily time limit on the amount of time I can spend on my favorite time wasting websites. Once I’ve exceeded my 15 minutes of daily Instagram use, it blocks me from the site and redirects me to a page with a reminder that there are better things to do online. 

You can also set windows of time where you completely block websites you don’t want to have access to. Then there’s an option to lock down your browser for a period of time so that you are locked out of the entire internet with the exception of just those few sites you need to complete your “to do’s” for the day. I’m not gonna lie: that last option is scary. I don’t even use that option myself. But if you need it, it’s there.

• Leechblock - a free browser extension for Firefox browsers.

This is essentially the same concept as WasteNoTime but built for Firefox browsers. Technically, Leechblock came first and was the inspiration for WasteNoTime. 

• Freedom - a low-cost desktop and mobile app for most devices.

This app is exceptional at blocking distracting apps and content across all of your devices and will ensure you are doing nothing but the productive things you need to do during your allotted school or study time. I will say that it does take a bit longer to set up, and there is no timer feature that allows you to visit time wasting websites just for “a little bit”. That means you don’t get a productivity recess while it’s on. In a word, this app is a bit “hardcore.”

Why not recruit your best-self to help you protect your ability to focus when you need it? 

Step 3: Create Your Blocklist

Choose the best-sounding extension or app from the list above and install it. Set it up. Then download this worksheet and learn how to create your own blocklist. 

We’ll also be posting a series of free downloadable guides on how to implement the productivity hacks we’ll be teaching this week. 

As always, if you need an online tutor for just about anything - including getting organized and being productive with your time - let us know!