How much time did you squander today on the internet?
I can give you a ballpark figure for how many minutes I wasted only this morning:
I spent 20 minutes reading Dr. Strange movie reviews on Reddit (which is fantastic, by the way)
Reading about all the Murder Mystery actors took ten minutes.
I spent 15 minutes looking at pointless dachshund pics while eating breakfast, so I guess this isn't as awful.
A full 45 minutes have passed. That is just from this morning.
Why do we spend a lot of time online? We know that we should be studying, writing a paper, coding, or doing something else entirely, but instead, we visit Reddit. Or we squint as we scroll through Facebook.
Even reading can be a time waster occasionally.
Make yourself responsible
In my post on how to study anything on your own, I discuss a technique I use called Pick Four to advance toward my objectives.
Pick Four is just a notebook that I use to keep track of each of my objectives. The idea is that by looking at all the progress I've made in the past few days, I'll be less likely to slack off because I won't want to have a page for my progress that says "NOTHING."
The principle behind this technique, which is holding yourself accountable, can still be used even if you don't wish to monitor your progress toward any particular goals.
The answer to spending less time online is time tracking.
Using an add-on like Tracker to automatically track the amount of time you spend on each site is the simplest method to keep track of your time.
Use a Computer Only for Work
You can further reduce the temptation to squander time by designating one of your PCs strictly for work if you're one of those students (I was always one as an IT major).
Installing software like Steam, social media applications, or chat clients is not advised (unless necessary for your job). You can entirely lock down the machine using the blocking strategies mentioned above.
Consider using a different Google account on this computer if you use Chrome and your account has Chrome sync enabled so that your time-wasting bookmarks won't sync over. Hide the bookmarks bar, at least if you don't want to do that.
Control Your Email Dependence
One of my worse tendencies is this.
Instead of concentrating on a single job, I frequently try to clear my email inbox by staring aimlessly at it.
The issue is that new email is received every single day. In addition, some of it demands thoughtful responses. Other communications ask me to act, such as setting up a meeting or conducting research.
I'm never giving myself enough time to focus properly on anything, since I'm continuously switching my attention from one activity to another throughout the day.
Simply setting aside time during the day for email is the answer. One period of time devoted solely to checking email.
Try to avoid your phone notifications by using "Do not Disturb" mode. The notifications from various apps can be put to mute mode to avoid unnecessary distractions.
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