66. How to Stop Wasting Time at Work and Between College Classes (Q&A)
Episode 66
Ever finish a workday or school day and realize you didn’t actually do anything important? You’re not alone.
In today’s Q&A, I tackle two listener questions — one from a remote worker struggling to start important tasks and one from a college sophomore wasting time between classes. If time keeps slipping away from you, this episode will help you get it back.
Topics we Cover:
Why motivation isn’t the problem (and what is)
The admin block strategy to control email distractions
How to structure your day for focused work sessions
Weekly planning techniques for predictable productivity
The link between self-care and staying on top of your tasks
🎙️Other Episodes + Resources Mentioned
Ep. 3 – Admin Blocks
Ep. 8 – Motivation vs. Discipline
Ep. 36 – Procrastination Solutions
Ep. 55 – Body Doubling for Focus
Ep. 65 – The Sunday Reset
Blog Post: 21 Productive Ways to Use Your Time Between College Classes
✏️Enroll in SchoolHabits University (Curious? Check it out!)
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The following transcript was autogenerated and may contain some interesting and silly errors. But in the name of efficiency and productivity, I am choosing not to spend my time fixing them 😉
66 How to Stop Wasting Time at Work and Between College Classes (Q&A)===
[00:00:00] Well, hey there. Thanks for listening to the Learn and Work Smarter podcast. I am Katie and the podcast today is one of our monthly q and a episodes. So once a month I answer questions submitted by listeners of the show. And if you are wondering how to submit your own questions that I can answer on a future episode, just head to learnandworksmarter.com.
That is the website for this podcast. Of course, you can find all of my previous episodes there as well as the transcripts, but on the homepage of that, well on the home page, [00:00:30] if you scroll down just a little bit, you can submit your questions. There is a form right there. Super simple.
Today we have two questions.
One is from a working professional and one is from a student. But I've chosen to answer both of these on the show today because they are similar in nature.
Both questions have to do with having good intentions to do work, but it not actually happening. I think many of us find that scenario relatable. We tell ourselves that we are going to lock it in [00:01:00] and get it done and do all the things, but by the end of the day, we don't have anything to show for it.
If this resonates, stick around. After all, other people often ask questions that we didn't even know we had ourselves, and I think that can often lead to the greatest breakthroughs. All right, so let's dive in.
[00:01:30]
All right, so I have a first question today from a working professional. I have it right here. I'm gonna read it. They write, I work remotely as a marketing coordinator, and my job is pretty flexible. I don't have strict deadlines every day, but I have a running list of things I need to get done. The problem is on some days I just have zero motivation to [00:02:00] start.
I end up puttering around doing easy tasks, like answering emails. Easy is in quotes. Um, and before I know it, the day is gone and I haven't touched the important stuff. How can I structure my day better so I actually get started on the right things even when I don't feel motivated? Thank you, Katie.
Okay, great question.
I think it's super relatable both to me personally and I'm sure to many people listening and my first instinct without knowing any other information besides what I [00:02:30] just read and what you submitted is that it's more of a matter of lack of planning and a lack of clarity than a lack of motivation. In episode eight, we talk about motivation versus discipline and how motivation is nothing but a fleeting feeling that we give way too much credit to.
It's nice to have. Uh, it's nice when it shows up, but it's just not required to take action. It's not. And therefore, if you're asking me how do I get things done that I need to [00:03:00] get done, I say we focus on planning and skill and discipline and clarity, which are all concrete concepts that we can depend on rather than something abstract and fleeting, like motivation.
Does that make sense? So let's start with an easy win. Um, you mentioned emails, so let's start with administration work like emails. You said that that was an easy task. You put it in, in quotation marks, but whatever you said it was an easy task and maybe it is for your particular scenario, but, [00:03:30] um I want you to be clear. I want you to check in and actually make sure that that is an easy task for you. Because in many cases, email might seem simple, but it actually uses a lot of cognitive resources. People send us emails with questions and we have to formulate answers and or, you know, find the answers if we don't know the answers.
We have to manage this constant back and forth. Sometimes it lasts throughout the entire day or the throughout the entire week, and we have to read people's tone and make sure that our tone is [00:04:00] okay, and it's actually quite an exhausting process.
And if you begin every day, every morning managing your inbox and handling the fires in there, it frankly makes perfect sense that you don't have enough energy to tackle the real work.
Now a simple solution for this would be for you to schedule an admin block into your day.
I talk all about admin blocks in episode three, and I will link that in the description box. Again, any episodes or resources that I mention in today's show, you can find at [00:04:30] learnandworksmarter.com/podcast/66 because this is episode 66. Anyway. An admin block is a designated chunk of time that you mark on your calendar as if it is a meeting.
You think about the day and the time that you're gonna do the admin block, and you literally put it on your calendar and name it an admin block.
In this chunk of time, which could be anywhere from 15 minutes to 90 minutes, you take care of those admin tasks or the easy tasks. If you're not watching this on [00:05:00] YouTube and you're listening to this, um, I'm air quoting easy tasks too.
Okay. Like returning phone calls, um, filing things, and email of course. When you know that you're gonna have a designated time in your day to address your inbox, you're gonna feel less magnetic pull to your inbox in the morning and during random times throughout the day when you should really be focused on something else.
If it's your habit to start with email tasks, breaking that habit involves creating a system where you trust you will be able to get to those [00:05:30] tasks later in the day. I don't know, maybe one o'clock to two o'clock. So when you feel the impulse to avoid the real work and instead sit down in front of your computer and reply to an email, you have the security that you can tell yourself, no, I have time to get to that later today.
That is not what I am doing right now.
Okay. You can create an admin block that is strictly for email, if you have a lot of email tasks or if you have a [00:06:00] variety of admin tasks in your day, you can create, um, an admin block where you're sort of handling a mixed bag of administration tasks. It does not matter how you structure it, as long as you have a designated time in your day to handle these distracting tasks that are preventing you from, you know, doing the real work.
Now, a little earlier I mentioned that clarity is really important. I think we often avoid tasks when we don't have total clarity about what they are.
[00:06:30] That's just normal. In episode 36 called How to Stop Procrastinating Tips That Actually Work, I talk about procrastination, of course, and one of the primary reasons that we procrastinate is due to lack of clarity. So my very real question to you is this: are you clear on exactly what it is that you need to be doing each day?
When you sit down to work every morning, do you know what it is that you should be doing? What is your primary project that you're working on? [00:07:00] What are the micro tasks that are connected to that project? Do you know how to do these things? Do you have the resources to do these things? And if you don't know the answer to a question, do you know where you can go to find it?
These are all very, very real questions, and the answers to them can dictate whether or not you spend your time focusing on the right things or not.
So let's say for example, that you sit down to work at your desk at eight 30 in the morning. You have an important project you're working on. Maybe I'm [00:07:30] just making this up, but like a, a project proposal or something for next week's meeting, and then you have your regular old email inbox.
Both of these are choices of things to work on. Now, your email inbox is familiar and it's a habit that, as you say, is easy. On the other hand, maybe the project proposal is getting a little bit difficult. Maybe you're not clear on what the next step is. Maybe you can't proceed until you figure out some particular aspect of the actual product [00:08:00] itself, whatever- the idea is that there's some part of this project that lacks clarity.
Okay? Which one are you gonna start? Which one are you gonna dive into first, the email or the project? You have two options here.
Obviously the email, because it's the path of least resistance, so you have two options here. You can either make the email harder to get into and harder to access, or you can reduce your resistance to starting the project. How do you make email harder to get into? log out of [00:08:30] your account, shut down that browser, and get to work, right?
How do you reduce resistance on the project? Well get clarity on the things that you're not clear about.
And then the last thing I want to say here is how important it is to know what your priorities are. The ability to prioritize tasks and, and work and where we put our focus is actually a skill. It's, um, it requires executive functions, which are very challenging for people with ADHD don't know whether or not you have ADHD.
You [00:09:00] didn't say that, but if you do, or if anyone listening to this has ADHD, and is trying to extract some, um, insight from my answer to this question, even though if it's not your question, prioritization can be a challenge, and that's something that you're gonna have to acknowledge. When everything feels important, it is really hard to know where to start, and we often start with the thing that we shouldn't really be starting on.
Right, so there's a couple different approaches here when it comes to prioritization. You can prioritize based on the concept [00:09:30] of Eat the Frog. You may have heard that before. I did not make that up.
That's the concept created by someone named Brian Tracy, who wrote a book called Eat the Frog, where you do the most challenging work first thing in your day, knowing that once you get that done, everything else that you do is easier. You just do the hardest thing first, like you start your day with the hardest task, but that gives you relief knowing that when you're done with that, it's just smooth sailing.
Some people really like that approach. Another approach [00:10:00] for prioritizing is based on deadlines. You do the thing that's due first, first. Your email isn't due at any time. People are absolutely accustomed to waiting um, a few hours, a few days. If you email me, you're gonna wait a week when I do email on Fridays, right, for, for email responses. But that project that you're working on that's due tomorrow, or that's due in a few days, that's a priority. Then other people prefer to prioritize tasks, whether, um, other people [00:10:30] are involved in the project because there's a social accountability factor at play. So if you're working on a project that is collaborative in any way, you may want to work on those and prioritize those first so that you're not leaving anyone hanging.
You, everybody listening to this knows themselves better than anybody else does. And if you know your natural tendency is to like lose energy throughout the day, then maybe eat the frog is the best approach so that you don't, you know, have this pie in the sky vision of, [00:11:00] I'm gonna do the hard thing after lunch.
But every single day after lunch, you lose your mojo and you lose your concentration, well then that's not going to be the best approach for you. Does that make sense?
But what's important I think to note here is that it is one thing to think about how to prioritize your work, and it's another thing to actually make a legitimate plan for it.
In last week's episode, episode 65, I talked about the Sunday reset and how it can be helpful to take a little bit of time [00:11:30] on Sundays, assuming you have a typical Monday through Friday work week, and think about the upcoming week and identify what are the important tasks that you need to work on- particularly starting on a Monday morning so that you walk into Monday morning just knowing what it is that you're gonna be working on. You, you remove any of the decisions and the ambiguity about what am I working on? You already know because you made a plan on Sunday and you would write that in your task management system.
Planning and prioritizing doesn't only exist in our heads. [00:12:00] Those are simply ideas, not plans. Those are concepts of a plan and those are baloney so think about the thing that you've been avoiding, the real work that you need to focus on. Pick maybe two to three tasks that qualify as priorities that are related to those big projects that are important to you, and tell yourself what time in the day you're going to work on those projects.
Maybe you want to eat the frog and get 'em done in the morning. Maybe you give yourself an admin blog for later in the day, maybe after [00:12:30] lunch. If you do that, you'll be able to sustain your focus on those challenging tasks without, without thinking about your inbox or your other sort of lightweight, distracting tasks because you have full faith that you'll be able to get to them later at their designated time that you wrote on your calendar.
So to sum this up, it's one, give yourself an admin block to handle those distracting tasks like email that are distracting you from your work. Two, it's making sure that you have total clarity on [00:13:00] your projects that you're supposed to be working on.
And whatever areas are unclear or ambiguous, you get yourself answers and clarity so that you lower your resistance to action and then finally prioritize based on eating the frog or deadlines or the collaboration, um, accountability factor. And you pick two or three projects that you're gonna work on each day at a specific time and you get them done.
I hope that's helpful. Feel free to send me an email to [00:13:30] update me on what approach you pick and how it's working for you.
Alright, our next question is from a student and it is similar in the way that the student is also asking about finding a way to do the things that they know they need to do, but just can't seem to do. You know what? Lemme just read the question. I have it right here. I am a college. Hi Katie. I'm a college sophomore and I always have the best intentions to stay on top of my work, but I end up wasting so much time between classes.
I tell myself I'll study and work, but then I scroll on my phone. [00:14:00] You know what? I don't normally have college kids who admit that they are scrolling on their phone, so there you go. Um, or just sit there because I feel too mentally drained to do anything productive. When I get back to my dorm between classes, I have a pile of work to do, but end up literally not doing it, which means I'm up late every night trying to get it done at night.
Do you have any tips for how I can actually use my break breaks between classes in a way that helps me keep up with my work without burning myself out?
Thank you. Also, I love this [00:14:30] so much. I found your podcast 'cause my mom listens to it. Now, I've listened to every episode and I love it. Thank you for your advice for people like me. Seriously, I. When I read that earlier, I was like, am I reading that on the show? Yes, I'm reading that on the show. That just makes me so happy.
I love it. Your mom listened to it and now you do too. Awesome. Welcome. Um, let me start by telling you that I have a blog post on schoolhabits.com. I'll link that below. It's called 21 Productive Ways to Use Your Time Between Classes. There are some really good [00:15:00] ideas in there that I think you will find helpful.
And then also my answer to this question is going to be somewhat similar to my answer to the previous question, even though a professional asked that question. So to the student who submitted this one right now, if you just jumped ahead to this part of the video or the podcast, I do want you to go listen to my answer to the previous question in today's episode because I think that that is gonna be super relevant to your [00:15:30] situation too.
But one thing that's different, and of course I'll address it here, one thing that's different between you and the professional is that you are in a dorm. In fact, you mentioned that in your question. You said that when you go back to your dorm between classes, you're basically shutting off and zoning out and, and not dealing with what you are supposed to be doing.
And the other situation, the professional's just like puttering around the house and doing tasks they shouldn't be doing. So same kind of thing. So my question to you is, can you go somewhere other than your dorm? It is so tough when you're in college because your dorm is a [00:16:00] multipurpose space. You work there, you hang out there, you sleep there and you can't help it 'cause it's just part of the college experience.
But working and sleeping in the same room is not ideal for focus. There are a thousand visual triggers in your dorm room that can signify to your brain that it's time to do a thousand things other than focus on your work. Your bed being the primary one. So in between your classes, can you go to the library?
Can you go [00:16:30] to a quiet corner of the student center? Can you go to some cool room in your campus that has natural light in a cool view? In episode 55, I talk about the strategy of body doubling and how that can be, uh, really helpful for people to tap into the motivation of others. I frame the body doubling strategy in the context of being helpful for people with ADHD, whether you do or don't, that can still be a very, very helpful strategy to help you, um, sort of
yeah, feed off the energy and the [00:17:00] motivation and the focus that you see people around you doing, and we kind of adopt it for ourself and you're like, oh, well other people are working too. This is typically what would happen if you were to set up in a college library, and even if you get distracted, you look up from your computer and like everyone else is working.
So why wouldn't you, right? And you're like, oh, I guess all this work too. It can be a really helpful strategy. I encourage you to listen to that episode so that you can consider that strategy for yourself. Again, all the links below.
I have another tip for you that involves being a little more, [00:17:30] um, structured.
In your day, and that would be creating a weekly plan that essentially looks the same week to week, not day to day, but week to week. The thing about a college schedule is that versus a, you know, high school schedule is that every day looks different. Like Monday looks different from Tuesday, it looks different from Wednesday, whatever, but every week looks the same.
So you can really tap into the power of weekly planning. Then take a look at your schedule for the week, um, starting on Monday. Okay? Where are your [00:18:00] big chunks of time in between classes on Mondays? What building are you in and what building can you get to that has a study corner or even just like a chair at a table?
Can you plan it so that every Monday in between econ and and music theory, you're going to the library for 90 minutes? You do this every Monday and you walk into that work session knowing what you're going to work on, you're going to work on, I don't know, your econ work that was just assigned in the class that you [00:18:30] just walked out of, right?
And you're going to work on it for 90 minutes until you go to your music theory. Look at your typical Tuesday. Do you have a chunk of time in the morning before your first class begins at 11? Awesome. Get out of your dorm room and get yourself to the library or the student center or whatever from nine to 10 45.
And every Tuesday from nine to 10 45, you are essentially working on your African literature readings that are always due each week. Obviously, I'm making up these courses and this schedule, but you get the [00:19:00] idea that I'm suggesting here. Put some structure and clarity and predictability into your week so that you're not flopping your way to the dorm and flopping yourself on your bed and flopping into a slump flopping.
Shake it up. Change your location. Give yourself some structure about where you're gonna be each day of the week. What times are you going to be there for how long, and what are you going to work on? Many students that I coach privately or inside SchoolHabits University resist the idea of structure at first.
And [00:19:30] it's usually only after a few weeks of implementing a structured approach, like a weekly planning thing like this, that they realize this is what they've been missing all along.
And then the last piece of advice, um, it is so ingrained in what I believe and who I am, that it's impossible to separate this from what I teach.
But are you taking care of yourself? If you are able-bodied, are you exercising? A body at rest stays at rest. A body in motion stays at work motion. This is simple physics. If you are [00:20:00] regularly going back to your dorm and scrolling through your phone and being unfocused and lethargic, that is only going to lead to more unfocused and lethargic behavior.
When you're starting to feel slumpy and dumpy, slumpy and I'm, yep. We're gonna keep that in there. When you're starting to feel slumpy and dumpy, can you go for a walk? Can you go to the, I'm still hearing that in my head, uh, not even gonna edit this out, but can, can you go to the student fitness center?
Are you drinking enough [00:20:30] water? Dehydration leads to decreased focus and energy. Making you slumpy and dumpy. I talk a lot about this on the show about how motivation is so overrated and it's actually the result of other things. Motivation is the result of taking action. When we take action on things and do what we're supposed to do,
that often leads to motivation to keep going the momentum, right? But we had to start somewhere in the state of being unmotivated. We had to [00:21:00] start when we were unmotivated. So if you're eating well and exercising and taking care of yourself, that often leads to the motivation to do other things that are good for us, such as the work we're supposed to do.
But if you're not exercising and not eating well or not sleeping enough, that often, you know, leads to no motivation to continue taking care of ourselves 'cause we're not even doing it in the first place. And if we're not taking care of ourselves physically, we're not taking care of ourselves mentally, which means we're not taking care of our goals and, and the things that we're supposed to be doing, which in your case, it's your schoolwork.
So [00:21:30] strategy and planning and tactical study advice is all well and good, and I encourage you to strongly consider some of the tips that I shared today and to go read and listen to some of the resources that I directed you to. But at the end of the day, it all comes down to are you taking care of yourself too.
Now, before we wrap up the show, I want to remind you guys that you can submit your own questions to be answered in a future episode by filling out the form at Learnandworksmarter.com. I would also love if you could share the show with someone you think might [00:22:00] benefit from it. Maybe that's a colleague, maybe that's a friend or a student in your life.
Thank you so much for spending your time with me today. I hope you take action on at least one concept that we covered. After all the magic is in the action. And remember, never stop learning.
