As we start off the school year, students of all grades are returning to the hectic routine of studying, attending classes, participating in extracurriculars, and spending time with friends. For our September Book of the Month, we will be reading Manage Your Day-to-Day: Build Your Routine, Find Your Focus & Sharpen Your Creative Mind, which guides readers through building productivity and making the most of our resources amidst all the distractions we have around us.
- Building a Rock-Solid Routine
The first section of the book emphasizes forming habits and building a productive daily routine, which can be accomplished by allocating a certain amount of time everyday to do work, surrounding yourself with a familiar work setting, and completing manageable to-do list tasks. However it’s just as important to make time for exercising, eating meals, and getting enough sleep to have the energy to be productive.
- Finding Focus in a Distracted World
The second section of the book hones in on how to maintain your focus and maximize productivity when surrounded by distractions like social media. Especially with how easily accessible our phones and computers are to us while working, author Cal Newport advises readers to set a block of time everyday just for creative work.
- Taming Your Tools
To minimize distractions while working, the third section discusses how to stay away from social media and how to avoid addiction to technology. From simply unplugging from social media accounts to learning to build your own ideas and minimizing reliance on technology, this section emphasizes the importance of focusing on yourself and less on other people through a screen.
- Sharpening Your Creative Mind
The fourth section of this book focuses on how to stay creative. This section goes through a variety of helpful tips for creative individuals, including getting past creativity blocks, how to not get caught up with perfectionism, and taking time to wander and explore your curiosities.
- Coda: A Call to Action
The last section of the book gives an easy three-step guideline to living a productive and habitual lifestyle. The first step is to just “sit down and work.” The second step is to repeat simple actions multiple times everyday, whether it’s reading a chapter of your textbook or solving one practice problem. The last step is to continue building our habits and finishing our work. Ultimately, the book calls you to “cross the finish line.”
If you’re looking for tips on building your rock-solid routine, come check out the book at the CEC (1203 MVR)!