Can technology solve our studying problems?
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The third law in the book Atomic Habits is "Make it easy."
Technology can be used to automatically create an environment in which we can do things that are important to us.
Let's imagine a scenario:
During the weekend, we decide - this week, when I come home from school/work in the afternoon, I will eat something, and then at 5:00 PM, I will sit down at the table and start working on my super important project. But then Monday comes, we come home, eat, and at 5:00 PM... we're tired. We want to work on our super important project, which means a lot to us. But at the moment when we're supposed to start, it's too difficult. So we choose something easier. Something that's more short-term enjoyable. But in the long run, it makes us unhappy. We open Netflix and spend the rest of the day watching series.
So how can we make that decisive moment, when we're supposed to start, easier?
Part of the answer lies in the third law of Atomic Habits. In the description of the law, the author suggests that we automate our habits. So, we use technology that does the work for us. One way is to remove things that could distract us. Specifically, we remove things from our phone and computer when we want to work on a project. For us, and probably for many people today, these are the two most distracting factors.
We can use a new user account on our computer and Focus mode on our phone (Android, Apple has a different name). So, for a limited time, we remove distracting factors from our computer and phone. At 5:00 PM, we only allow access to the profile we work on. In our case, this profile is called "Creation Station." It has access to programs that we use for work, but doesn't have access to other distractions. On our phone, with Focus Mode, we allow access only to the apps we use for work. At the same time, Do Not Disturb is turned on, so that we're not disturbed by notifications.
So we don't need to invest energy and motivation to start working at 5:00 PM. At that time, devices simply become work tools for a limited time. Due to automation, we don't need to invest thoughts, energy, and motivation into it. This greatly increases the likelihood that we will do something important that day. We make one decision that saves us thousands of decisions in the future.
We hope this idea can help you. If it does, we would love to hear about the ways you have used automation. We are always looking for new ideas on how to improve our environment.
Inspirations: