Some people think that the internet is used merely for leisure. At this time and age, it is not necessarily the case. We use the internet everyday - it is part of our life. Not only is the internet beneficial in the school setting, it is also a huge advantage in acquiring new skills.
So, how can you be more productive? Here are some things you can do:
- Organize your computer files and inbox
Your computer might be cluttered with countless files either from school, work, or even leisure. Clutter can be stressful, and even organizing them might be a more tedious task. On the bright side, your files will not be in disarray. You can choose to back up your files on Google Drive or an expansion drive. Organize your Drive by creating a new folder if you think it is disorganized.
On the other hand,
are you aware that you can create filters for your emails? If you are stressed of your messy inbox, then you can dedicate one folder for work, school… actually, anything under the sun. You can filter your future messages in
Yahoo and
Gmail. Your inbox will be much cleaner, so now is the time to utilize those filters! Also, it is best to delete unnecessary emails from your inbox.
- Review your social media accounts
I’m sure you have made a lot of friends on Facebook. Chances are, you may not even know the people you added into your account. You may haven’t even met him or her in person! Evaluate your friend list with the following questions:
- Do I know some of these people?
- How am I related to them? (Ex: Colleague, acquaintance, and etc.)
- Is this particular Facebook friend a threat to my privacy?
- Does this person inspire me in any way?
It is to your discretion if you will choose to remove a user from your friend list. You may also choose to follow the same method with your other social media accounts.
- Learn a new hobby or skill
Bored? It’s time for you to visit YouTube or Khan Academy. You can learn new concepts, or even life skills. There might be content there that might be beneficial to your career. For example, interpersonal skills and soft skills are a huge advantage in today’s world. If you are willing to spend money, you can even enroll in an online short term course in a subject matter you are interested (Ex: Foreign languages).
- Learn to write a resume or a C.V. or job hunt
This is for people who are new to the workforce. Before embarking on a job hunt, one must learn how to create a resume or a C.V. There are tons of tutorials on the internet.
If you want, you can create a LinkedIn account to showcase your work experiences, education, skills, and etc. It’s like having an online resume! What is cool about it is you can connect with recruiters, practitioners, your teachers, or even your own classmates. You can even search for jobs there! There are even instances when you will receive a job invite message from recruiters. If you already have a LinkedIn profile or a resume, perhaps it’s time to go through them again.
Why? The information written there might be outdated. You might also need to remove unnecessary information from your profile.
- Freelance
Have you ever wanted to freelance? Perhaps to monetize your hobby or to serve as a stepping stone to your career? Here a few benefits of freelancing:
- Flexible work hours (i.e. You set your own work hours)
- Learn how to be professional and other essential skills associated with your chosen field
- Provide your own value
- Work in the comforts of your home
Interested? To give you an idea, the
Geeks at Homework Lab, a collaborative platform for anything academic, signed up to be a freelance tutor to further advance their career and to improve on their skills.
When you enter the world of freelancing, be prepared to do
REAL work. You are still expected to meet the deadline and task requirements set by the client. Be professional!
- Start a blog or write on forums
Are you fascinated with the world of blogging? Another productive tasks to do on the internet is starting a blog. Your blog’s niche can be anything under the sun—it’s up to you. However, blogging is a complex field, as there are other skills such as writing, web layout/design, and marketing involved. I knew someone who made money from blogging his life experiences.
On the other hand, you can sign up on a forum like Quora where you can contribute your knowledge on various topics. On Quora, you get to meet people and learn from their experiences and thoughts.
The internet houses a plethora of information for us to take in. In the end, we must utilize the internet to learn or to prepare for the future.
How about you? What productive things do you do online?
