I couldn’t find any threads related to our day jobs, so I thought I’d get one started.
This is a place to:
Discuss what we do for a living (no personal details required)
Help each other solve problems related to our work
Talk about our rad projects
Get feedback on our skills
Search for professional skills
Link to cool stuff we’ve made
Skillshare
Hype each other up!
I’ll get the ball rolling with a topic!
FOCUS
I can’t be the only computer-based worker in this community. I’m sitting at a coffee shop today, trying to focus on editing a client’s book and struggling. Hard. Any remote workers out there feel me?
The book is cool, too— my client is a professional medium and it’s her memoir of ghost stories!
I’m caffeinating, I’ve got my headphones in, listening to the Focus Flow playlist on Spotify, and just… Not having any luck. Focus is something I struggle with daily. Any suggestions are welcome! AKA: pls send help.
P.S. I’m forever a socially anxious bb and just wanna make sure this follows the rules. @Catherine and/or @CJB (/other more seasoned Mountaineers), is this topic okay? Anything I need to add/take out?
I’m professionally unemployment due to my business and health failing so I’m currently trying to get it set up again while I’m on the sick. So I guess for now I am technically computer based
EDIT: (This topic seems fine to me as long as there isn’t any doxing or no one gives out information that’s too personal)
I’m currently a PhD student in mechanical engineering. It’s currently finals week, but I submitted the last part of my semester projects Tuesday night. Currently staring into the wide expanse of the summer semester, trying to figure out how to structure my days now that I’m free from classes for a few months.
Edit: take a drink of water every time I said “currently” and you’re well on your way to a healthy, hydrated day.
I surround myself, accidentally, with engineers and I have to say: y’all the best. You can say whatever you want over and over and we’ll have one good healthy water drinking game and I’ll happily cheer you on as you build your cool inventions.
Thanks for the reassurance! And I’m sorry to hear about your circumstances, especially the health stuff. I hope all begins an upswing sooner rather than later.
My job can be done remotely…until people don’t answer my urgent questions and I have to go bother them in their office. (I hate doing that.) But I can and do work from home once a week or so, and I definitely struggle with focus issues regardless of where I am. In cases that aren’t urgent deadlines but where I really need to focus, I turn off my notifications and set a timer on my phone for 20-25 minutes (all hail @Deyavi who introduced me to timers), and then take a 3-5 minute break regardless of how much I got done. Repeat at will. Often the feeling of “racing a clock” for a short sprint instead of staring out into the untold hours of my workday is enough to grab and hold my attention.
Oh, and I work for an education research group. My job is also 95% computer stuff.
You’re the second person to recommend using timers! I need to do that. It’s the only way I get housework done too. I think my goldfish brain requires set amounts of time in order to do anything.
Well, I’m a student, so at this time of year it’s all essays and revision. Sucks, and I get frequent mental blocks (really annoying atm cause I have an essay due on Tuesday and have written prbably a grand total of 10% of it). Lot of working out of my one room student accomidation atm means I frequently need to nip to the shops just to get out of the house for 15mins, which is really bad for me, but urg… Anyone want to write my essay for me? (joking, of course)
Also got a ton of creative work I need to do. I have a portfolio of 20mins of music I need to hand in on Wednesday (I’m a music student, so yay for job prospects!), and I’m all our of creative energy. Any of you guys got solutions for that?
When I’m out of creative juice, switching mediums helps me. I’ve been on a watercolor pencil kick lately, but yesterday I sewed a little bag and did some embroidery, made some earrings, and read a bunch. The more stuff I do, the more inspired I feel.
Editing, though, (in my case) is like the opposite. I love it as a job but I also struggle to stay in it.
Well, right now I’m actually in my off season as an auto tech to pay the bills. However, at the end of the month I’m lucky enough to return to my career of choice, being a Wilderness Guide. Most of next month will be spent fixing fence (you would not believe how much damage elk will do to a fence in only a few months) then getting horses shod before spending multiple days in the saddle using various tools to clear dead and fallen trees from trails. After that it’s almost everyday in the saddle taking people on horseback tours or camping trips til mid-August or so.
Hmm I don’t technically do this as a “job” yet but hopefully I will soon! As of now i’m the team medic for an ROTC program’s Raider Team. My role is to help teach other students/cadets the basics of first aid and treat anyone who gets injured, etc. Soon enough I hope to be either a Paramedic where I live or in the Army as a Combat Medic.
Sorry I didn’t use a “job” and used more of a role in something and hopes and aspirations but hopefully it’s close enough!
Dude that’s so cool. I have lots of relatives on the local fire department and emergency personnel are unbelievable. Working long, unpredictable hours, and everyone still comes out smiling somehow. I sort of want to join them but I’m not strong enough to stand straight while wearing all the equipment.
Yeah I feel that, my father was a firefighter/paramedic. I remember always feeling the hype whenever I knew he was out saving people. I don’t know, I just want to do that. I also remember getting a scrapped knee or however kids get hurt you name it and he always fixed it so I just want to do that. Sorry I got a little reminiscent there lol.
No I get it. My dad is a firefighter and my sister was a fire cadet for a bit. She decided it wasn’t for her, but she’s so calm in crazy situations and just casually carries all the heaviest things, and Dad spends 24+ hours on grassfires in the summer. I am doing some weight training to maybe eventually join him but idk if that’s ever going to happen. I don’t build muscle easily.
Well if you set your mind to it then I believe you got this! I have to build up a little muscle myself but thankfully my schedule at the moment allows for me to dedicate time for working out, and the team im on don’t let me slouch none either lol
