Monday, July 27, 2020

Utilizing Your Living Space

One thing you’ll learn quickly once you start school is that EVERYTHING happens in your dorm room. From sleeping to studying to hanging out to making midnight ramen, your room becomes your haven. Your study spot options will be limited this upcoming semester. However, with the right set-up and managing spaces in your room and dorm building, you will have success.


Here is a picture of McKee Hall, a.k.a EHouse. This is where a lot of engineers and I lived freshman year. However, its physical amenities are relatively the same as other dorms.

Let’s start with your room. Each and every dorm is equipped with one desk per person. This area includes drawers, a chair, shelves, and a cork board! There is plenty of room to lay out your belongings.



Do’s and Don'ts Desk Organization

Do’s

  • Add your own personal touch
    • The best thing you can do with your study space is make it your own! This will help you stay comfortable and ease your stress during busy times. Some ways to do this are to add pictures, quotes, letters, paintings, or anything else that holds meaning for you.
  • Keep it tidy and distraction free
    • This is definitely one of my biggest struggles. A scattered desk can overload a busy mind. It’s just one more aspect you have to think about in the midst of your craziness. Sometimes studying can be hard, so keeping your desk a designated study space will help you sit down and focus.

To the right, above, is a lovely desk set-up, courtesy of Pinterest. Here you can see the nicely laid out decorations, along with tidy organization habits. You can just sit at this desk and start, minimal thinking involved.

Don’ts
  • Study in your bed
    • Studying in your bed is a bad idea for a few reasons… even though it may be comfy. First, it’s bad for your posture. After a while, you start to experience back and neck pain. Next, it tempts the siren of college, naps… Naps are a wonderful thing. They call your name. A habit of studying in bed usually leads to a habit in napping. This inhibits time management and productivity. However, naps aren’t always bad. Take them if you need it, just plan them wisely.
  • Use your desk as a junk pile
    • It’s easy to start a habit of tossing random stuff to your desk. This tends to start a blackhole of junk. If you don’t stay on top of this, your desk isn’t usable anymore. It helps to have an organization plan for utilizing other spaces in your room.

To the right, you’ll see my cluttered desk. Not going to lie, this is probably the tidiest it has ever been. This really inhibited my study habits.

Dorm Study Spaces
Although desks are a great place to study, dorm buildings are equipped with spaces like a lobby, basement, or rooms, made for studying.


Common Areas
For example, McKee Hall had a lobby with a bunch of tables and a white board for studying. The best part about it is the collaboration. Walking into the lobby, you can find a couple people in the same classes as you! It’s an awesome place to recieve help and advice (upperclassmen work in there too). Study buddies are everywhere, and sometimes, all it takes is a walk downstairs. I met my, now, best friend in the lobby of EHouse. To the right is a glimpse of the EHouse lobby. Piano and all!

Study Rooms 
Dorm buildings typically have study spaces too. These are great for collaborating with a team or working independently alongside friends. They are an awesome change in scenery which is sometimes all you need to be productive. Peep the picture of Emily and I to the left cheesing in EHouses’s basement study space.

Juliana Redisi
Team H Mentor


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