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How to optimise your learning space

Photo by Tim Gouw on Unsplash
Photo by Tim Gouw on Unsplash

It doesn’t matter if you’re still in school, studying at university, or sitting in your workplace, optimising your space can be vital to achieving your targets. The UK is a nation of procrastinators, with procrastination costing businesses in the region of £76 billion each year. Procrastination is also a key factor to us not learning to the best of our ability, too.

Optimising your space is one way to make sure we focus on the task at hand. Whether you’re trying to learn new skills or make the most of those you already heave, being in the right environment can immensely help you successfully complete your objective.

Here, we look at some of the best options available to optimising your learning space:

Make it personal

While this may sound obvious, you’d be surprised how many of us don’t make our space personal. A few home comforts and personal touches can go a long way to increasing your productivity levels. Family photos and postcards of your favourite quotes are both great visuals that can help get your creative juices flowing.

Add greenery

According to studies, adding greenery to your space can be hugely beneficial. Certain garden plants are a great way to increase our concentration levels and lower the sensation of stress. The likes of ferns clean our air space, while the snake plant also cleans up toxins. Succulents such as a cactus are also a useful addition to your space for decoration purposes as they don’t take a lot of looking after.

Let there be light

In recent years, work and studying for many of us has revolved around our computer screen. Natural light is an amazing way to counteract any effects of sitting in front of an artificially-lit computer screen. It is also known to enhance our mood by increasing our happiness. This is because natural sunlight is a great source of vitamin D3. Without this, some people experience seasonal affective disorder. By being exposed to natural sunlight, you will also have a sense of contentment thanks to the production of vitamin D.

A bright room has also been linked to encouraging a critical and analytical thought process.

Stay organised

One major downfall for productivity is clutter. It’s not a coincidence that a clear desk can represent a clear mind. By ensuring that your workspace is free of unnecessary distractions, you are more likely to remain focused on the task at hand. You can do this by having a bin within reach, setting up a physical inbox for your papers, and scheduling regular cleaning times.

Be colourful

While you may not realise it, the colour you have decorated your space can play a major part in optimising your learning levels. Red has been linked to boost how alert we are. It’s looked upon as the ‘colour of passion’. Elsewhere, blue can help us generate ideas and keeps us focused on the task at hand, while green helps avoid eye fatigue and stay efficient. If you were looking to keep stress levels to a minimum, you should look to include white or beige as this can have a calming effect.

Choose sounds to suit you

The sounds chosen will differ for each person. While some people work best in silence, others prefer a bit of background noise. Everyone benefits in their own way. Either way, a good set of headphones could be the ideal solution as they can either block out the tones around you or provide the tunes/podcasts best suited to keeping you productive. Other low-level noise could distract you from your studying or work and have a negative effect.

Italian researchers found that classical music can greatly enhance your working memory performance. Research in the Journal of Consumer Research also found that a moderate level of ambient noise can benefit our creative senses.

Of course, creating the optimum workspace is a tough task. There is no definitive solution to an optimum workspace. In the end, each of us learns in a different way, but by following the above steps, you will set yourself up nicely to succeed in your end goal and boost your productivity levels.

Sources

 

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Written by Nathaniel Fried

Co-founder of Fupping. Busy churning out content and building an empire.

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