Doing What You Love and Loving What You Do
By focusing on my career, I have found myself in a very busy schedule of meetings, classes, and work. My personal goals have often been put on the back burner. To ensure I spend quality time on my hobbies, too, I now use two techniques: scheduling and adopting a positive outlook.
To ensure I spend time on my artwork, I build it into my weekly schedule using two scheduling techniques: time blocking and consistency. Time blocking is the idea that you have set times focusing on working only on your goal. In my calendar I block off three hours on Monday and Wednesday mornings to dedicate my full attention to my artwork. During these time blocks, I make sure that I am free of distractions by locking myself in my room and putting my phone on “do not disturb”: I can only focus on what is at hand. Consistency is the idea that you work on your goals every day, but do it in a way that fits into your schedule. This idea inspired me to draw for an unbroken minimum of ten minutes every single day. When the timer goes off after ten minutes, I can work for longer if my schedule allows for it, but I don’t have to. I decided to use both of these techniques in order to practice on a daily basis and have long periods of concentration.
To ensure I enjoy the time I spend on my artwork, I have deliberately adopted a positive outlook. In the past, if I focused on my mistakes — like noting that the shading on my drawing was unrealistic – I noticed I felt stressed and overwhelmed. I reasoned that the reverse might also apply: If I focused more on positive things — no matter how small or mundane — I would feel happier. To use this technique in my artwork, I deliberately focus on things that get me excited about my art, such as when I get certain proportions correct. Concentrating on my artistic strengths and accomplishments helps me feel less stressed and overwhelmed and makes me look forward to working on my projects.
By using these techniques, I now spend more time focused on my artwork, and I enjoy it more! If you find yourself neglecting your hobbies, try implementing one or more of these techniques for your own interests.
Dylan has been a member of the Interactive Measurement Group since Spring 2023. This past summer, she co-authored a research poster which she will be presenting at a conference next spring. This fall, Dylan will serve as the lab’s computer coordinator. Dylan graduated from UNLV with a B.A. in psychology in Spring 2023 and is preparing to apply for a master’s degree in cognitive psychology.