– New York, NY
Despite the incredible work that STEM⋅E volunteers are producing and the impact that they have had, many of the volunteers are still high school students! From the outside, it may seem impossible to balance the challenging demands of high school along with the dedication that our volunteers put into their work. Thankfully, STEM⋅E volunteers pay careful attention to ensuring that they have good study habits and master techniques to help them stay focused and organized. Aiden, Chloe, Nmesoma, and Sophie are just a few of our hardworking volunteers who are working towards achieving their goals in the best ways possible.
One of our volunteers, Aiden, balances being a student and entrepreneur along with volunteering as a part of STEM⋅E’s YouTube and Podcast teams. Aiden completes his work effectively by focusing on one thing at a time and guarding his time. When he is doing something specific, he makes sure to be fully present. If Aiden feels unmotivated to continue working, he remembers his reasons for doing the tasks that he does. “I work with STEM⋅E because I want to gain experience, learn from others, work with a team, and make an impact,” he observed, which he reminds himself of when he feels especially unmotivated to continue working.
Chloe is a part of the Magazine and Digital Graphics teams at STEM⋅E and a hardworking student. She stays on track by using a calendar and writing a to-do list, which consists of her daily tasks and goals. She is able to stay motivated despite her rigorous schedule because she participates in activities that she cares about and that make her happy.
Nmesoma is an involved student at her high school and participates in extracurriculars such as tutoring and school clubs. She is also part of the Instagram team here at STEM⋅E. In order to make sure she has enough time to balance all of her commitments, she uses a virtual to-do list on her phone and laptop. Every day, she revises her to-do list to add new and upcoming tasks, which keeps her on top of all of her work. “I also have an app ‘Flora’ that I use to time myself when studying and doing my homework,” she stated. When she needs to stay motivated, Nmesoma engages in some of her other passions, such as exercising, knitting, and reflecting at the end of the day.
Sophie is a high school student who is also the president of the STEM⋅E Tutoring team. To manage her time and to ensure she finishes all of her tasks, she makes a list of things that she has to do every night and starts with the easiest one to get in the mood for homework. “Once I’m in the homework zone, [the] more time-consuming assignments are more manageable,” Sophie commented.
Lastly, our four volunteers have provided their number one tip for time management.
Aiden: Reduce the distractions around you. Whether it’s turning your phone off, [using] noise-canceling headphones, [reducing] background noise, [going to] a separate area in the house, try to reduce the chance that something can distract you from achieving your goal.
Chloe: Set rewards for yourself once you've completed your tasks for the day. This can be something small like having a favorite snack after your homework is finished or calling a friend after completing one of your goals.
Nmesoma: Improve your productivity habits one step at a time. Jumping into something can lead to downfalls. If you slowly make changes in your life to improve your habits, such as waking up early or assigning time to do your work, these aspects will stay in your brain.
Sophie: Do something productive whenever you can. For example, my school has 10 minute passing periods even though our campus is small, so I get to class early and work on an assignment for 5 minutes or so. By the end of the day, one or two assignments are already done!
STEM⋅E volunteers are able to grow as learners, as volunteers, and as people. Those interested in becoming a STEM⋅E Intern can fill out our Internship Interest Form here: https://www.steme.org/volunteer.