Are You Stressed?

      This morning I cleaned a corner of my work space after reading a post from an online English Language Arts student. He has persuaded me to make the effort to be more organized. I know that this will require much more than simply cleaning up a corner of my workspace. I will have to reflect on how I can "work smarter".
     I may be heard repeating the following mantra over the next few weeks....Clean it up......Get it done.
If repeating the words doesn't help, I may have to resort to some more conventional ideas:

• Use a good daily organization tool daily.
• Avoid leaving tasks half done.
• Don't squander scheduled time.
• Be realistic about what can be done.

Thanks to Elliot for this list of benefits:

Have you ever been stressed out due to an unorganized schedule? I have and having a schedule helped me get stuff done faster and I have less stress. 

1. Have more time to relax. When you are looking for something in a pile of your belongings but there is just so much stuff you can’t find it, your blood pressure goes up and that causes health problems. 
2. Have a lot more time for your self. By being more efficient, like getting your stuff done faster, wasting less time looking for things, you’ll spend less time working and have more time to do what you like to do. 
3. Have more time for family, friends and dogs.  An organized person is able to have time for family, friends and dogs. You will also have more time to help out in charities or your church if you’d like. 
4. Feel good about your environment. You may feel concerned when people drop by your home and see that your house is very unorganized or “messy”. Being unorganized usually results in embarrassment, but don’t be organized just for others, do it for yourself too.   
5. Be healthier. When you are organized you’ll have more time to take care of your self like exercise and have more time to cook better meals for yourself. 
6. Do better at your profession. An organized person gives a much better impression than an unorganized person. 
7. Have more money because you’re organized. When you’re organized you’ll always know what you have before you go and buy something. 
8. Achieve more. When you are unorganized, there are usually things that stop you from reaching your goals. Organized people can find ways to take out unnecessary tasks that are taking too much time and this gives them a lot more time to spend on their necessary goals on their daily plan.  

Are you connected yet?

A couple of weeks ago, edcentre conducted an online gathering centered around learning by connecting. One of the messages was social media can be used to socialize AND learn. Facebook, twitter, youtube, etc. have the potential to expand your learning avenues exponentially; it's only a matter of properly leveraging them to do so. Watch the video below on the power of social media in 2011 and ask yourself, "Am I connected?"

Do you remember the book "Free Stuff"?

I noticed a link today and checked it out. It reminded me of a book I ordered from the Scholastic Book Club when I was in school. It is call "Canadian Free Stuff" and they now have a link. Check it out for free stuff and links to online contests.

Music Helps Me Focus!

I have been doing some informal research using music to help me focus at work. So far ... so good! Today has been very busy and loud in the office, but when I put my headset on (and listen to the right music) the distractions seem to go away and I am more productive. Check out this link if you would like more evidence than this.

Another WAM 10 completion!

Congratulations to Houston Epp on successfully completing Workplace and Apprenticeship Math 10. He blistered through the course in approximately 10 weeks; a new edcentre.ca record! If anyone is interested in enrolling in the WAM10 course, do so without hesitation. There will be a great prize (worth millions) to the person who can beat the 10 week completion record.

Making the Connection

     Last week all of the high school teachers from the edcentre traveled to Humbolt, Saskatchewan to meet with other distance educators from other regions in Saskatchewan. Unfortunately, we didn't get to fly. It was a "watch for deer along the road" trip.

    We talked about how to improve the distance learning experience for everyone and how we can work together to share ideas, resources and inspiration. A common thread in the conversation was about respecting and valuing each learner. To accomplish this, it means some sort of introduction and conversation that opens the doors to understanding.

    One of the really great aspects about meeting people face to face is that you get to connect with who they are and develop a better sense of how you can learn together. In the online world, we often don't get to meet face to face and when we do I think it changes our perspective somewhat.

     This year each member of the edcentre.ca team has committed to visiting two school sites each semester. When we are able to meet learners face to face and talk with the people who are supporting their learning it makes a big difference in the potential for success. Something magical takes place that transforms and changes the ways that people learn from one another when there is some understanding of who the other person is and how they communicate.

    I am beginning to understand how important it is to recognize that we learn best from one another and that the more we expand our personal learning networks, the richer our experience becomes. When we take our personal learning network online, suddenly the learning possibilities change to a global learning environment where we can access thousands of people who can help us learn what we need to know. Our learning connections with people we have met with face to face can now move beyond the time and space of brief meetings to a fluid communication process.

   As we begin to make the connection with how we are all leveraging the Internet to communicate and learn together we are changing the world.