After what feels like an eternity of Zoom-everything, you would think that I would be used to it by now. However, with everything from clubs to classes returning to being in person, having my professional life stay online has been a bit tough. Balancing a job while also being a full-time student is hard enough, but having to spend seven hours at a time sitting at my desk rather than being physically at work makes it a bit harder. Plus, I have never had a job while also in school (with the exception of my semester at home). But let’s be honest: Zoom school really did not amount to the busyness that in-person school does, which adds another layer of stress to manage.
My remote job is a Zoom version of a day program for adults with disabilities. Normally, I work at the actual facility that houses the program, which is located in Newton, Mass., during my breaks from school. However, ever since COVID, the in-person program has been unable to meet in full capacity, thus the creation of our highly advanced Zoom program. We play games, run lessons and share laughs the same way we would in person, just through a screen instead.
Currently, I am also working on a side project as a one-on-one mentor with one of our participants who is enrolled in a public speaking course. One perk of still having the Zoom program is that I am able to work at a job that I love while I am in Amherst. Before, I had to wait until summers and winter breaks, but now I get to incorporate my job into my weekly school schedule.
I am super lucky in the sense that I have no classes on Mondays so I am able to have a full work day from 8 to 3 p.m. I also work another day a week for a shorter shift and then do prep work like lesson plans and emails throughout the week. However, now that I am used to being back to normal for the most part, this can be a bit hard sometimes. I like to maximize my time on campus as I focus better there, but on days that I work, I have to stay at home.
It can also be hard to stay focused when I know how much school work I have and could potentially be doing, especially since I am literally sitting on my computer for work and having my homework be just a few clicks away. A strategy I like to employ in order to stay focused on my current task is to ask myself, “Is it possible for me to be doing another task right now?” and remind myself that in the present moment, I can’t change how much I have to do and have to take things one step at a time. I often use this phrase if I get stressed about things I have to do the next day when I am laying in bed trying to sleep. If you can’t logically get things done at that very moment, don’t let yourself succumb to the stress of things you cannot change!
Another way to get myself through the long day of Zoom is being sure to wake up early enough that I can get dressed and head to Dunkin’ to grab my morning coffee. I have definitely had my days where I roll out of bed and turn on my computer five minutes before we begin; however, I find that by doing this I feel infinitely more tired throughout the day and then proceed to be unmotivated to do my school work after work is over. By getting ready for my day beforehand and treating work as a small part of my day to get through and then move on from, I am able to get a lot more accomplished.
Adjusting to college life in general after a year of chaos has been hard on its own, but having the strange combination of having some things in-person and others on Zoom has been an odd clash of two separate worlds. Though at times it can be a bit stressful, I wouldn’t want to have it any other way.
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