As a student, you get a decent amount of spare time between lectures, seminars, study, sports, and social occasions. While you probably won’t want to use this precious ‘me’ time to pile into study books – unless deadlines are encroaching, you do want to use it productively for the sake of your future prospects and your current state of mind.
Now, 21st Century technology dictates how we spend our leisure time, with it offering so many benefits alongside the more shallow perks of bursts of enjoyment. While fun is integral, if there’s a way to draw some level of entertainment or satisfaction from a leisurely but productive activity, you may as well do so.
Expand your presence where it counts
Social media has been a revelation around the world. Primarily used as a platform of communication and sharing between friends and family, the platforms have also given people a stage to inform and engage with audiences. Being free and easy to use, the right social media platforms are cost-effective yet potent methods of expanding one’s presence if used in the right way.
Instead of just scrolling through social media to look at friends’ pictures, or to keep up with the funneled news, take control of your profile and use it to bolster your presence with your professional interests in mind. The likes of LinkedIn and Facebook can be key in this regard as you can use them to network, build valuable relationships, and make empowered connections.
Over time, Facebook and Instagram have become better ways to connect to an audience in terms of furthering your professional agenda and advertise yourself. LinkedIn is the go-to platform for finding professionals and establishing yourself among them. In the United States, there are over 160 million LinkedIn users, with 92 percent of Fortune 500 executives, and 77 percent of recruiters also utilizing the platform.
Reaping the benefits of having fun
Like communications and connectivity, modern technology has also transformed how we consume entertainment. While some see enjoying modern entertainment as being counterproductive, Psychology Today explains that there is a need for ‘play-time’. This supposedly helps to activate the brain’s creativity centers to release helpful endorphins, as opposed to the anxiety centers and their adverse effects always being switched on.
Gaming has become a titanic segment of the entertainment industry, so much so that even Carolina Central University will be commencing a gaming degree next year. Not only is it a big business but, if you have the tech already, the most popular games are free. Microsoft tracks Fortnite as the most popular game in the US right now, followed by fellow free-to-play game Call of Duty: Warzone, and further down, Apex Legends.
Without a gaming computer or a current-generation console, though, there are other entertainment options aside from video games that engage the mind in different ways. Across a selection of online casino games, titles like live blackjack, live baccarat, and live ultimate Texas hold’em all incite critical thinking and mathematics in their play, allowing players to engage different parts of their brain, while simultaneously enjoying the entertainment aspects.
Of course, the most popular way to unwind is to watch streamed content. Netflix is seen as the powerhouse of content streaming, but it’s actually YouTube by a very large margin, which has the most US users. YouTube offers a vast range of free videos to enjoy. Regardless of your platform, however, to maximize your viewing time, seek out the informative content, like documentaries and debates, for easy and relaxing consumption that also expands your way of thinking.
So, when you find yourself with some time on your hands, and you undoubtedly turn to some modern tech, be sure to make the most of the time you have by combining leisure time and enjoyment with some degree of productivity.
