{"id":100,"date":"2024-02-01T11:54:25","date_gmt":"2024-02-01T11:54:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/?p=100"},"modified":"2024-02-01T11:54:25","modified_gmt":"2024-02-01T11:54:25","slug":"a-students-quick-guide-to-master-digital-decluttering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/01\/a-students-quick-guide-to-master-digital-decluttering\/","title":{"rendered":"A Student\u2019s Quick Guide to Master Digital Decluttering"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"906\" height=\"389\" src=\"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/image-9.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-101\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Digital clutter may not seem like a big deal, but too much on your laptop or phone can hinder productivity. Learn how to clean up your digital space now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having a cluttered physical space makes it difficult to find what you\u2019re looking for and much more challenging to organize\u2014and digital space on your phone and computer is no different. The start of a new year presents students with a perfect time to declutter their space and mind to set goals and figure out how to achieve them. Learn more about digital decluttering and how it can help you stay organized and focused this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What makes up digital clutter?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Anything that pulls away your focus, causes mental stress, or makes it difficult to find what you need when using your digital device can qualify as digital clutter. Your clutter might look like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Endless apps or desktop icons:&nbsp;<\/strong>Is your home screen full of random files, photos, and app icons? Eventually, it\u2019ll become problematic to find stuff as you scroll through countless pages. Pare down to only what you need and put those loose files into folders.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Rows of open browser tabs:\u00a0<\/strong>Open tabs are a massive drain\u00a0on your system\u2019s memory and having too many eventually gets overwhelming, like there\u2019s so much to do even when there isn&#8217;t.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Sound and pop-up notifications:&nbsp;<\/strong>There\u2019s an alert for just about anything on everything now, including smartwatches, earphones, and fitness trackers. It\u2019s incredibly hard to focus when these notifications are buzzing around you all day.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>\u00a0Overflowing inboxes:<\/strong>\u00a0Sometimes the allure of freebies is tempting, so you subscribe to more stuff. But a cluttered email inbox is the\u00a0fifth-leading productivity killer\u00a0in the workplace, so imagine what it does for students?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Related:\u00a0Over 20 Apps to Help You Get Through Tough Finals This Semester<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Decluttering your digital space<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>First, you want to figure out what exactly makes it clutter. Why are these files, apps, and emails causing you to lose concentration? Can you do without them, or can you tweak a few settings so they\u2019re less in your face and keep them? Taking a step back helps you get a broader view, ensuring you only get rid of the things you can absolutely do without.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Start small<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Just like decluttering a physical space, many things you get rid of in a digital declutter likely meant something to you once, which is how they got there in the first place. It\u2019s okay to start small so the act of purging your digital life doesn\u2019t feel stressful. Delete a few random files, repetitive photos in your gallery, forgotten downloads you don\u2019t need, and the like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Purge your inbox<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Scan your inbox for\u00a0emails you never opened\u00a0(or opened and never read), group them by sender, and unsubscribe from them all. Be as thorough as you need to be. There\u2019s no reason for things you don\u2019t have interest or value in to take up space in your inbox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Modify your notification settings<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>A barrage of alerts and notifications all day\u00a0disrupts your thought process and workflow. Plus, they can drain your device\u2019s battery because it keeps apps running in the background. Keep only the notifications you absolutely need and turn off or mute the rest. Sign out of social accounts you no longer use as well and consider silencing certain alerts when you need to get work done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Clean up your browser<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Your web browser can only handle so many open tabs at once, so close all the ones you don\u2019t need. You can always reopen a tab later, but sifting through a bunch of websites you don\u2019t need in the moment just wastes time. Also, go to the browser settings and clear your cookies so you\u2019re bombarded with fewer intrusive ads when surfing the web. Lastly, turn off any unnecessary extensions and plugins that could be eating up system power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Classify and organize the rest<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>By now, you should be left with only the files, apps, and email subscriptions that are useful for your set goals and interests. Categorize them and place each in a designated folder so it\u2019s easier to know where to find them when needed and your main desktop looks neat, organized, and easy to navigate.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Related:<\/strong>\u00a0Tips for Better Organization and Study Habits in High School<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The benefits of digital decluttering<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, we\u2019re not telling you to declutter simply to do it. It really does benefit you in the long run and improves your quality of life! Here are four benefits of doing away with digital clutter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Reduced stress<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Too much clutter, digital or otherwise, can overload you with too much visual information, making you feel more stressed. That\u2019s why\u00a0decluttering feels mentally and physically freeing\u00a0when you do it; you no longer have to deal with or think about the disorganization around you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Improved focus<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>A digital declutter helps you\u00a0free up your time to focus\u00a0on your New Year\u2019s goals. For example, suppose your goal is to apply for and land an internship\u2014having an organized desktop will make it easier to keep track of your application materials, and a cleaned-up inbox will make sure you don\u2019t miss an offer letter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Decreased cybersecurity risks<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Hanging on to old apps and files you no longer use regularly can increase your device\u2019s\u00a0vulnerability to cybersecurity threats\u00a0like account theft. According to Kaspersky,\u00a056% of users have lost data\u00a0on their phones due to digital clutter. You can clean up your space and improve your online safety in one go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Environmental impact<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Reducing your digital footprint can help improve sustainability efforts. Although you can&#8217;t see the data and how it impacts the world, all digital clutter that exists is stored on servers somewhere, which consume large amounts of energy. Data centers that house these servers are expected to consume\u00a020% of the world\u2019s electricity\u00a0by 2025. So try to be a part of the solution by keeping your footprint small.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Related:\u00a0<\/strong>How to Utilize Technology to Get Ahead of the Class<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Decluttering your digital space can improve your productivity and help you focus on your goals with fewer distractions. The key is to make sure you\u2019ve properly identified the source of the clutter and organize or get rid of it without looking back. Start the year off right by deleting the digital mess from your computer and your mind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Digital clutter may not seem like a big deal, but too much on your laptop or phone can hinder productivity. Learn how to clean up your digital space now. Having a cluttered physical space makes it difficult to find what&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":101,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102,"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100\/revisions\/102"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/101"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/answerfaqpro.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}