School has started, and we know that this year is going to be different than any other that members of SigEp have experienced. Check out the three top tips for your success inside and outside the classroom or Zoom call: 

1. Take control of your focus in virtual classrooms or video calls. It can be tempting to have more than one window open during a class to make a quick Google search or message a friend, but multitasking will make your Zoom fatigue worse, not better. Avoid multitasking, and when someone is speaking, focus on their face, not their background. You may want to know what books are on your professor’s bookshelf, but the time for that kind of examination is not during a class. The stronger your focus, the less work your brain has to do to benefit from class. (adapted from https://hbr.org/2020/04/how-to-combat-zoom-fatigue)
2. Have an accountability partner for academics and more. Setting goals is always important for success, but this year it’s more important than ever to have your brothers hold you accountable to your goals. Similarly, you have to have a time management plan. Work with a brother to create a calendar of major assignments, a weekly schedule with study time blocked off and check-ins with your accountability partner. (adapted from https://www.northeastern.edu/graduate/blog/tips-for-taking-online-classes/)
   • Tip: Utilize your roster on mySigEp.org to easily access brothers’ contact information for easy outreach.
3. Make time for your growth outside of the classroom. College students spend 90 percent of their time outside the classroom. In a virtual college setting, it is easy to just use your free time to lounge around (Netflix and video games are always tempting). It is important, though, to keep developing yourself beyond what you’re learning in class. Find ways to engage the parts of yourself that your classes don’t, and enlist your brothers for help. Time feels different with all this social distancing, but, as time management expert Laura Vanderkam says in her TEDTalk, “time will stretch to accommodate what we choose to put into it” (How to Gain Control of your Free Time). Challenge your vice president of member development to create challenge meetings that provide the growth opportunities you are looking for.
   • Tip: Utilize the improved BMP App to find development activities that will help you meet the expectations of your BMP challenge. Find the app through mysigep.org or on the App or Google Play Store. 

You’re not alone this year. SigEp chapters across the country are finding ways to make the most out of this unique school year. Now more than ever, the SigEp experience is important, as chapters build communities around shared values and continuous development. 

As SigEp supports you during this year, the BMP App will help you track your progress through the Balanced Man Program within your chapter. If you haven’t yet, claim your account on mySigEp.org and prepare for the relaunch of the BMP App in late August.