Helping Students Maximize Their Time Online By Esther Mark

Studying has never been made easier than it is now. With the internet and affordable data subscriptions dished out by mobile telecommunications network providers, there has never really been a time when all a student need was just a click away, at his finger tips-via the phones s/he possesses.

However, while many students go online daily, they are often involved in frivolous activities. They do everything therein and always claim to be very busy-but you get to ask them one simple question-what are you busy doing?

You see, in as much as the internet comes with its various advantages, it also has numerous disadvantages, especially for students. So how can you, as a student, diligently maximize the fantastic opportunity presented by the internet?

1. Be Disciplined. By this, I mean, have some sense of consistency. Decide at what times you want to go online, what sites you want to visit, and how long you intend to stay therein. The purpose for each online surfing will determine the length you’d stay. If it is an assignment, tell yourself how long you want to remain doing that particular assignment. If it is for leisure, set time limits and consciously work towards maintaining it. Else, you will be busy doing nothing!
2. You must not be on every Social Media platform.  In this day of internet dating, chats, pings, skype and the likes, it is just too tempting not to be in any of the platforms. But as a student, you need to define your path. Define why you want to be on each network. Facebook: Connect with friends. Twitter: Updates and trending issues. LinkedIn-Professional and career oriented. Instagram: Pictures? When you have defined why you need these social platforms, also decide the number of platforms you can mark the register in. By this, I mean, how many will you be active in. Do not forget that as a student, you may have lean budget and will not want to spend all your income navigating between various social platforms and burning away data. When you decide how many, it will help you in planning your overall schedules for a day. You see, even your reading habits can be affected by social media-that’s why you need to be careful in deciding how many you want to be featured in. More still, it is also advised that you stay in 2-4 social platforms. It is easier to maintain.
3. Beware of Pornography! It is always easy to begin a habit-but very difficult to stop. That is why you need to be wary of sites that look very tempting and may want to send some tingling sensations down your groin/inner chambers. They start as harmless visits and overtime, become die-hard habits that are very DIFFICULT to break. Most times, these addicted use of porn sites pose great dangers ahead-when you marry and the likes. Apart of the long term disadvantages, it also has very short term discomfort. If for nothing, the feeling of guilt you encounter after each visit, and subsequent masturbation which is always a fall out of the visit, hits you hard. You can’t spend all day visiting various porn sites and not have distorted views later.
4. Buy with caution! One good thing about the internet is that it has made shopping very easy for us all. You can cut the traffic and time spend rummaging through shops by buying your stuff online and have them delivered at your door! But while this comes with its advantages such as time savers and maybe-with discounts on purchased stuff, it could be dangerous when you keep buying and buying every cool item you see on display. It actually encourages impulsive buying and you can only realize this when you look especially at your wardrobe and find many clothes you never needed, or would ever need. And also, a deflated savings.
5. Your Password is incorrect!  While surfing the net, be careful not to disclose personal details to unsuspecting persons. Your passwords, pins, and other important details should be kept safe. Never activate the ‘remember password’ option while browsing from either your personal laptop, gadget, or a shared one. It will enable you avoid the stories that touches the heart and tickles the “bum-bum”. To be save, safeguard your passwords and use combinations of numbers, cases and even sentence forms to form very unsuspecting passwords!
6. Seek out useful sites and tools! There are a thousand and ten sites that are helpful and useful for students. From sites that teach you basic photo-shopping skills, to others that enhance your computer literacy appreciation or those that help you connect with mentors and help you reach out to them to enjoy their tutelage. You also have the sites that help you build your professional skills, those that help you practice some ‘Do It Yourself’ skills and others that are just academic based. There are a thousand and one volunteering sites through which you can connect to real opportunities and the likes. Don’t just be online. Be online and in line with your values.