At a Glance:
Stressful start of the week.
More progress made towards the end of the week.
Renewed sense of productivity after a short break.
What was I doing?
I've been working in problem solving this week. I've mostly been trying to organise what experiments I need to carry out/what documentation I need to write during this time, and also in preparation for next week. This has included: Practical/Theoretical Issues, Health & Safety, Costs, Checklists, and Experiments.
How was I feeling?
On Tuesday I had an disagreement with peers and an argument with my parents in the evening. I quickly realised that this was incredibly out of character, and some text conversations with peers also confirmed this. I believe that this was stress related, as by this point I hadn't finished my script and was feeling the pressure to do so. On Wednesday I decided to take some time away to be alone, driving to Ripley to walk in nature and enjoy the countryside. I feel that this helped, as I came back in Thursday with a better attitude and got a lot done both then and on Friday.
What were the pros and cons?
My quick break helped to kick-start a new wave of motivation that I'd previously lost earlier in the week. It's helped to clear my mind of many issues and encouraged me to properly consider what next steps are required. The work completed on Friday and the weekend was beneficial in preparing me for the second week of Problem Solving. Despite outstanding issues still existing, I feel more in control. The con would obviously be that I let myself slip into the negative mindset in the first place, and this could've had more severe consequences if it happened during production time.
What more could've I done?
I should've taken appropriate breaks or forced myself to finish the script while I was writing it. This way I wouldn't feel pressured to finish this during a time where there was other priorities. It would've been beneficial to take downtime seriously in order to strike the right balance between work and play, ensuring that I don't become overly stressed/aggressive, or at least attempt to reduce the likelihood of this.
What's next?
I'll need to continue working through my Problem Solving tasks. The majority of my experiments have been completed at home, however some still remain and I should be able to do this in college. One asset I'd like to focus on is developing a UI style and animating this in After Effects, as this is quite a crucial asset for production. I could also finish writing up the descriptions of my existing experiments.
[Red = Below Target | Green = On Target | Blue = Above Target]
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