OeAD scholar initiates virtual coworking space to stay productive during lockdown

1. December 2020 Scholars
Selbstportrait der Stipendiatin auf einer Wiese
How to stay motivated for writing when you are supposed sitting only in your room during lockdown? Inspired by the online meetings organized by the events4scholars team and after talks with others scholarship holders Quynh Anh started to open a virtual room for common working.

Quynh Anh is currently completing her PhD within the framework of the Ernst Mach ASEA-UNINET scholarship at the University of Graz in the field of Earth Science. She is staff member of the Vietnam National University HCMUS. In the final phase of her studies she is now working on her third paper and is preparing to defend her dissertation.

Formally introduced as the “writing sessions”, which she learned at the Doctoral-Academic Centre of the University of Graz, Quynh Anh gave us a brief introduction about this approach:

“We found this method really effective and applicable for any situation people are in, e.g., writing, working, and learning. It keeps us productive, especially, highly motivated while working in front of the camera and sometimes being observed by other people. We hope we could inspire people to do and keep doing what they are doing effectively and successfully.”

These are the steps for each session:

  • Set in mind: what is your task for the session?
  • Prepare all the things you need during writing sessions
  • Do some physical activation with a song/music (3-5 minutes)
  • Then do 50 min of focus-time
  • Take a small break (10 minutes)

Repeat all the steps over and over again. The camera is always on while we are doing “writing sessions”. We can perform 7-8 sessions a day. After one week, we will clearly see our achievements.

Read here different testimonials for Virtual Coworking Space by Quynh Anh:

Working together with other OeAD scholars has enabled us to deal with the lockdown and make our time at home more fun and productive. The online study sessions help us to separate work and leisure hours better and brought us into contact with current and former OeAD scholars across Austria. During the breaks, we discuss our plans for the weekend and share recipes. This wonderful initiative has helped me and others to deal with the consequences of covid-19 as best as we can, while still feeling part of the global research community in Austria. - Olga Witmer, Doctoral Student at University of Innsbruck

Doing virtual coworking space with friends from OeAD scholar makes me productive and being motivated. Because we are not only working together by each session but also share experiences as a doctoral student. Me, as a doctoral student in the second year learning a lot from our colleague which is in the last year stage and one of them, has been graduated. So, I do not feel alone because I have a family in OeAD. -Lisa Esti Puji Hartanti, Doctoral Student at University of Vienna

As an OeAD alumnus, I stay updated about the Austrian condition. Me, already back in Indonesia. However, several OeAD scholarship holders stay in Austria. We work together through an online meeting platform esp. during this pandemic period (lockdown in Austria). I know exactly how difficult it is to write a dissertation alone. Through this initiative, I hope I give my best contribution (even it’s a small one) to keep the dissertation-writing journey of others more enjoyable. While for me, it also enhances my motivation to write a new publication paper. - Arko J. Wicaksono - Alumnus from University of Innsbruck

We are happy to see that our scholarship holders take action to motivate and support each other!