Knowledge is power, or How to find time to study as an adult

As is in 90% of cases in the modern world, we can attribute these new options to the Internet, which has opened a lot of opportunities. It keeps us connected to friends and family all over the world, helps us make important career decisions with one click, allows us to buy things all over the world, and keeps us entertained in our free time. Considering this wide range of basic options, it's no wonder that the Internet also has something to offer in the field of education.

Online education это is the new black, a must have in the personal wardrobe of any successful person. Why is that the case?

• First of all, online learning is convenient. You can do it anywhere, at any time. Once you purchase a course, a video lecture or a webinar, you gain access to it and you can study whenever you find the time and opportunity.
• Secondly, online education has long since achieved a high enough status to be competitive with various advanced training courses, or even full- and part-time university courses. Today, there are many advanced and useful services on the market, with proven efficiency and high quality.
• Thirdly, online education is a much better fit for the needs of adult students and the demands of the modern world. Online courses provide concentrated knowledge, practical skills, instead of pure theory that cannot be applied anywhere.

Here is a small fraction of the services that can help you start your discovery of the fascinating world of online education.

• Netology, Lektorium and Openedu online platforms. These are three well-known services where you can find accessible courses and lectures covering topics of interest. Each platform also offers an advanced search option that allows you to focus your search on the most relevant sections, which saves a lot of time.
• PostNauka, Arzamas and The Question websites. Here you can find various articles, books and lectures covering various topics in science and humanities. If you would like to expand your horizons or find your passion, these three services are exactly what you need. The Question will also give you expert answers to any questions you might be interested in.
• Lingualeo.com, Dualingo.com and Lingvist are websites for people who are seriously interested in learning foreign languages on their own. All of these services offer an enormous theoretical base together with practical skills, with lessons in an entertaining format. One thing is certain - you won't be bored!

This is just a handful of the most popular Russian-language services which can be used to strengthen existing knowledge, find the right course to learn about a new field or a competent expert who can answer all your questions. The main point is to learn to identify exactly what you need, so you don't get lost in the multitude of available options. Check out course reviews, thoroughly research topics on your own and let yourself to leave lectures that you are not interested in.

And now you might say: 'This is all very interesting, but one important issue is still unresolved - where do I find the time for this?'

Online education is extremely convenient. It can be a valuable tool. But it still requires you to spend precious hours and minutes that you often don't have to spare. Work, housework, hobbies, and you still need some time to relax. There's no time for learning, right?

Wrong! Because you can always find a spare thirty minutes for online education, and it's a lot easier than you think:

1. Make use of your daily commute (especially relevant for people living in major cities). While you are in the subway, on buses, taxis or even stuck in traffic, you can listen, watch or read a few online lectures, webinars or video lessons. It's that easy. You could scroll through your social network news feeds or listen to the radio, or you could study, study and study some more. That way, you also get through your daily half hour of learning first thing in the morning, leaving the rest of the day free for other things.
2. Sports and education go hand in hand. If you like starting your day with a morning run or a warm up, try listening to an interesting lecture or an educational audiobook while you do it. It's much easier to process information when your brain is not overloaded with mundane tasks, and combining intellectual and physical work is extremely beneficial for your brain.
3. Set the right priorities. Let's talk about scrolling through your Instagram news feed or setting a new record in Gardenscapes… In reality, we waste a lot of our free time, even though we could easily spend a lot of it on education. Teach yourself to spend less time on things that don't bring you any benefits, but also avoid doing boring things - learning something that you are actually interested in will bring you much more value.
4. Time management is everything. Get in the habit of planning your day, figuring out what will take up the most of your time, and when you can take a break to relax or study. If you plan your time efficiently (which is a lot easier when you put pen to paper), you will be able to easily find half an hour to learn something new.

Then, of course, make time to socialize as often as possible. If you already know which area you are interested in, try to enter that field. Find other enthusiasts who can share their experience and some valuable life hacks that you might never have heard of. By immersing yourself into this field, you will learn something new and find out if you really want to be a part of it.

Remember - you are the worst enemy of your own productivity. This means that if you don't feel like spending half an hour learning something, then you don't need it in the first place: it's high time you found something that could really interest you!