Top tips to set up your EMBA study space

Every moment you spend studying, researching and writing assignments or presentations as part of your Executive MBA counts. So, it’s important to get the most out of these moments. However, your office – at home or at work – may not be conducive to this. To ensure your working and learning environments are set up to allow maximum output, QS TopExecutive spoke with two experts to get their advice on how best to declutter your space before beginning your Executive MBA.

Talented London-based interior designer, Nina Maklin recommends EMBA candidates start with decluttering their workspace and removing any unnecessary items. “It will make you feel more calm and relaxed when you’re not surrounded by anything unnecessary or unrelated to your studies,” she says. Nina suggests the following top tips to ensure every moment of your designated EMBA time counts.

1. Arrange your desk so you have a view to the outside. This will make you feel like you’re connected to the world and it has been scientifically proven that a view of nature will increase your creativity.

2. Magic white board stickers are great to remind you about your ‘to do’ list. “Our brain is limited in its capacity to hold information in the short-term memory and writing it down makes you immediately feel more relaxed and productive,” Nina says. You can also use a white board to brainstorm your essays, but make sure to take a picture of it so you can go back to your notes later on.

3. Pomodore technique is a great way of keeping you focused on your task. Time yourself for 25min of uninterrupted work before you take a break or let any external elements, like Facebook or emails, interrupt your work.

4. Choose nice notebooks, pens and paper to complete you work. They will make you feel your work is special and important.

5. Good ergonomics are crucial when you are sitting down for long periods of time. Invest in a good work chair and raise your laptop to your eye level with an external keyboard. This will make sure you don't get any unwanted back or neck pains.

6. Sometimes it’s good to work outside of your home and break the study routine. You’ll find returning to your desk even more pleasurable after time spent working in cafes.

Entrepreneur, Sophie Burnett specialises in helping individuals and businesses with their admin and organizational needs through her business, PA Business Support. She recommends the following top tips to setting up your home study or work office to ensure you’re ready to tackle the challenge of the Executive MBA.

1. Create a vision board of what your dream office would look like. This could be colours, shelving and desk space. Work with the space you have and maximise it to make sure everything has a place.

2. Try to keep personalised pictures to a minimum. A few here and there will brighten the days when you need an uplift, but don’t overdo it. This is your work space where work becomes your priority.

3. Design an in/out tray system and an urgent/non urgent filing system to save the papers piling up.

4. Resist the urge to keep hundreds of pens. Only keep as many as will fit in your pen pot or drawer.

5. Use an online database to keep your business cards minimal. Capsule is excellent, costs very little financially, and you’ll reap the rewards when your business cards are filed away.

6. Take a few minutes at the end of each day to put things away. This means you won’t need to do a huge tidy up at the end of the week, which can turn into a monstrous task!