As the University of California, Irvine (UCI) settles into its new remote environment, the Office of the Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning (OVPTL) wishes to highlight some of the student Anteaters who are finding ways to not only survive but thrive amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. In this series, we introduce some of the UCI students who are finding success during this unprecedented time.

When asked about UCI’s shift to a remote environment, second-year business administration student Lisa Deng remembers how strange everything was. While campus should have been buckling down in preparation for finals weeks, students and faculty suddenly found themselves scrambling to find their way in a new, uncharted world. 

“It was just such a sudden change for everyone,” Lisa recalls. “It was like ‘Wow, this is such a weird way to end the quarter.’ The suddenness and uncertainty of it all was the worst part.”

Beyond the abruptness of the transition, Lisa also explains that she faced challenges in organizing her days. Without a set school and work schedule to rely on, she was suddenly left with an intimidating amount of freedom on her hands.

Fortunately, once she got over the initial shock of moving to a remote school and work environment, Lisa was able to adapt to pandemic life. A major part of Lisa’s success in adjusting is her use of Trello, a project organization platform, to give structure to her daily life. Lisa explains,

“I originally used Trello for school and work, but I’ve recently started using it for my personal life. I created seven different life categories that I want to fulfill every day. The life categories I created are health, mind, professional, academic, personal, work, and entertainment. I have these seven categories, and when I build my schedule for what I want to accomplish that day, I try to accomplish at least four out of seven of those categories. I feel like I have been able to get something out of this where I’m creating more structure in my life and also kind of finding routine within these uncertain times, which is really important for me.”

According to Lisa, this new system has helped her find balance—something she has admittedly grappled with. “I’ve always struggled with doing too many extracurriculars or too much school. Now, being able to visually see these color-coded life categories, I can transfer that into being more balanced in the future and remind myself to take a step back and, if there’s too much of that blue academic color, maybe I add in tasks from one of the other categories.”

Another benefit of Lisa’s Trello strategy is that she’s finding ways to be more productive. While she does miss the social aspects of college life, Lisa is also finding that without this added pressure, she’s finding more time to work on her own development.

“I’ve just been way more productive than I ever was at school. When I was on campus, I would focus my energy on all these extracurriculars or hanging out with friends. But now I’m transferring that energy into being productive and doing things I’ve always wanted to do.”

Something that Lisa has been excited to pursue in her free time is her own professional advancement. Specifically, she mentions taking online classes on subjects related to her desired career in product marketing. In addition to taking these LinkedIn Learning classes, she has also enrolled in a Stanford Intro to Coding course and classes on SQL and Tableau. 

She has also been investing more time in her work as an intern at Intel and as a student intern at the OVPTL. Lisa says that by balancing multiple jobs and professional courses, she is learning a lot more about what she wants to do in the future.

COVID-19 itself has also affected Lisa’s view of her career. She says given the massive impact that the pandemic has had across all industries, she is watching and learning which sectors are strong enough to survive a global emergency.

“Now, I’m looking at careers in what is the most stable. Oftentimes, people want to work in retail, makeup, or beauty brands. But then you see that in a pandemic those companies are really suffering, so I’ve been looking at professional careers in a different way.”

Ultimately, Lisa says that while the COVID-19 pandemic was something she never anticipated, she is still making the most of the situation. From finding balance in her daily life to expanding her skillset to evaluating her career goals, Lisa is making the most out of an unpredictable time.

Watch Lisa discuss her best tips and tricks for remote learning with Associate Dean Jonathan Alexander here. Want to share how you are redefining success in the current pandemic? Then submit your story here. To read more Stories of Resilience During the Pandemic, click here.