In Stacey Pigg’s book “Transient Literacies in Action,” she discusses something called “the mobile surround.” The Mobile Surround is the idea of people working on their papers or projects in shared places or shared experiences. The first example that comes to mind is Starbucks. One of their greatest marketing strategies was giving out free wifi for all customers to be able to do their work in the shop. A classic Starbucks aesthetic is walking in and seeing rows of people working on their computers, typing away. Other common examples of this include public libraries or parks. As a college student, you always have work to get done.

With that being said, you need to be creative in order to turn many different locations into your own work desk. For me, personally, I’m unable to work in any noisy place. If the room isn’t near-silent, I have a hard time concentrating and find it impossible to work there. For that reason, I myself have never become a huge “Starbucks Student.” As a college writer, I have adapted the school’s Library to be my second writing home. I have found that everyone is respectful of the library’s policies of keeping quiet and I enjoy that. I like hearing the clicking sound of everyone else’s keyboards; it always sounds like there’s hundreds of keyboards clicking at a time. Another reason I love the Library is that everyone is there with the same purpose. Although we aren’t doing the same project or even speaking to each other, feeling the presence around you that everyone is getting their requirements done motivates me to push through my assignment. Lastly, the good vibes in the library always keeps me moving. In the library, I know my surroundings won’t be the reason I get flustered because I always know what to expect there, unlike places that other people prefer.