Meaning:

Literally meaning “effective vs. ineffective,” this way of listing and comparing things has been popular among Chinese netizens recently, especially in the context of the workplace and campus life. People use this structure to remind others of the importance of spending their time more wisely or doing things in a more efficient way.

Example:

A: 你的论文完成了吗？似乎你最近常常熬夜。

Nǐ de lùnwén wánchéng le ma？Sìhū nǐ zuìjìn chángcháng áoyè。

Have your finished writing your thesis? It seems you’ve recently been staying up late.

B: 还没有，上网查资料常常看些无关的内容浪费了时间。

Hái méiyǒu，shàngwǎng chá zīliào chángcháng kàn xiē wúguān de nèiróng làngfèi le shíjiān。

Not yet. I often wasted my time checking out irrelevant contents online.

A: 你要有效熬夜，不要无效熬夜。

Nǐ yào yǒuxiào áoyè，búyào wúxiào áoyè。

You need to spend your night more efficiently, don’t waste time.