MARKETING // EDUCATION // LIFESTYLE // BUSINESS // DESIGN
How to Acquire Good Study HabitsThey say that being a good student requires making some good study habits. Usually, we acquire study habits at school when we start getting assigned homework. First, we pick up the habit of reading and drawing for a while every day, then come writing tasks, and finally, additions and subtractions arrive. We are still children, and our parents have to invest a lot of time and effort to teach us the importance of study and work habits. Over the next years, we polish and perfect these habits and enter the university with a diverse collection of mental tools. However, by the end of the first year, some notable differences in students' performances begin to emerge. Some of them sail smoothly through the semester while others fight to keep their heads above water. Studying for a degree is a much more significant challenge than getting secondary education. You have to develop your vocabulary, study multiple subjects, and deal with a large number of professors. All these factors make it difficult for you to use the tactics that worked so well in high school. Know Your Enemy — Anatomy of HabitA habit consists of 4 steps:
Procrastinating is a habit. It is prevalent, but it only becomes a bad habit when it occurs too often and prevents us from performing tasks we have to carry out (e.g., studying). Procrastination can get triggered by the sound of an incoming WhatsApp, Twitter, or Facebook message. Because it's a habit, you cannot help looking at the mobile phone or computer screen. As a reward, you laugh at your friend's comment and feel generally entertained. It's fun, and that's why you do it. The problem is that with time, you begin to believe that it is something that cannot be changed. How to Acquire Habits and Reduce ProcrastinationYou can manage your habits and even make new ones if you have enough motivation. That will require a lot of efforts, so it's not a good idea to change or create more than one habit at a time. Our willpower is pure energy that isn't limitless. Let's see how we can reduce procrastination. For starters, leave perfectionism aside: we don't want to eliminate it 100% because that is impossible. We are going to reduce it, and no matter how little we’ll manage to achieve that goal, it will still improve student life. The objective can be, for example, to review a subject taught in class. Don't memorize it but revise it, i.e., review the topics you covered, put your notes in order, and select the parts of the textbook you’ve discussed with your classmates. If you succeed, you will be starting to learn the material before it gets taught and you will be able to prepare much better for upcoming exams. 1. Eliminate Triggers Causing ProcrastinationThat means turning off your mobile phone and logging out of all social networks before studying. If there are no distractions, it will be much easier for you to concentrate on what you’re doing. You can create a new trigger that marks the beginning of a good habit. For example, you can do it right after having a meal, resting, working out in the gym, or studying in the library. 2. Devise Appropriate RoutineMake use of the Pomodoro technique — review the material learned in class for 25 minutes. Normally, you will not need more than 3-4 Pomodoros to review the things you covered during the day. Make sure you’re not hungry before you start because you will need a lot of energy, and the thoughts about lunch will distract you. 3. Reward YourselfYou need to motivate yourself. The feeling of achievement is a reward in itself, but you should be generous. During 5-minute breaks you take, you can scroll through the feed, have a chocolate bar, or drink a soda. Your brain will “thank” you for that by releasing dopamine, a chemical responsible for reward and motivation. After 3-4 Pomodoros, you should take longer breaks (about 20 minutes). After you’re done with studying, have dinner with your friends, go to the movies, play a computer game, or watch a movie. Rewarding yourself every time you complete a task will help you reinforce the new habit. After a few weeks, your neurons will get adjusted to that sequence. 4. Keep Yourself MotivatedYou may notice that nothing happens during the first several days. That’s perfectly normal. After all, you are human and not a machine. After some time, you will see that the new routine is really working. However, there’s a risk of you failing to stick to it one day. Therefore, you should be kind to yourself and reflect on the cause of this failure (it can be a cold, a family issue, a fight, or something else). Resolve it and resume your perfect routine the next day.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |