Your student days, and student life in general, is probably the most entertaining and exciting chapter of your life, but it also tends to be very stressful.
There are so many responsibilities and so many bills and debts. You might have a hard time mastering a particular subject or paying attention during lectures. You might also have trouble with motivation and time management, or you might be under constant pressure and unable to focus. These are some common problems that students experience. This article is here to help you cope with these problems.
Here, we’ll discuss how to be more efficient in the area of learning and acquiring new information in order to help you with your studies. We will also cover motivation, how to remain motivated, and how to manage your time so that you are not in a constant rush.
Hopefully, learning how to deal with internal and external pressure will help you mitigate the amount of stress you experience. So, here are some tips for students on how to be more productive and get the work done.
Tips on more efficient learning (holistic learning)
When it comes to learning, we usually experience difficulty because we face something unfamiliar that we cannot relate to our previous knowledge. Since the whole thing makes no sense, it simply bores you and you stop paying attention — thus even learning becomes a waste of time.
We don’t learn when we force ourselves because we are aware of the process. You learn when you are immersed in a particular piece of content — as long as you are aware that you are reading, you are not actually reading because your attention is elsewhere.
The first thing you need is a desire to learn and understand, and you can’t view this as a chore, so view this as a road to self improvement. The learning technique known as holistic learning can be really helpful in this department, since you organize your information and thoughts as building blocks or as webs of knowledge.
As you acquire new information, you are constantly trying to make a connection to what you already know and see how this new data fits. This will make it easier to remember new things and to expand on a particular topic. It’s also useful to use metaphors and organize more complex ideas into simpler ones that will be far easier to access.
Another way to learn with better efficiency is to divide your lessons into smaller segments. Basically, each segment of the lesson needs to be an answer to a particular question that you come up with as you read. In other words, every lesson is a test divided into several questions that you memorize and know how to respond to.
Additionally, as you learn, see if there is video content available online that can demonstrate some points from the lesson. This way, the whole thing will be far easier to remember and understand. It would also be useful if you could record your lectures and transcribe them later. Just make sure the recording device is somewhere in the front and well hidden, as not all professors allow students to record their lectures.
Tips for increasing motivation
Knowing how to learn is one thing, wanting to learn or being motivated is an entirely different story, so let’s see what you can do to boost your motivation. The first thing you can do is to be well-rested. Trying to acquire new information while you are exhausted won’t work out so well.
Before you start, you need find a system that works for you. For example, you might respond to positive reinforcement, so you can train yourself by buying a slice of pizza or a piece of cake after you have actively studied for, let’s say, three hours. You can also make a commitment or make a promise to yourself that you will actively study for a particular amount of time.
Finally, if you have hard time motivating yourself, then ask for help or form a study group. Learning with your peers is much more fun. You can give each other tips and you won’t wander off because you’ll feel accountable to other people. Basically, it is peer pressure that serves as your motivation, and the whole learning experience is far more pleasant.
Tips for better time management
As mentioned above, you need to be well-rested in order to be productive, which means you need to have a healthy sleep cycle, and a healthy sleep cycle is closely connected to better time management. For starters, do not stay up too late because it will mess up the rest of your day. Make sure you turn in around 9-10 pm, so that you can easily get up early in the morning.
If you find that you are not tired in the evenings, you can do a quick workout to exhaust yourself at night and fall asleep easier. You should turn off all the devices that keep you awake, and perhaps have a light snack before you turn in.
When you hit a wall while studying, do not waste your time doing nothing. Take a quick rest, take time to organize your room, just do anything productive. If everything is neatly organized, you are more likely to be focused, since there are less things to distract you.
Using the motivation techniques mentioned earlier, you can go over the things you covered in lectures on a daily basis and then reward yourself with some time to just relax or with some dessert. You should study at least two hours a day so that you need less time when midterms and finals arrive.
Tips for dealing with external and internal pressure
Another thing that may appear as an obstacle in your studies is stress. If you are bothered by external problems, then sitting around doing nothing won’t solve them. Think about the solutions and work towards them. If your actions can’t solve the problems then it’s simply beyond you to solve them, and you should focus on something else.
If you are stressed due to finances, then think up a way to start saving money or earn more money. These days, you can use various apps or websites that allow you to complete surveys, post positive reviews, or complete other actions online and get paid. You can also set yourself a weekly challenge where at the end of the first week you put away $5, double the amount for the next week, and so on for the whole month.
It can also be useful to meditate to calm yourself. You will be more focused afterwards. Additionally, you can start working out three times a week to feel healthier, more confident, and to fall asleep easier. All these things can help you greatly in mitigating your stress and increasing your focus and productivity.
I hope you find these suggestions useful and that you will be more productive in your studies from now on. As a student, you’ll face many obstacles, but they will all pale in comparison with what awaits you once you are finished with your studies. So, enjoy this time while it lasts and use it to become more resilient and more responsible for the future.
Featured photo credit: https://pixabay.com/en/users/stevepb-282134/ via pixabay.com
