Studying can be exciting! You learn more about a subject you're passionate about, you become a well-informed citizen, and you feel productive at the end of each session. However, studying can also be tiring and time-consuming. Make sure you're maximizing your study efforts so you can make those top grades. Here are five study tips to ace your exams... Use them as needed.
1. Get organized
Before you can even begin studying, you have to get yourself organized. Get your notes, pencils, highlighters, colorful pens, sticky notes, textbooks, laptop, etc., and lay them all out in your workspace. Messy studying results in messy grades... We don't want that to happen.
2. Start studying weeks before the exam is announced
Studying as you go alleviates the last-minute cram-session anxiety and ensures that your brain actually absorbs the material. Do not wait until the night before to try to learn the concepts. Staying up all night and expecting to do well rarely mix. As soon as the lecture is over, review the material and make sure you understand it. Once the test time rolls around, all you have to do is brush up on your notes a little.
3. Practice mindfulness
Being mindful of the moment and the circumstances surrounding it will help calm you down before it's go-time. If your brain is in a panic, thinking you'll do poorly and that you should just give up now, odds are that you will score low. Believe in yourself, don't catastrophize, and zone in on the material.
4. Buy a whiteboard
You've probably heard the memory trick saying that the more you write something down, the better chance you have of remembering it later. This trick holds true. Go out, get a whiteboard and some markers, and begin rewriting your notes there. Doing this many times helps the words stick. Plus, it's fun.
5. Create a peaceful environment
We've all been in a situation where we are trying to decipher important topics while everything around us is loud and annoying. Save yourself the headache and create a peaceful environment from the start. Make sure this place is quiet and cool. It may help to light a candle or put some music on low in the background... Whatever you prefer.
These tips are a great place to begin if you need to boost those grades or just get off to a good start for the semester. Happy studying!
