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The vast majority of study advice
around for the last 100 years are based around “hard work.” They
say that if you set your mind to it and invest all kinds a' time,
someday, you, might, see some results. I've always found this advice
to be a bit of a cop out.
First of all, most students that
struggle with their grades put in a ton of time. On top of that, not
all students that kick-ass at school invest much energy into
studying. To say hard work is how you improve your grades is to
overlook 90% of the discrepancies that take place.
Second, hard work can be defined as
anything. I could build my home out of toothpicks. That's hard work.
That doesn't mean it's not smarter to build it out of 2x4's. Hard
work is not a virtue in itself. Without the right knowledge, hard
work is just a major waste of time.
This is a list of ways you can take the
hard work out of your study routine and see better results for it:
1. Sleep More
What's more lazy then sleeping more?
The human brain needs a significant amount of sleep too work at it's
peak. When your brain is not working at it's peak, there is virtually
no way to objectively know. That means you have to be particularly
careful you get enough sleep every night.
2. Mellow Out Through Class
Nooo... don't do illegal substances.
Just relax through your classes. If you're writing notes like a mad
man then you're not remembering the information as well as you could.
Try to get relaxed during your classes to ensure you make the best of
the class time.
3. Read The Syllabus
You know that paper that all your
teachers hand you explaining how they do things in their course? Read
it. After reading it you can focus the work you do on the things your
teacher finds important. Sometimes you'll notice that there is
virtually no reason to worry about homework, or tests, or some other
specific aspect of the course because they're worth so little.
4. Study Less
Most students spend hours studying with
absolutely no focus. It's much more effective to study a shorter
period of time with complete focus. The fresher your mind is, the
more information that it can remember.
5. Habitually Study
No... you don't need discipline to
study. Just get in the habit of studying for a few minutes at the
same time every day. When it's a habit, you'll find yourself studying
and wonder how you got there. By that time, you've already got into
the study material a bit.
6. Skip Studying The Last Night
There is no need to study the night
before a test if you prepared right. If you know the information you
need to know then don't you dare pick up that textbook. Instead of
studying that class, be confident that you know all the material you
need to know.
7. Forget About The Top 3 Points
It's easier to go from a 98 to a 99
than a 99 to a 100. The difference isn't linear because with the
first one you only need to know 1 of 2 things and the second you need
to know 1 of 1 thing. Is that last point worth an extra hour or two
of studying? Probably not. Know that those last points are, by far,
the most costly.
8. Find Pleasure
Do you like baseball but hate math?
Instead of focusing on math, focus on how the math can be used with
statistics. You can do similar things with any subject you have to
learn but don't enjoy. Focus on the pleasurable parts of the
information and you'll learn more faster.
9. Kill Procrastination
Procrastination is not lazy. It's just
stupid. Every time you think “I'll study in 20 minutes,” you're
adding to the time you have to think about the studying by a few
seconds and interrupting the things you'd prefer to do. That's
stressful and time consuming. Do the unpleasant stuff now.
10. Fun
You can be lazy and still invest a ton
of energy into something. It's generally just something you want to
do. Try to have some fun with the more painful work you have to do.
The more fun you have, the less it's going to feel like work.
11. Study Less Information
Don't treat your whole textbook like
it's a gospel of required information. Most teachers only focus on
small pieces. If there is a chance you won't need to learn something
then don't be afraid not to learn it. The less you need to learn, the
better you're going to be able to learn everything else.
12. Make Friends With The Teacher
Don't worry. You're not a teachers pet
unless you act like one. Being friendly with your teachers isn't pet
like unless you rub up against them and kiss their bums. Try and
treat them like an actual friend. If they respond well then keep it
up. Being friends with a teacher is a quick way to guarantee a few
points extra. (Sorry teachers. I've seen it too many times. Maybe
you're the exception.)
13. Simplify Your Life
Forget about trying to use the most
complex and effective strategies for school, studying, and
memorization. The smartest thing you can do is usually just less.
Instead of doing more and more. Eliminate what doesn't work and do
less and less.
14. Don't Feel Guilty For Not Getting Perfect Grades
Once you start relaxing and getting
really good grades, you may feel some guilt kicking in. Maybe you
think you could score that final 5 points if you studied like the
average person. It's true. Maybe you could. Ask yourself if you want
to invest that extra time. It's okay if you don't. Grades (especially
the last few when you're not competing for scholarships,) don't mean
all that much.15. Relax
One of the biggest problems that most
students have is stress. Stress shuts down the most important areas
in the brain for learning. Learning to relax during the tough times
is one of the most effective ways to change your final grade.
You don't have to be a workaholic to
get good grades. In fact, I highly recommend you learn early that
working too much is downright depressing. It's better to work
logically and find the most efficient way for you to get the grades
that you're looking for.
Using these 15 lazy study strategies,
you can see more results with less time.
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