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If I had a homicidal thought for every
person that told me they don't have enough time to study then...
Wait... Never mind.
It's the most common excuse for not
studying around. I know... I know you happen to be the one person
that isn't full of crap but I was that person too. I once thought I
was way too busy to get any studying done too. I'd tell myself, “I've
got this and that and this, and at some point I've got to find time
to sleep.” It wasn't until I forced myself into a double workload
in college that I realized how full of crap I really was.
After setting myself up with a double
course load in college I learned how to make sure I always had enough
time to study. Here are the steps you need to follow:
1. Get Honest
This is a point I was not so subtly
hinting at in the introduction. Most people are completely wrong when
they say that they don't have enough time to study. Look at what you
spend your time doing and try to be as judgmental as possible. Try
pretending you're a third party looking at your life, would this
person agree that you really have no time to study?
Some of the problems are obvious. If
you just watch a ton of television, or play on the internet for hours
a day then you do have time to study, you're just choosing to use it
to entertain yourself instead.
Your problem is probably not that you
can't find time to study. That makes it a problem that's completely
impossible to solve by finding more time. I could give most people a
25 hour day and they still wouldn't find the time required to study.
Finding the real problem can make sure that the problem can get
solved.
This, of course, applies to most
people. I do know of mother's and fathers, and professionals going to
college while maintaining their responsibilities. They usually aren't
the ones asking for help finding time because they're too busy
getting everything done and prioritizing to have time to complain.
2. Prioritize Studying
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If not studying would cause you to die
then you would find time to do it. Think about it. If your life was
on the line, you'd study. You'd skip your workout. You'd call out at
work. You'd beat up the dragon sitting on your textbook (or try.) You
might even wake up early to study if your life was on the line (short
chance but still.) My point is, you need to consider how much of a
priority studying is to you.
Is studying less important than
watching tv? Then you better not expect good results. There are
unfortunate rules we all have to live through. (Damn gravity always
keeping me down.)
Find out where studying belongs on your
priority list consciously. Most people just let their mind decide
priorities in the moment. This isn't a productive way to solve the
problem. Think about it and decide what studying is more important
than (and what it's not more important than.) Then follow through
with those priorities.
3. Reduce Your Need
Okay... Most students dramatically
overestimate their need for studying. If you're not in one of the
most intensive programs or schools in the world, you don't need to
study for hours a day. Most students can get by studying only 15
minutes a day.
If you go through your day looking for
a free hour to study then you are going to struggle but anyone can
find 15 minutes that they're not being particularly productive. You
probably spend at least 15 minutes a day waiting for other people to
do things or during commercials.
The fastest way to find time to study
is to start thinking about studying in a more reasonable way. Unless
your goal is to ace everything, you don't need to waste excessive
amounts of time studying. Until you accept that you're always going
to struggle to find time. Focus on efficiency over quantity.
4. Attack Unproductive Time
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There are two main areas that you can
always find more time to study.
The first area where you can find
unproductive time is in the times I mentioned earlier. Do you ever
just hang out waiting? Maybe on laundry day? Maybe you get to class
five minutes early? As long as you have small sections of time
available to study you can use it. Most people have better options
but never forget that quick bursts of studying a few times a day can
be highly effective.
If you carry a few flashcards in your
pocket through the day then whenever you have 60 seconds in line or
waiting for something, you can start studying. Pull the flashcards
out of your pocket and finish a few of them. That will not only help
you study for more time but it will help your brain integrate that
information as important. (If you think about it randomly throughout
your day your brain will prioritize it.)
The second area where you can find
unproductive time is with what many people call “NET” time or “No
Extra Time.” While you may need to fold your laundry, you can
always listen to an mp3 of a lecture while you're doing it. Your
laundry folding will barely suffer but you'll be learning
significantly more than just mindlessly folding. By using net time
you should always be able to find a few minutes to learn something.
5. Stop Making Excuses
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Once you start finding the time to
study, naturally, your body is going to fight to find another excuse
not to study. Don't worry, it's completely normal. Everyone's mind
does it. After eliminating not having enough time as a reason you're
going to start thinking, “Well... I'm not in the mood.” Or maybe
your brain will start saying, “I'm too tired to study.” Or maybe
it will say, “I won't need to learn this.” Any of these excuses
may be true but based on your previous excuse you have to look at
them with caution.
When you catch yourself in one excuse
like not having enough time, you can't trust your future excuses
without serious thought. In most cases, it's better to just assume
your excuse is crap.
Getting better grades is not as
difficult as most people make it sound. You don't need to be gifted
and you don't need to invest your whole life into it. That's what
this whole blog is about. If you want to learn more about how to cut
down your study time while increasing your grades then be sure to
follow this blog (and maybe check out one of my books.)
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