Fake It Til We Make It

Hey everyone! I thought I should post something about how I take my notes, cause that's a studyblr thing right? I don't know. Alrighty here we go! 가자!

I use 2 notebooks (college ruled): Book 1 for in-class notes. These are my messy, not pretty, not for studying notes. Book 2 is for rewriting them. I found out that rewriting my notes helps me retain the information a lot better than not. These are the pretty, post worthy, study-able notes.

Highlighters: Nothing special, just those Sharpie highlighters you get at the store for like 90 cents for a pack of 5. I have a method to the highlighting though.

Headers and titles in pink

Vocabulary in blue

Definitions in green

For history, dates and places in yellow/orange

For science, not super important, but still important info in yellow/orange

Examples in purple

Extra info that should be noted is underlined in pink and green depending on the topic

Pens: I use a Pilot G-2 pen in 0.7 because I feel the most comfortable writing in 0.7 and this is the only pen kind I will use. I really like how the ink flows, and it isn't super smear-able unless you like just write and then wipe it. I use the colour black because it helps my eyes comprehend the word. If I use blue it hurts and if I use read I glance over it. So use whatever colour works best for you.

Pencils: I don't really use them other than my Art III class, and when I'm in Art I use wooden (U.S.A Gold #2) and not mechanical because wooden pencil lead is softer and goes onto paper better. If I'm in my Algebra II class I use a mechanical pencil from PaperMate. I've always bought from PM so I'm very comfortable using their products.

Sticky Notes: I use these for Français because if I write the word or phrase on a sticky note, and then stick it somewhere (my window fell victim this year), I'm more likely to see it and read it, which helps me understand. I also use it for vocab and stick it where the français vocab word matches the English word (I do this for 한국어 and 中文 as well. It really helps). *Matches the Eng word means I stick it on my clock or something*

Calculator??: I use a TI-30X because this was the calculator I needed for my math class. I have mine in pink cause it's my favourite colour.

Erasers: I use the kneaded eraser I got for Christmas in art class, and I use Pen + Gear's pink rubber erasers because they pick up mistakes quick.

Index Cards: I also use Pen + Gear for index cards because they are super cheap, and I don't have a job yet (just got an interview yesterday!!!!), but it's like $1 for 100 5×3in cards.

Pencil Case: I just use one I like, mine just also happens to be Pen + Gear in the colour pink

Mildliners by Zebra - It’s worth it. Most of the highlighters are highly pigminted, and do not smudge. It also has the AsThEtIc part of it, so that is also a plus. If you can afforf it, it pays off!

Muji Pens - Usually great with the inks, but watch out for the more pastel ones. Muji pens are probably Muji’s best product, and while many of their other products are nice, and have a great feel to them, sometimes they are overpriced and you can get them for a cheeper price. The cip pens are actually the exact same as the Zebra Serasa pen colection, just without the branding, so if you, like me, hate the designs on them, just do this and get the refills through whichever is cheeper in your area.

An Overview of Note-Taking Styles

if you realize you’ve been studying for hours: grab a snack to refuel your body and watch a sitcom to refuel your brain. then back to the books.

if you’re feeling stressed out: take some deep breaths, text your friends, maybe stare at a wall for a few minutes. gather yourself.

if you can’t seem to focus: get moving and get outside. take out the garbage, check your mail box, maybe walk your dog. just get moving and get fresh air. it’ll help bring you back.

if there’s something else going on in your life and you can’t get it off your mind: write down what’s going through your head, sort of like a diary entry. it’ll help you work things out.

if you’re just mentally and physically exhausted: set a timer for 25-30 minutes and take a nap. any longer and you’ll hit REM and you’ll wake up feeling just as tired. once you wake up, get some caffeine in you.

if the material is boring as hell: find another way to study. see if there’s a crash course video online about it or draw out what you’re trying to learn in diagrams and pictures to make it fun.

if people around you won’t shut up: listen to some music. soundtrack and classical music is always good because they won’t absorb you as much as music with lyrics. white noise (like ocean waves, rain sounds, etc.) also works.

I may not be the most accomplished student, but I’ve been slowly finding what works for me. The following advice probably applies more to the “inattentive” and “combined” subtypes; the former is my diagnosis. Also, it is probably applicable more to science/maths than humanities.

* Follow your nose - set an outline for what you want to cover in a certain period of time and don’t force yourself to do any one thing in particular

* Embrace nonlinearity in your notes - don’t force yourself to make them exceptionally neat & compartmentalised; scribble your ideas down and use arrows to connect things together

* If you have an idea or a question, investigate it yourself - make a mathematical model of the system, visualise it, etc

* Prove the theorems in the textbook rather than doing the (boring) exercises - this really helps with understanding, and also develops your mathematical skill

* Look at more material than the course requires - this makes studying feel worthwhile, because you’re actually beginning to understand

* If you’re hyperfocusing, don’t force yourself to take a break! Wait until your concentration starts drifting and then get outdoors for a bit. I find that studying in anything less than a 1.5h session is pointless because I don’t get immersed enough to make deep connections.

drink more water instead of more coffee.

weekly goals are bullshit. set yourself 3-day goals. you’ll be less laid-back.

don’t just mindlessly stare at words. before you start studying, know your approach to it. have a plan.

summarizing the concept in your own words is the key part of taking notes. don’t just copy things down, convert them into your own way of talking, your own vocabulary, no matter how dumb and unprofessional it sounds.

don’t let the “studyblr aesthetic” fool you. studying doesn’t have to be pretty. summaries and notes can be messy as long as they’re comprehensible. you can always rewrite and reorganize them later. (honestly, you better do. and you better keep them.)

don’t throw away the papers you’ve solved your problems in. staple them to the fucking textbook. you need to see them constantly. cause you’ll need reminders of how far you’ve came, when you’re feeling discouraged.

don’t be an armchair analyst for your issues. if you have an idea then act on it.

remember: the exact point where it becomes difficult, is where your growth begins. take a deep breath, and try to focus on the paragraph in front of you.

get off your high horse and understand that if you’re a zero, you won’t go to 100 in a couple of days. first, you’ll need to reach 30, then from 30 to 60, and then from 60 to 90. nobody is 100 everyday. that happens very rarely.

you need to have fun everyday. you need to have peaceful time every single day. even on exam night. especially on exam night, actually. so make sure you’ve studied enough so you can have some time to yourself.

once you’re on a roll and in need of some challenge to stay on track, start writing down your studying hours. tell yourself you’re not allowed to do less than 80% of what you did yesterday. whatever the hell it was, even just one hour. so if yesterday you really studied for like, say 8 hours, today your goal is to study for at least 6 and a half hours. if you can’t keep up with that, make it 70%, or 60%.