This Is My Canvas

1.) Sleep in!  I often make the mistake of thinking I need to pop up at the crack of dawn to get things done on Saturday, when in reality I need to recharge my batteries from grinding all week.  Be good to yourself, and you’ll be more productive in the long run.

2.) Set a time to start studying and stick to it.  If you set your alarm to sleep in until 10:30, give yourself a couple of hours to wake up, get dressed, eat, and drink coffee.  Whenever your set study time rolls around, be ready to rock and roll!

3.) Pack all of the essentials.  The #1 killer of a good study session is not having everything that you need–and I don’t just mean academic materials!  Here’s a little list of what I like to pack:

— Coffee — Water bottle — Enough healthy food to last me the length of time I plan to study (this is hugely important!) — Earbuds — A sweatshirt or jacket (another important one!) — Phone charger + laptop charger — Gum or mints — Ponytail holder + bobby pins — Phone, laptop, textbooks, notebooks, pens, highlighters — Agenda

4.) Choose a study location that is best suited for you.  Everyone is different–for me, I sometimes have a hard time focusing in the library because it’s too quiet/can feel isolating!  For casual studying, I love places like Barnes & Noble or Starbucks because the buzz and bustle is energizing but also white noise I can tune out in the background.  When I need to get serious, the library/a study room is the better option.

5.) Find a good playlist to help you get in the zone.  I personally cannot listen to anything with lyrics, because I find myself focusing more on the words of the song and less on what I’m studying!  There are great playlists on Youtube that are designed to facilitate studying and focus; search for ‘alpha wave studying music.’  I also enjoy listening to seasonal instrumental Pandora stations, like bluegrass in the fall and classical Christmas in the winter.

6.) Turn. Off. Your. Internet.  Sign. Out. Of. All. Apps.  This is the hardest part of studying for me and a terrible habit I am striving to kick.  The impulse to check Facebook or Instagram or Tumblr is almost a reflex for most of us, so I find that turning off my internet on my laptop and signing out of my apps on my phone helps tremendously.  Set small goals for yourself that will exercise and strengthen your self-control like a muscle.  For example, “I will complete two reading assignments and then have 5-10 minutes to check social media before starting my next assignment.”  It sounds pathetic, but compulsively checking social media is a learned behavior that you have to force yourself to unlearn in order to be truly productive.  There’s an app for MacBooks called “SelfControl” that allows you to block certain websites for a set amount of time.  I strongly recommend it!

7.) Set realistic goals and take breaks.  The clock is your friend, not your enemy!  I work best in about 50-minute increments before I need a tiny 5-10 minute break.  During a regular study session, I usually can’t work for more than 3 hours before needing a larger break.  Exercising is always my go-to.  Get outside, breathe some fresh air, and let your body move.  It also helps to set a cap on your studying; I often pick a time I want to be totally finished for the day and focus my energy toward meeting that goal.