Darmabam Studies 🌸

Here is the thing about Memorizing: Some people are naturally really good at it and others have to work harder.  

When I was younger, I was the first one. I memorized all of my music for band and passages of books for presentations.

When I got to university and was asked to memorize long strings of dates and events, my professor introduced us to the “Door/Hallway technique”. If anyone watches Sherlock, this is similar to the memory/mind palace technique, or the roman room method.  

The first step is to close your eyes and imagine you’re in a hallway with a row of doors. For me, I imagine the hallway where I live in my university residence, which is a row of orange doors.  

Now imagine you open up the first door. For this example let’s say you are trying to remember everything that happened last month first: you might visualize a calendar showing February. If you had a test, you might visualize your materials spread out on a desk. If there was a family member’s birthday, you might show a cake with their name on it.

The last step is to continue doing this. That’s it. Add as many rooms as you need. I used this method to memorize the entire canon of art history for a test, from 35 000 BCE to Byzantine Rome. By creating rooms for each period, I was able to visualize what was happening at the same time: it allows me to connect what happens in the Mediterranean to what’s happening in Europe to what’s happening in North Africa. It allowed me to memorize and visualize thousands of years of art and situate them in relation to each other the way a timeline just couldn’t.  

HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE ON THE WEEKENDS

Hi study buddies it is Saturday night and I’m home alone and one thing I hate about being alone is that I really never get anything done. I’m either cooking or I’m in my bed and I just hate doing that because I’m so unproductive. I know a lot of us just hate studying especially during our “down time” and we also have other priorities we need to do during the daytime. So today I’m going over some tips on how you can make your weekend a little but more productive and studious. 

there are 60 hours between the end of Friday after getting out of school and the end of Sunday, substracting let’s say seven hours of sleep every day you have about 39 hours of free time.

That is plenty of time to relax, do all the activities you need to do and also be productive to work on assignments. The first thing you need to do is plan out your weekend and make a schedule.

if you don’t want to read everything, i made a video explaining the same exact productivity tips on my youtube channel {link}

STUDY EARLY + PLAN A SCHEDULE

Weekends are a time for you to relax, but if you can, try to start working early in the morning because you’re going to be more productive and your brain can actually function properly. 

By 12-1 AM at night is the time where the majority of people including me cannot be productive so just try to avoid working during that time period because it’s just not a good time to be trying to memorize math functions and write a week pieced essay. I know that every time I try to study during 1 AM or 2 AM I always end up being so slow at retaining information, it just becomes counter productive. 

Start your assignments on Saturday night or the afternoon and try to finish it during Sunday morning. (recommended)

if you have the motivation to start your homework during Friday obviously do your homework during Friday, that is the best thing to do, but for the majority of us I know we would like to relax for a little bit.

So just try to plan a routine and schedule that matches your weekend

FIND A STUDY PARTNER

So now that you have created a routine or something or you can follow. I’m going to go over some tips on how you can be more focused and concentrated on doing the stuff that you need to do.

find a study buddy or just a friend that you know can keep you company. 

go to your local coffee shop or someone’s house and work there because if you have someone nearby, they can keep you accountable for actually doing your work  (obviously find a friend that will not distract you).

 If you can’t meet them in person Skype them I know a lot of people go on Skype chats with your friends and do homework. I think that is a really good idea I’ve done it a few times myself and I’ve been pretty productive during them. So try to have someone nearby that can keep you on track so you don’t spiral down into a YouTube and Netflix day.

NO MORE DISTRACTIONS

Another thing you can do is actually download some applications  that can keep you off sites like Netflix, YouTube, and Facebook.

I talked about this in my how to be productive after school video and basically just download this app called “self control” {link}

what it does is that a blocks you from using sites that you would normally get distracted on.

So you can and manually put in sites like Facebook.com and Netflix.com The app will block you from using it for certain amount of time that you put in, so usually when I’m studying I block myself from using YouTube for about 30 minutes to an hour limit.

FIND A STUDY SPACE

Experiment with where you’re studying because I know I cannot concentrate for my life In my bedroom.

The majority of the times where I’m the most productive is in my kitchen

experiment with where you’re studying and find out if you were the most productive in your bedroom or if you’re the most productive sitting on a couch or on a dining table.

TO-DO LIST

My fourth tip is to have a to-do list of all the things you need to do.

 having a written down to do list is really important because sometimes you just forget about tasks and you might end up not doing some of them.

having a physical piece of paper saying that you need to do all these things by the end of it this day will help you to keep you on track.

LISTEN TO MUSIC (or not, it depends)

Another thing you can do is actually play some music

music helps a lot of people, including me, study more efficiently because it blocks out all the distractions from the outside world and keeps you focused inside your little bubble so you can work on your assignments

note that music isn’t always the best thing to listen to while studying especially for classes like history or english but I do really recommend it if you’re doing some math problems because it can be quite relaxing

And if you don’t know what to listen to I really recommend checking out my study playlist which is study & chill  {link}

study session playlist - instrumental music, piano solos, soundtracks from movies {link}

Let’s face it- even the most motivated and disciplined students can’t study for a couple of hours straight- we all need to rest. Taking a break  from studying every now and then will improve your focus and attention. Below are some of our ideas what to do during study breaks. We divided them into categories depending on the length of  your break. Feel free to try them out to later get back to your books refreshed and motivated!

5-10 minutes

Get some fresh air (either go outside, or simply stand up and go to the nearest window- don’t focus on anything and just breathe)

Leave your room/desk and go for a little walk

Throw yourself a little dance party (Cristina and Meredith did it and trust us, it works- put on some energising music and dace for a song or two)

Stand up and stretch!

10-20 minutes

Make yourself a proper, healthy snack (cut an apple into slices and put peanut butter on every slice or make yourself a healthy smoothie)

Watch a TedTalk on a completely unrelated topic (it will both relax you and still keep your brain working)

Do a little yoga (there are multiple mini-routines on youtube)

Browse the #studyblr tag (or maybe post your own photo with it!)

Take a quick shower (if you have a real study marathon ahead of you, a shower break can be a great way to get energised)

20-40 minutes

Call a friend

Clean your room (sounds pretty boring, but you’ll feel refreshed and super-productive once you’re done- and you won’t have to do this later!)

Take a nap (but really, try not to make it longer than 40 minutes)

Watch ONE episode of Friends (nothing better than a good laugh, right?)

 40-60 minutes

Workout (go for a 30-minute run or find a workout video on youtube- you’ll end up energised and full of endorphins, which will help you to keep going)

Try a new recipe and make yourself dinner for later

Read a chapter of a book you’re currently reading (if you’re not reading any- start a book)

Paint your nails. Doesn’t matter if you’re good at it or not. It’s a quiet, calming, easy activity that takes up the perfect amount of time for a break and still requires some amount of focus. Put on a Youtube video or Netflix while you do it.

Watch a John Oliver video. If you don’t know him, he’s a comedian and host of Last Week Tonight on HBO. His pieces are hilarious, informative, and all around 15-20 minutes. 

Change the sheets on your bed. Changing your sheets often is good for your skin, still technically productive, and who doesn’t love snuggling up in a fresh bed after a long day? 

While you’re at it, clean your space. It’ll get you on your feet and again, still technically being productive. 

Make yourself something to drink. I hate to be that blogger™ but  Stay hydrated, loves! No energy drinks, if you need something more exciting. We are adults in this household, we get our caffeine like adults. Always go tea or coffee. 

Take a nap. There are legends that if you drink a coffee before you take a nap, the caffeine will wake you up naturally a little bit later and you’ll feel super energized. That sounds fake but idk knock yourselves out. 

Put on an RIP Vine compilation and dissociate for a bit. I’m not kidding.

Take a shower. Or just stand there under the hot water a bit. You’ll feel like a new being. 

Know that you are a boss

Seriously 

Masterpost I: DESIGN Resources* ⎯⎯ by Nicole*** of CMPSBLS

i get a lot of asks/messages about graphic design so heres a rec list!
 ***note: i am not a graphic designer so these are just recs!（○＾▽＾○） *- some sites may have products you have to pay for please look carefully!
 ⟡ - personal faves! || © - sources

GRAPHIC DESIGN:

is art with a purpose. It involves a creative and systematic plan to solve a problem or achieve certain objectives, with the use of images, symbols or even words. ©

how to speak designer: terms (v useful) (*´∇｀*)

TYPOGRAPHY

it is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable, and appealing when displayed. ©  

lets talk more about my bf typography ♥（ﾉ´∀`）

90% of design is typography (infographic)

IMITATION VS. INSPIRATION

as we go through these websites note that graphic designers work hard  but so pls take care of the artists (he)art please!

simply put: don’t plagiarize dont copy any art ever in the end you’re going to regret it. （；へ：）

DESIGN RULES GUIDELINES there are no rules in art be freE!

6 principles of design + principles of design!

20 design principles ⟡⟡  fav! the inforgraphic is so wOW!

10 commandments of design

effective visual communications ⟡

iOS cheat sheet dimensions + file formats

WEBSITES for inspiration/resources

BEHANCE ⟡⟡⟡ ⎯⎯ for layout ins/fonts

DRIBBLE ⟡ ⎯⎯ for inspiration

FROM UP NORTH ⎯⎯ for lettering/typography ins

THEDSGNBLOG ⟡ ⎯⎯ for everythigN

CREATIVEBLOQ ⎯⎯ for advice/articles!

CREATIVE MARKET ⟡ ⎯⎯ for resources/psds

PIXEL BUDDHA  ⎯⎯ for resources

ultimate list

go to places for inspo (i feel alive bc these r great!)

2500 resources omfg…i M ALIVE I am fiLLED with energy

TUMBLR BLOGS for advice/inspiration ++

@goodtypography

@behance

@studioblrcollective - art studyblrs!! lIEK?? omg so useful

TUMBLR POSTS of advice/info & everythign!

@educatier‘s graphic design mps! (all her mps tho!! A+++)

answers by @genspen! (one) (two)

masterposts abt graphic design by @rorystudies

FONTS how to use them & where to get them!

dafont ⎯⎯ rly easy to dl fonts here!

googlefonts ⎯⎯ another rly common site but NICE!

1001 fonts

freebiesbug ⎯⎯ also for icons/mockups!!! fav

behance ⎯⎯ i can depend my life on this sItE

fontsource

100 best free fonts

18 rules, another pin, top 5 rules

you need a font? (infographic)

COLORS & palettes /throws flowers everywhere/

coolors

computerhope

colourlovers

prettycolors

colordot

the art of color coordination (infographic)

color psychology

PICTURES free stock photos backgrounds & gradients!

free stock photos

 mp by pistachi-o , neonbikethemes

PLUS stuff fr Nicole

my design & art board on Pinterest

info abt my printables | my printables tag

I was going to post images with each listing, but 100 pictures on one Tumblr post was quite a task. So, if you’d like to see examples of any of these, I am adding them to my Pinterest Board which can be found [here].

1. Books To Read- Color them in as you go! Or make a fun list of them and check them off one at a time. 

2. All About Me- Make doodles of things you love, add quotes, draw yourself!

3. Future Log- There are so many ways to make this page. Please do some research to see which would work best for you

4. Movies To Watch- Pretty self-explanatory, but there are many ways to do this page too

5. Skills To Learn- Jot down all the things you want to learn

6. Important Numbers and Addresses- In case of emergency of course. Also, be careful what you put in this part for your own privacy reasons

7. Year In Pixels- Honestly, one of my favorite pages

8. Fonts, Banners, and Frame Ideas- For practice and to choose from when you are having trouble being creative

9. Snail Mail Log- Keeping a list of people who you want to send letters to

10. Savings Tracker- It’s always fun to see how much you have saved up

11. TV Series Tracker- Keep track of all the shows you still need to binge

12. Monthly Challenges- I know I haven’t been helpful with this lately, but you can always search for challenges on my page

13. Music Playlists- A list of songs that describe you, your goals, things you love, etc. 

14. Timeline of Your Life- This was hard for me to make. My life isn’t all that exciting

15. Inspiration Page- Fill it with quotes, pictures, memories, etc. 

16. Self-Care List/Ideas- I posted many lists like this on my Pinterest if you want more ideas

17. Monthly/Yearly Memories- Look back on all the good and bad things that you’ve gotten over and endured. 

18. Sleep Tracker- See how many hours you get each night. This also works well when paired with number 7. 

19. Me Time Log- Keep track of how many hours you spend with yourself. We all need to learn to love on ourselves a little more. 

20. Tiny Adventures- Go out of your comfort zone and go on some tiny adventures like reading in public, talking to a stranger, giving people compliments, etc. 

21. Word Tracker- For those who are writers who like to procrastinate

22. Daily To-Do List- This can be done on your weekly pages or you can make a page specifically for daily sticky notes. 

23. Blog Post Ideas- Got an idea, but you’re not at your computer or have what you need for your post? WRITE IT DOWN

24. Fitness Log- Keep track of how much and when you work out or stretch or do yoga or and of those fun physical activities. 

25. Food Log- If you’re trying to lose weight or just get healthy or just want to track your food intake for fun, this is for you! 

26. Meal Prep- I love how cute and helpful these pages can be. 

27. Gift Lists- Ever see something and say to yourself, “Man, ____ would really like that”? Keep a list of things people would like so that you don’t worry about it when it comes to holiday time or birthdays. 

28. Grocery Lists- Every time I go shopping, I forget something because I didn’t write it down. 

29. Goals- Oh, yes! It’s 2018. We need some goals. Monthly, weekly, daily, YEARLY. Just get some goals and aim for them. 

30. Recipes To Try- I see nice recipes all the time on Facebook, but I never think about them again after I keep scrolling. It’s bad. 

31. Daily Affirmations- Give yourself some compliments and some emotional support

32. Business Plan- Make yourself a good businesswoman or businessman or businessperson in 2018. You got this. 

33. Birthdays- Keep track of all those important people in your life that need to be remembered on their special day. 

34. Work Hour Log- Sometimes we don’t keep track of all the things we get paid for. Actual work, babysitting, photography jobs, writing jobs, pet sitting, house sitting, etc. 

35. Wishlists- Not so you can #treatyourself, but so that you can make note of things you really want. 

36. Gratitude Log- It’s always good to have a moment of gratitude with yourself. Make it a monthly challenge if you need to!

37. Quotes- Your own, friend quotes, celebrity quotes, author quotes, and lyrics. 

38. Illustrations and Doodles- Doodling helps you keep your mind fresh and ready to react quickly to situations. 

39. Jokes- Your own, ones you heard, ones you read, etc. 

40. New Discoveries and Interesting Facts- Find a new interesting fact? How about that lemonade is basically Sprite in almost any other country than America?

41. Travel Log- Places you want to go! There are so many ways to do this, so look up different versions before starting!

42. Family and Friend Favorites- Their favorite colors, animals, stores, places, hobbies, etc. 

43. DIY Projects- Things you want to try out someday. 

44. Chore List- Keep track of when you do your chores so that your house doesn’t become disgusting or dusty. 

45. Bucketlist- What do you want to do before graduation, moving out, marriage, having kids, etc. 

46. Story Ideas- I always come up with story ideas and then when I sit down to write them, I blank. 

47. Period Log- For people with periods that have many PMS symptoms or even PMDD symptoms. This is a great way to show your doctor all of the things you go through each cycle. 

48. Words That Make You Happy- Silly words, ugly words, words that are fun to say, etc. 

49. Things That Make You Happy- People, places, and things. 

50. Monthly Habits- Water intake, cleaning, bathing, exercising, reading, etc. 

51. Story Titles- This can be titles for books, short stories, poems, or just nice sounding titles for anything. 

52. Made Up Words- I make myself laugh with all the words I make up on the daily. 

53. Follower Counter- This page keeps me inspired to keep doing what I love. 

54. Index- Always have an index for easy access to the pages you want to find. 

55. Icons- Sometimes we need to have icons to make our pages pretty. Sometimes we make too many icons and never use them (me). 

56. Packing List- For those who travel often or stay at friends’ houses more than our own, it’s good not to forget the things we need. 

57. Morning Routines- Our bodies need routines for mornings to get us ready for the day. 

58. Nightly Routines- Our bodies need routines for nights to prepare us for sleep. (see what I did there?)

59. Weight Tracker- If you’re struggling with your weight, keep a chart tracker or add your daily weight to your calendar. 

60. Pen Test Page- If you get new pens, highlighters, or markers, its best to test them out before using them. 

61. Brain Dump- Sometimes we just need to jot down ideas or thoughts. It’s okay if they don’t make sense. 

62. Spending Log- Keep track of what you spend because you might need that someday. 

63. Water Tracker- HYDRATE

64. Habit Tracker Reward System- This is something I came up with myself, so if you have questions, message me!

65. Name Lists (For Babies and Stories)- Keep a list of cool names for characters or even future babies. 

66. Looking Forward To…- Birthdays, holidays, raises, pay days, vacations, etc. 

67. Compliment Lists- Make a list of your go-to compliments, your favorite ones people have given you, etc. 

68. Level 10 Life- Please look up what this is before jumping into it!

69. Pet Care Log- Keep track of how much you do with your pets. Walks, play time, park time, play dates, baths, etc. 

70. Achievements- What have you done that you are proud of?

71. Weekly Log- Keep track of your week. This is one of the most used pages in any bullet journal honestly. 

72. Monthly Log- Another overly used page in any bullet journal. Very important. 

73. Daily Log- I don’t do this too often, but I know it helps others who really need a whole page for each day. 

74. Bill Tracker- This was fun to make and something I will be using now

75. Income Tracker- How much and how frequently do you get paid?

76. Deadline Page- Prepare yourself for things that you need to get done. Do not procrastinate this year!

77. Vocabulary Practice- Sometimes we just need to educate ourselves on our own terms. (and with our own terms. Anyone? Anyone?)

78. Doctor Appointment Log- If you don’t want to add them to your calendar or they are too far out to add to the calendar you’re using. 

79. Username and Password List- Be careful with this page. If someone finds your bullet journal, this could be bad. 

80. Monthly Cover Page- These are so cute! I just started doing them, but they make my journal so artsy and pretty. 

81. Dream Log- This is a fun one. Track your dreams. This would be good to line up with how many hours you get as well. 

82. Favorites List- What are YOUR favorites? Movies, snacks, drinks, subjects, people, colors, animals, etc. 

83. Habits To Break- Do you bite your nails? Quote The Office too much? Throw clothes into piles on your floor? STOP THAT. 

84. Small Things That Matter- Puppies, getting up in the morning, pennies, smiling at yourself, laughter, etc. Remind yourself that there is good in the world. 

85. Things To Sell- Get rid of the things you don’t need. Or make things to sell! Be prosperous this year. 

86. School Schedule- High school and college students really need this. Even teachers do too. Make a chart of your classes, room numbers, buildings, and times.

87. House Projects- Things that need fixing or improvements around the house. 

88. Day Trip Ideas- Fun places to go when you have the time. 

89. Things I Am Bad At- It’s okay to admit our shortcomings and work on them. Or just accept them for what they are. 

90. Resolutions- YES! Make yourself this better this year. Be the best you. 

91. Crochet/Knit Log- When making a blanket, small items, or just keeping track of your improvements in your skill. 

92. Future Planning- Make a list of the things you want in your future and how you plan on getting them. 

93. Quirk List- Ever notice you do small little weird things? Make a list to appreciate who you are. 

94. Who Borrowed What- Sometimes people borrow things and you forget until you need it again. By then, they threw it out or gave it to someone else. 

95. Six Word Stories- Get those creative juices pumping. 

96. Love Yourself- Write down all the things you love about yourself. Appreciate yourself. 

97. Paying It Back- Honestly, a good page to have, but it doesn’t get much attention from me. 

98. Childhood Dreams- We should always try to look back on what we thought we wanted

99. Good Deed Ideas- Ever think “wow, wouldn’t it be great if I could _____”?

december 30, 2017 - studyblr gif aesthetics

“when you’re in university or college, nobody is gonna babysit you. there’s no bell that goes off when it’s class time. there’s no attendance. you can skip all the classes if you want to. you really just have to take everything into your own hands and make the most of your experience…everything you need to succeed is right in front of you.” —kassie isabelle

featuring clips from jordan clark, lavendaire, krist & yu, rowena tsai, and tbhstudying!

Paint your nails. Doesn’t matter if you’re good at it or not. It’s a quiet, calming, easy activity that takes up the perfect amount of time for a break and still requires some amount of focus. Put on a Youtube video or Netflix while you do it.

Watch a John Oliver video. If you don’t know him, he’s a comedian and host of Last Week Tonight on HBO. His pieces are hilarious, informative, and all around 15-20 minutes. 

Change the sheets on your bed. Changing your sheets often is good for your skin, still technically productive, and who doesn’t love snuggling up in a fresh bed after a long day? 

While you’re at it, clean your space. It’ll get you on your feet and again, still technically being productive. 

Make yourself something to drink. I hate to be that blogger™ but  Stay hydrated, loves! No energy drinks, if you need something more exciting. We are adults in this household, we get our caffeine like adults. Always go tea or coffee. 

Take a nap. There are legends that if you drink a coffee before you take a nap, the caffeine will wake you up naturally a little bit later and you’ll feel super energized. That sounds fake but idk knock yourselves out. 

Put on an RIP Vine compilation and dissociate for a bit. I’m not kidding.

Take a shower. Or just stand there under the hot water a bit. You’ll feel like a new being. 

Know that you are a boss

Seriously 

42 Practical Ways To Improve Yourself

Books are concentrated sources of wisdom. The more books you read, the more wisdom you expose yourself to. What are some books you can start reading to enrich yourself? Some books I’ve read and found useful are Think and Grow Rich, Who Moved My Cheese, 7 Habits, The Science of Getting Rich and Living the 80/20 Way. I’ve heard positive reviews for The Tipping Point, Outliers and The Difference Maker, so I’ll be checking them out soon.

Learn a new language.As a Singaporean Chinese, my main languages are English, Mandarin and Hokkien (a Chinese dialect). Out of interest, I took up language courses in the past few years such as Japanese and Bahasa Indonesian. I realized learning a language is a whole new skill altogether and the process of acquainting with a new language and culture is a totally a mind-opening experience.

Pick up a new hobby. Beyond just your usual favorite hobbies, is there something new you can pick up? Any new sport you can learn? Examples are fencing, golf, rock climbing, football, canoeing, or ice skating. Your new hobby can also be a recreational hobby. For example, pottery, Italian cooking, dancing, wine appreciation, web design, etc.  Learning something new requires you to stretch yourself in different aspects, whether physically, mentally or emotionally.

Take up a new course. Is there any new course you can join? Courses are a great way to gain new knowledge and skills. It doesn’t have to be a long-term course – seminars or workshops serve their purpose too. I’ve been to a few workshops and they have helped me gain new insights which I had not considered before.

Create an inspirational room. Your environment sets the mood and tone for you. If you are living in an inspirational environment, you are going to be inspired every day. In the past, I didn’t like my room at all because I thought it was messy and dull. A few years ago, I decided this was the end of it – I started on a “Mega Room Revamp” project and overhauled my room. The end result? A room I totally relish being in and inspires me to be at my peak every day.

Overcome your fears. All of us have fears. Fear of uncertainty, fear of public speaking, fear of risk… All our fears  keep us in the same position and prevent us from growing. Recognize that your fears reflect areas where you can grow. I always think of fears as the compass for growth. If I have a fear about something, it represents something I’ve yet to address, and addressing it helps me to grow.

Level up your skills. If you have played video games before especially RPGs, you’ll know the concept of leveling up – gaining experience so you can be better and stronger. As a blogger, I’m constantly leveling up my writing skills. As a speaker, I’m constantly leveling up my public engagement abilities. What skills can you level up?

Wake up early. Waking up early (say, 5-6am) has been acknowledged by many (Anthony Robbins, Robin Sharma, among other self-help gurus) to improve your productivity and your quality of life. I feel it’s because when you wake up early, your mindset is already set to continue the momentum and proactively live out the day. Seth recently wrote a waking up early series which you should check out to help cultivate this habit.

Have a weekly exercise routine. A better you starts with being in better physical shape. I personally make it a point to jog at least 3 times a week, at least 30 minutes each time. You may want to mix it up with jogging, gym lessons and swimming for variation.

Start your life handbook. A life handbook is an idea I started 3 years ago. Basically, it’s a book which contains the essentials on how you can live your life to the fullest, such as your purpose, your values and goals. Sort of like your manual for your life. I started my life handbook since 2007 and it’s been a crucial enabler in my progress.

Write a letter to your future self. What do you see yourself as 5 years from now? Will you be the same? Different?  What kind of person will you be? Write a letter to your future self – 1 year from now will be a good start – and seal it. Make a date in your calendar to open it 1 year from now. Then start working to become the person you want to open that letter.

Get out of your comfort zone. Real growth comes with hard work and sweat. Being too comfortable doesn’t help us grow – it makes us stagnate. What is your comfort zone? Do you stay in most of the time? Do you keep to your own space when out with other people? Shake your routine up. Do something different. By exposing yourself to a new context, you’re literally growing as you learn to act in new circumstances.

Put someone up to a challenge. Competition is one of the best ways to grow. Set a challenge (weight loss, exercise, financial challenge, etc) and compete with an interested friend to see who achieves the target first. Through the process, both of you will gain more than if you were to set off on the target alone.

Identify your blind spots. Scientifically, blind spots refer to areas our eyes are not capable of seeing. In personal development terms, blind spots are things about ourselves we are unaware of. Discovering our blind spots help us discover our areas of improvement. One exercise I use to discover my blind spots is to identify all the things/events/people that trigger me in a day – trigger meaning making me feel annoyed/weird/affected. These represent my blind spots. It’s always fun to do the exercise because I discover new things about myself, even if I may already think I know my own blind spots (but then they wouldn’t be blind spots would they?). After that, I work on steps to address them.

Ask for feedback. As much as we try to improve, we will always have blind spots. Asking for feedback gives us an additional perspective. Some people to approach will be friends, family, colleagues, boss, or even acquaintances, since they will have no preset bias and can give their feedback objectively.

Stay focused with to-do lists. I start my day with a list of tasks I want to complete and this helps make me stay focused. In comparison, the days when I don’t do this end up being extremely unproductive. For example, part of my to-do list for today is to write a guest post atLifeHack.Org, and this is why I’m writing this now! Since my work requires me to use my computer all the time, I use Free Sticky Notes to manage my to-do lists. It’s really simple to use and it’s a freeware, so I recommend you check it out.

Set Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs). I’m a big fan of setting BHAGs. BHAGs stretch you beyond your normal capacity since they are big and audacious – you wouldn’t think of attempting them normally. What are BHAGs you can embark on, which you’ll feel absolutely on top of the world once you complete them? Set them and start working on them.

Acknowledge your flaws. Everyone has flaws. What’s most important is to understand them, acknowledge them, and address them. What do you think are your flaws? What are the flaws you can work on now? How do you want to address them?

Get into action. The best way to learn and improve is to take action. What is something you have been meaning to do? How can you take action on it immediately? Waiting doesn’t get anything done. Taking action gives you immediate results to learn from.

Learn from people who inspire you. Think about people you admire. People who inspire you. These people reflect certain qualities you want to have for yourself too. What are the qualities in them you want to have for yourself? How can you acquire these qualities?

Quit a bad habit. Are there any bad habits you can lose? Oversleeping? Not exercising? Being late? Slouching? Nail biting? Smoking? Here’s some help on how you can quit a bad habit.

Cultivate a new habit. Some good new habits to cultivate include reading books (#1), waking up early (#8), exercising (#9), reading a new personal development article a day (#40) and meditating. Is there any other new habit you can cultivate to improve yourself?

Avoid negative people. As Jim Rohn says, “You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with”. Wherever we go, there are bound to be negative people. Don’t spend too much of your time around them if you feel they drag you down.

Learn to deal with difficult people. There are times when there are difficult people you can’t avoid, such as at your workplace, or when the person is part of your inner circle of contacts. Learn how to deal with them. These people management skills will go a long way in working with people in the future.

Learn from your friends. Everyone has amazing qualities in them. It’s up to how we want to tap into them. With all the friends who surround you, they are going to have things you can learn from. Try thinking of a good friend right now. Think about just one quality they have which you want to adopt. How can you learn from them and adopt this skill for yourself? Speak to them if you need to – for sure, they will be more than happy to help!

Start a journal. Journaling is a great way to gain better self-awareness. It’s a self-reflection process. As you write, clarify your thought process and read what you wrote from a third person’s perspective, you gain more insights about yourself. Your journal can be private or an online blog. I use my personal development blog as a personal journal too and I’ve learned a lot about myself through the past year of blogging.

Start a blog about personal development. To help others grow, you need to first be walking the talk. There are expectations of you, both from yourself and from others, which you have to uphold. I run The Personal Excellence Blog, where I share my personal journey and insights on how to live a better life. Readers look toward my articles to improve themselves, which enforces to me that I need to keep improving, for myself and for the people I’m reaching out to.

Get a mentor or coach. There’s no faster way to improve than to have someone work with you on your goals. Many of my clients approach me to coach them in their goals and they achieve significantly more results than if they had worked alone.

Reduce the time you spend on chat programs. I realized having chat programs open at default result in a lot of wasted time. This time can be much better spent on other activities. The days when I don’t get on chat, I get a lot more done. I usually disable the auto start-up option in the chat programs and launch them when I do want to chat and really have the time for it.

Learn chess (or any strategy game). I found chess is a terrific game to learn strategy and hone your brainpower. Not only do you have fun, you also get to exercise your analytical skills. You can also learn strategy from other board games or computer games, such as Othello, Chinese Chess, WarCraft, and so on.

Stop watching TV. I’ve not been watching TV for pretty much 4 years and it’s been a very liberating experience. I realized most of the programs and advertisements on mainstream TV are usually of a lower consciousness and not very empowering. In return, the time I’ve freed up from not watching TV is now constructively used for other purposes, such as connecting with close friends, doing work I enjoy, exercising, etc.

Start a 30-day challenge. Set a goal and give yourself 30 days to achieve this. Your goal can be to stick with a new habit or something you’ve always wanted to do but have not. 30 days is just enough time to strategize, plan, get into action, review and nail the goal.

Meditate. Meditation helps to calm you and be more conscious. I also realized that during the nights when I meditate (before I sleep), I need lesser sleep. The clutter clearing process is very liberating.

Join Toastmasters (Learn public speaking). Interestingly, public speaking is the #1 fear in the world, with #2 being death. After I started public speaking as a personal development speaker/trainer, I’ve learned a lot about how to communicate better, present myself and engage people. Toastmasters is an international organization that trains people in public speaking. Check out the Toastmaster clubs nearest to you here.

Befriend top people in their fields. These people have achieved their results because they have the right attitudes, skill sets and know-how. How better to learn than from the people who have been there and done that? Gain new insights from them on how you can improve and achieve the same results for yourself.

Let go of the past. Is there any grievance or unhappiness from the past which you have been holding on? If so, it’s time to let it go. Holding on to them prevents you from moving on and becoming a better person. Break away from the past, forgive yourself, and move on. Just recently, I finally moved on from a past heartbreak of 5 years ago. The effect was liberating and very empowering, and I have never been happier.

Start a business venture. Is there anything you have an interest in? Why not turn it into a venture and make money while learning at the same time? Starting a new venture requires you to be learn business management skills, develop business acumen and have a competitive edge. The process of starting and developing my personal development business has equipped me with many skills, such as self-discipline, leadership, organization and management.

Show kindness to people around you. You can never be too kind to someone. In fact, most of us don’t show enough kindness to people around us. Being kind helps us to cultivate other qualities such as compassion, patience, and love. As you get back to your day after reading this article later on, start exuding more kindness to the people around you, and see how they react. Not only that, notice how you feel as you behave kindly to others. Chances are, you will feel even better than yourself.

Reach out to the people who hate you. If you ever stand for something, you are going to get haters. It’s easy to hate the people who hate us. It’s much more challenging to love them back. Being able to forgive, let go and show love to these people requires magnanimity and an open heart. Is there anyone who dislikes or hates you in your life? If so, reach out to them. Show them love. Seek a resolution and get closure on past grievances. Even if they refuses to reciprocate, love them all the same. It’s much more liberating than to hate them back.

Take a break. Have you been working too hard? Self-improvement is also about recognizing our need to take a break to walk the longer mile ahead. You can’t be driving a car if it has no petrol. Take some time off for yourself every week. Relax, rejuvenate and charge yourself up for what’s up ahead.

Read at least 1 personal development article a day. Some of my readers make it a point to read at least one personal development article every day, which I think is a great habit. There are many terrific personal development blogs out there, some of which you can check here.

Commit to your personal growth. I can be writing list articles with 10 ways, 25 ways, 42 ways or even 1,000 ways to improve yourself, but if you’ve no intention to commit to your personal growth, it doesn’t matter what I write. Nothing is going to get through. We are responsible for our personal growth – not anyone else. Not your mom, your dad, your friend, me or LifeHack. Make the decision to commit to your personal growth and embrace yourself to a life-long journey of growth and change. Kick off your growth by picking a few of the steps above and working on them. The results may not be immediate, but I promise you that as long as you keep to it, you’ll start seeing positive changes in yourself and your life.

Hello You!

Wherever you are in this world, I just wanted to wish you guys Happy Holidays! I know I haven’t updated much, and given that I finished my fall semester at uni, it’s fair that I share what I have learned in this short time (when people say time flies fast during college, it’s really true!). I hope that in this post, I’d be able to bridge the gap between high school and college.. in the sense that I’d be able to give the future Class of 2022 and so forth, an idea what to expect in their first semester. These advice are truly generated from my own experience and therefore may not work for everyone, but I hope you guys will find some of it helpful.

Please feel free to message me any questions or concerns you have about college or if you just wanna chat :)

Academics

1. Take good notes.. in a way that helps YOU learn

While the studyblr aesthetics found here on tumblr is very pleasing and artsy and practically what we want our notes to look like, please don’t get carried away and focus entirely on taking beautiful notes. The purpose of notes is so that you  can own the information thrown at you like the boss that you are.

That being said, I don’t want to discourage the few who actually benefit from taking artsy notes. I also am not encouraging people to entirely throw aesthetics down the drain. There is a happy medium that works but is different for all of us. We just have to find it.

Click here if you want to see how a very unartsy note taker, takes her notes!

2. Utilize your campus resources!

I’m assuming you have a purpose / reason for attending college. In a way, college is a resource in helping you achieve your career goals. USE IT! I mean, you and your parents are spending a hella ton of money for it. Please don’t let it go to waste. Make the most out of it!

My most used campus resource was the free tutoring services. Usually ran by the class’ TAs, they had tutoring sessions two or three times per week. Ask your academic advisors, your professors, and even your peers about any tutoring services your school offers!

3. Don’t be afraid to seek your professors for help

If you are anything like me, a shy shelled up introvert, this is probably the most dreadful thing you’ll ever read. Professors. As scary as they seem, they are here to help you. Some care very deeply about their students’ success and are willing to talk just about anything, ranging from content you don’t understand to grades. Like there are good and bad people in the world, you will meet good and bad professors. I promise that you will meet more good professors than bad, so it’s worth facing your fears and seek the help when you need it!

4. Sometimes study groups aren’t worth the time

This is kind of an iffy one. There are all sorts of factors that can contribute to creating a study group. In my experience, study groups were a huge waste of my time. Lots of people who showed up mainly wanted to just hang out rather than study, and even if people were present to study, I just wasn’t the person to learn with a group of people. I found out in a disappointing way that I was far better off studying on my own, and then participating in my school’s tutoring sessions.

However, I know there are people who learn by engaging in conversations. So if study groups are your thing. Here’s a pro tip: Study the material on your own first and then attend the study group session to reinforce the material you learned.

P.S. If you find yourself teaching the people in your study group more than learning new information don’t be disheartened. This is a good sign. You have taught yourself the material well enough to the point you understand important concepts!

Personal

1. In the midst of stress and finals, please don’t neglect your health!

This is sooo important! I have learned this the hard way. While freshman fifteen is a very real thing, so is forgetting to eat! Sometimes, I found myself not wanting to eat because I was so afraid of wasting too much time when I could be studying for a test, but I beg you that taking care of your body is never time being wasted!

One thing I found helpful to keep myself in check was setting reminders to take my vitamins and drink some water.

In order to succeed in anything, you gotta start with a healthy body first!

2. Save some time for yourself

With the workload being thrown at you, it is super easy to lose yourself. This is something I learned more in high school than in college, but I wanted to share this with you guys here.

To keep the story short, I have found that I saved so much more time with my studies and was generally happier when I spent some time during the day checking in and recharging with myself then when I burnt myself out studying all night. Even if I got the grades by focusing only on my studies, I often found myself depressed and extremely tired.

At the end of the day, that one or several low grades you got in some test(s) don’t really matter. We are all human. Take the time to cultivate your hobbies, go hang out with friends, and just be that quirky college kid you are. You only get to be young for a short time in your life so take it.

Career

The whole point of college is so that you get trained to get a job, right? And while many would say that college freshman is too early to start thinking about a career.. well maybe they are right, but wouldn’t you want to get a head start and be better prepared?

1. Look into extracurriculars.. specifically for your major

This is extremely easy. You are already looking for clubs and organizations to join on campus, why not just choose one related to your major? Often, you will meet several upperclassmen who already have connections and experience. These are the people you want to hang out with a lot. Plus, the club itself is an experience that will impact your career!

Since I did just start college, I haven’t really looked deeply into career related stuff yet… but I have started, and will update for my spring semester masterpost!

Have a blessed holiday break!

a growth mindset | 17.11.2017

special thanks to @jasperstudies and miss piggott for being so positive while I was struggling with the A2 exams. now that those are over, it’s time to give back!

(here are some study tips straight from my psych notes)

1. interest: the brain prioritizes by meaning, value, and relevance so u remember things better if ur interested

find a study partner

do extra practice or research

teach it to someone else (this works so well!)

2. intent: be actively paying attention. very little learning actually takes place without attention

use a concentration check sheet (every time u get distracted, put a check on ur sheet. this is supposed to program ur mind to pay attention)

while u read, talk back to the author

ask questions during lectures (this is scary ik!! but do it!)

3. basic background: make connections to what u already know

preview and skim the material before u read it. or google it!

write out a list of vocab words before a lecture and leave some spaces between them to fill in during the lecture

read ahead of lectures

watch crashcourse tbh

4. selectivity: start by studying whats important

look for bolded words, graphics, pictures, chapter review questions in ur readings

listen for verbal clues like emphasis and repetition during lectures

make urself a study guide as u read and write down questions for urself to answer later as review (kinda like cornell notes)

5. meaningful organization: u can learn/rmr better if u group ideas into diff categories

apply vocab words to ur life

make flashcards and sort them (try not to have more than seven items in one category!)

use mnemonics

6. recitation: saying ideas aloud in ur own words strengthens synaptic connections! when u say something aloud u r forcing urself to pay attention

after u read, ask urself questions

talk abt what u learned w/ classmates outside of class

again, teach someone else

7. visualization: ur brain’s quickest and longest-lasting response is to images

convert info into a chart or graph

draw it out

make a mental video of a process

look at picture/video examples

8. association: memory is increased when facts are consciously associated w something u already know. memory = making neural connections

ask urself: is this something i already know?

9. consolidation: give ur brain some time to establish a neural pathway

make a list of what u remember from class

review notes at the end of the day, every day

stop after reading each prg to write a question in ur notes

make ur own practice quiz

10. distributed practice: we all know cramming doesnt work but we do it anyway! but yeah short and frequent study sections work better

make a daily/weekly study schedule

create a time budget/time tracker (track everything ur doing for a week and see how u can be more efficient w/ the time u waste)

divide the reading/vocab by the number of days before an exam and do a little bit each day (u can use sticky notes to divide ur reading)

other tips:

stop stressing! this sounds stupid and it isnt going to be easy, but anxiety causes u to lose focus. try ur best to think positively. sleep a lot. minimize ur caffeine intake. take a walk maybe

when u need to remember something, look upward or close ur eyes (when ur eyes are open ur using visual parts of ur brain that u might not need to be using)

find a rival! (like the person right above u in class rank) secretly compete w/ them (envy can improve mental persistence bc it makes u focus more intensely) but dont overdo it! 

walking and sleeping build memory storage in ur brain

eat flavonoids! (grapes, berries, tea leaves, cocoa beans make neurons in the brain more capable of forming new memories + increase blood flow to the brain)

hi everyone!! recently i read marie kondo’s book the life changing magic of tidying and i think there’s a few core messages that she gives which are sagely!  

in today’s studyblr community, where some feel left out because they don’t have the studyblr “aesthetic”, and sometimes really expensive stationery, behold, a 28-day challenge which embodies minimalism!

p.s. the challenge doesn’t have to be done on consecutive days (since i know it’s stressful for some people). minimalism is not about getting rid of your treasured possessions, but about decluttering and remembering the most important things in life which bring you happiness!

Week 1

post a pic/write about any “clutter” you have in your life, whether that be physical clutter in your study spaces, mental or emotional clutter

post a picture of your study essentials (< 5 items!)

write about something that sparks joy! it doesn’t have to be study related! 

do a declutter of your study equipment - how many of those pilot juice pens and fineliners do you really need?

post anything you like but write about what motivates you to study at the end of the day, when you’re bone tired, and it’s just you and the textbook

write about a moment where you felt overwhelmed with too many things and how you overcame it

post a picture of your newly minimalist study space

Week 2

post a picture of your minimalist bullet journal spread for the new week!

write about something/someone that allows you to pursue your education and your dreams i.e. something that you’re grateful for

post a picture of some minimalist doodles/line art you’ve drawn

if you had to describe your day with only emojis?

post a pic and write about simple pleasures: your secret cafe study space? your favourite cuppa? that new book smell? the feeling when you crack out the first sentence of a new page of study notes? be creative!

your favourite minimalist quote

post a pic of your favourite book! if you learnt a (minimalist) lesson from it then share that as well!

Week 3

post a picture of some minimalist study notes you have

advice you’ve received which made you look back at the important things in life

snapchat time filter your day - take 4 pics which encapsulate what you were doing throughout the day

post a minimalist picture of study notes, bullet journal, anything study related and in the caption say what you love about that photo

pay homage to an awesome teacher/prof in your life that was just chill, didn’t make your life harder, and just generally understood what it was like to be a student. gave you an extension? decided there wouldn’t be 6pm classes because he knew everyone wanted to get home earlier (including himself)? 

post a pic/write about your daily routine 

post a picture of a minimalist mind map you use to study

Week 4

switch off! post a timelapse/take a pic of a study session where it’s all pen on paper!

write about your favourite minimal effort study technique

post a picture of your school bag essentials

post anything you like but in the caption write about a study tip that made your life simpler

post a picture of what you ate today, and write about whether it reflects what you want your ideal diet to be like? is there something you’d like to change about your eating habits? getting rid of processed foods?

write about how you decide whether you really ‘need’ to buy something. maybe even make it into a reminder to stop yourself from excess purchases and cluttering up your life. 

post a pic to celebrate all the ways you’ve embraced minimalism (and simple things sparking joy) and your hopes for the future!

tag #optomstudies so that i can follow along with your challenge progress! ^__^

Follow optomstudies for daily original posts and study masterposts! Links: all originals + langblr posts + 15-part college 101 series + web directory!

Re: the ask about having trouble following through on goals - the best trick I’ve learned for that is the SMART goals method:

Specific - pick an actual action, not just a concept. Measurable - make sure it’s something you can track: x times per week, not just ‘more’. Attainable - make sure it’s something you know you have the time and energy to do - don’t set your bar too high or you’ll discourage yourself. Relevant - make sure it’s clearly related to the end result you’re trying to achieve. Timely - pick a time frame, like ‘until the end of this month’ or ‘until the end of the semester’, so there’s a clear point to aim for.

A goal like “Get fit”, like in that ask, is much too big. What does that even mean? How do you do that? That sounds hard. It’s too overwhelming for someone with executive function problems to actually implement that in a meaningful way. Instead, you break it down. My SMART goal looked like this:

DESIRED RESULT: Get Fit SMART GOAL: Work out at least 3x/week for the next month - once per muscle group

Lo and behold, that was about a million times easier than a generic “I should work out more” that I’ll immediately forget about it. You know exactly what you need to do, and you know you “only” need to do it until the end of the month - not some vague future horizon that your brain can’t properly conceive of; ADHD is too nearsighted for that, so you have to focus a little closer. "Just one more week and I’ll have done it! I can do one more week, I can’t give up now!“

I wrote out a little checklist for each week of the month, with 1 check every time I worked out; and bam, I actually managed to do it - and 4-5 months later am still doing it, which is longer than I’ve ever managed to keep up a workout routine in my entire 25 years of life. Once you’ve achieved that 1st month’s goal, you can also step it up with additional goals, like “This month, I’ll work out 3x a week AND make a healthy lunch at least 2x a week instead of eating at the food court”. I now lay out a series of SMART goals at the beginning of every month so I always have something to shoot for.

Obviously everyone’s mileage will vary and each person needs to figure out what will be ‘attainable’ for them - maybe your first goal will be working out once a week, or walking home from work instead of driving or taking the bus - but I’ve found this structure really helpful for getting myself to follow through, and it’s made my life a lot easier!

This is a fantastic method to systematically do what I suggested in that post. Thank you!