Another Studyblr

Get up and go for a 5-minute walk

Have a glass of water and a snack

Write a short to-do list

Get out all the supplies you need.

Sit down

Tell a friend you’re going to start studying. (If you don’t have a friend nearby, text them. Or tell yourself. Or tell a wall. Just say it.)

Turn off your phone and close any non-essential internet tabs

Do the very first step of what you need to do. If you have to write an essay, write the first sentence. If you have to read a chapter, read the first sentence. If you have to do a multi-choice quiz, answer the first question.

Congratulations! You have started studying!

Now do the second step. Write the second sentence. Read the first sentence. Answer the second question.

Now do the third step.

Keep repeating.

Now you’ve done more than just start studying! Keep going and soon your to-do list will be all finished.

Hey! Omg yes, my little demon was maths + corporations law fml. I’m sure everyone has a subject they absolutely hate with a fervent passion but have to get through. 

Here’s a few tips for studying a subject that you absolutely despise: 

1. Do the bare minimum 

Lol, let’s be honest here. There’s going to be subjects that you love and there’s going to be subjects that you hate. You don’t have to love every subject that you study - all you have to do is pass. 

So, canvass your syllabus/ course outline and see what you’re going to be examined on. Tab the relevant sections of your textbook and ignore the rest. Look at the broad areas of your course and how much weighting they’re given (e.g. the number of weeks dedicated to studying that portion, the assessment %, the type of questions in practice exams). 

Often you’ll find you’ve just condensed the course to about… well ¾ of your textbook/ reading materials. And out of those chapters, its not like you need to memorise all of it - just the key concepts (see: the intro, the conclusion and probably one body paragraph outlining the key example). 

All those extra readings? Fuck it. That set of extra essays or ‘areas of academic interest’? Screw that. If its not going to make up a huge portion of your examinable content, leave it to one side. 

Condense the course to the bare minimum you need to study so that you can pass. Sure, it’ll be an ugly, barely scraped through pass, but hell that’s all you need.

Use that time for a subject you enjoy. 

PASS, THEN MOVE ON.

2. Leech off someone who enjoys the subject (this includes your teacher)  

Sometimes, its a matter of finding what other people love about it. Finding a friend or another student who is passionate about the subject you hate, asking them what the enjoy about it or heck, just seeing their enthusiasm may help you appreciate the subject. Sure, you’re not going to love it but heck, at least you understand the appeal.

+ people who are passionate about a subject tend to love sharing their knowledge. Engage in casual conversation, ask them questions about areas you’re struggling with etc. 

And they may even point to an area or a niche area of the subject that may pique your interest. This leads me to my next tip…. 

3. Putting it into context 

Sometimes we hate a subject when we can’t put it into context - e.g. “what the fuck is the point of learning how to transform a fucking graph!” 

Ask someone what they love about a subject. Maybe they know an advanced application of what you’re learning that leads to an area of interest. 

Google shit. Youtube shit. Maybe you’ll find a small aspect that may help you appreciate the subject. Because the mere study of the subject doesn’t necessarily reflect its practical application. For example, I found contract law extremely boring and dry – it wasn’t until I started working in the area and realised how these contracts affected the buildings/ events/ my general day to day life that I really began to enjoy contract law. 

4. Be strict with your time

When you have a subject you hate, its easy to put it off to one side. Be strict with your time. Allocate a set time period to do your required homework/ reading etc. Clear your desk of any other subject, books etc phone. Anything not related to that subject goes out the fucking door. 

Start small - maybe 30 mins. After your allotted time is up - MOVE ON. The pomodoro method may help in this regard (see an intro post to the method by @etudiance . 

When you start out, it may be that you spend those 30 mins staring blankly at a book. But by day 6, with routine and time, you’ll eventually start slowly chipping away at what you need to do. 

As to the sequence…. I liked sticking it in between studying two subjects I enjoyed. So I could start my study session with something I liked, then do my allocated hour of doom and have something to look forward to later. 

5. Find a different way to study the same shit 

This depends on your study method tbh. But perhaps find a new way to study what you don’t enjoy - whether that be swapping out those flashcards for a mindmap, dictating as opposed to writing shitones of notes, youtubing videos on the concept etc. 

However, this doesn’t mean procrastinating. Don’t kid yourself - spending ‘3 hours to tidy up your desk before you start work so you can be productive later’ isn’t going to achieve your goal. You’re just putting off your work. Same with re writing the heading of your notes 10 times so you can get the right colours and fonts. 

Rather, space that ‘productive procrastination’ out between your study. Have a 30 min ‘preparation session’ before you study where you clean your desk, get all your supplies, draw up your headings. If you don’t finish, tough - relegate the rest of that prep in your breaks. Move on and get cracking with studying. 

6. Reward yourself! 

After you’ve finished that chapter? DO SOMETHING YOU LIKE. NON STUDY RELATED. Preferably healthy. 

+ heck, sometimes the motivation that comes with nailing 3 exam questions in a row is enough to keep your confidence and momentum up. 

Here’s a few more pointers from some other studyblrs! 

Studying a subject you hate by @acdemic

This reply by @psychstudyblr 

This blog post by How to Study Faster

If you want specific resources re: social science give me another shout and I can dig some up (wasn’t sure what level you’re studying at), or check out some studyblr community lists etc (e.g. @studyblrindex) and I’m sure there’s someone who will be happy to help out (OR SCREAM INTO THE ABYSS TOGETHER W. YOU) 

tips on how to write a good lab report [click for higher res.] → a little post on my experience with lab reports, made by yours truly! —tia ♪

1. write down how much you study over time, then write down how you did on the quiz/test. this will help you see the amount of studying is nessecary for you to get a good grade and fully learn the material!!!

2. make your study space smell fresh, preferably of mint. mint helps you focus and stay sharp. other good smells would be lemon, etc.

3. after studying for a long amount of time, go exercise for ~30 min. shower, get dressed, etc then review the info you had just been studying! you should come back fresher, and your brain is able to remember the info even better!

4. don’t always study in comfy/pj clothes. if you study a lot after school or classes, then it’s ok. but if all you plan on doing is studying for that day, for part of the day get dressed up! put on some business casual wear, that’s cute yet functional and do your hair, etc. this will put you in a “get shit done” mode.

5. after studying a unit/chapter, record yourself explaining it, as if to a person whose never heard of it. this helps SO MUCH. one, explaining/teaching helps you learn so much better, and two, you have a little video to review just before the test!!