my masterpost | my studygram | ask me anything

[click images for high quality]

[transcript under the cut]

Other advice posts that may be of interest:

How To Study When You Really Don’t Want To

Active Revision Techniques

How To Do Uni Readings

How to Revise BIG Subjects

Common Study Mistakes

Hi all, it’s werelivingarts. I just stumbled across this method called ‘eat the frog’, which means you get the most difficult or important task out of your way first. I actually have been using this method for a long time, hope this post gives you a new way of managing your time and productivity! 😜 ❤️

A few tips from a broke neuro-divergent academic

Try and wake up early, and go to bed early too. I’m not saying get up at 5 (unless that’s you’re thing) but sleeping into noon is a productivity blackhole. I go for 8 or 8:30, generally, but that’s just what works for me.

Get dressed for the day. I’m not talking like, jeans and a business casual outfit, but a clean pair of sweatpants, fresh underwear, and a new shirt can really put you in the mood for a new morning.

Have a workspace. Whether it be the kitchen table, a desk, a spot on the floor with a lap desk, have a place that’s dedicated to your work. Have items that signify that workspace too, like your book, planner, laptop, lamp, whatever. It can help you get into the zone, being in that space.

Have a morning drink. I choose earl grey tea with honey and cream, but black coffee, herbal tea, lemon water, whatever works for you is awesome, as long as itll wake you up and start your day.

To do lists. To do lists and to do lists and more to do lists. I have three. One is a post it weekly planner deal (3.99 at a local grocery store). it’s a weekly spread already set up, and if you’re anything like me, its really hard to set up a weekly spread. Then I have an app called Ike. I have a daily to do list I write on that app, and then I have four more to-do lists of what I have to for each specific class.

Spread out your assignments. Don’t overwhelm yourself. If you’re professors are like mine, and have the due date for each module as Sunday at midnight. What I do is spread out all my assignments from Monday to Saturday, and I leave Sunday blank, so anything I didn’t do that week, I finish on Sunday. It works for me, it might work for you.

Have a folder for each class, and a notebook for each class. I hate spending money, I’m broke as hell, sono al verde as the Italians say, but a 0.99 cent folder and a 0.25 cent notebook can do wonders for motivating one to fill them up.

Study with a drink. Tea, water, coffee, whatever, but my go to is generally a warm drink. I cannot study if I’m cold, I get tired and groggy, so warm socks, a robe, and a hot drink really keep me going.

Take breaks. Make time for your hobbies, for something fun. Working without stopping absolutely destroys my motivation, and let me tell you, when I feel like that, an episode of Avatar and a snack gets me right back on the wagon.

Do self check ins. Does your back hurt? Are you sad? Stressed? Do you have to pee? Are you hungry? Never put your homework over your health. You won’t be able to get anything done well anyway if you’ve got those blocks.

This isn’t just advice for uni students, but for anybody, I’ve just decided to tackle us uni students in general, because our days are not as structured anymore and with our lectures here at 11AM on one day and at 3PM on the other, it’s very hard to keep each and every day the same. Generally, though, this can be used for anybody who’s looking for some structure in their life.

 Why?

Because it gives you an idea of what you are spending your time on. With a solid and good schedule, there should be less time for procrastination. Besides that, a sense of control gives many people comfort, especially people who struggle mentally.

Where to start:

Write down your schedule. Work, weekly appointments, lectures, classes. All those things that are ‘set in stone’ and that you cannot control. This is going to be the base you build around. I suggest making a table, preferably on a piece of paper (you can transfer it into a digital version when you’re done and have everything figured out) with all days of the week and hours. I personally used 7AM – 11PM.

Set your wake up and bed times. The most important ones. You should make these all the same. Maybe give yourself an extra hour of a lie in on Saturday and Sunday, but you should try and not confuse your biological clock too much. Soon, it will become easier to get up early. Also make sure you are getting enough hours of sleep. As a young adult of around 20, you should be getting 6-9 hours of sleep. If you are younger, it should be more than that.

Write up your daily tasks that you would like to perform every day. Make sure you include all those things you keep forgetting, self-care items, daily reading, journal writing, studying, etc. Be realistic, however. Start out small with just a few things, don’t overwhelm yourself and later, you can start adding more items.

Then do the same for weekly tasks. These include doing readings for particular classes, clean ups, exercise, meet-ups, etc.

Don’t forget meals! Especially if you are busy, make sure there is room for food in your plan! Make sure that if you have an especially full day the next day, think of some time to prepare the food the night before. Planning out your meals may also make you think about what you eat more. (Also, I can write something about nutrition on request!)

Don’t forget free time either. Free time is important and a free day is something you could benefit from. Whether it is resting or catching up on your studies or time for arts and crafts.

Now play a nice game of Tetris and assign a time slot to each of those activities. Don’t forget to just leave some time off. Whether that’s for finishing a task, being lazy or just anything. Use your routine to give your life a structure, not govern  it completely.

How to implement these and make sure they work?

There are for sure going to be some you struggle with. Set phone alarms. Set them for every five minutes. Set them until they annoy you. Until it’s so annoying it makes you do the task you don’t want to do.

An Overview of Note-Taking Styles

learn how to write a new style of handwriting. try wearing your hair or makeup differently. find a new perfume you like.

do things for yourself, not for the validation of others. resist the temptation to post everything online.

start doing something you usually can't be bothered to do. like making your bed, folding everything neatly, stretching every hour, going on jogs, making a healthy meal from scratch or sleeping earlier.

make your surroundings as cozy and as pleasing for you to look at as possible.

bake delicious but sometimes deformed pastries. write things that no one "gets". wear clothes and hairstyles that make u happy. crotchet a sock badly. draw a picture that won't be aesthetic on instagram. let go of the perfect image of who you need to be. do things for yourself.

be messy. self-expression isn't always pretty. scribble messily in a notebook. draw messily an idea for a character. write a messy draft for a story.

learn your thing from scratch, whether it's astronomy, greek mythology, flower species, piano, japanese, making jam, drawing comics, or something completely different.

let yourself fully enjoy everyday things like food, commute, and your morning routines. slow down and notice every single thing that makes you feel nice.

appreciate nature, like the sunlight streaming through in the morning, the sound of rain, and the colors of sunsets.

notice the deeper meanings and emotions in songs, poetry and paintings.

let people in. give new loves and friendships a chance. initiate conversations when you want.

read as much as you can. read different genres, popular and unpopular books, classics and new releases. give every book that catches your eye a chance.

enjoy your solitude like you're a character in a movie. if you can, go out for walks alone. visit the park to look at dogs, a café to people-watch, or a library to spend the afternoon buried in a book. bring a journal everywhere with you, and write poetry and quotes and doodles.

collect little things, like vinyls, pretty rocks and shells, stuffed animals, whatever makes you happy.

find a sport you like. pretend you're a superhero. dance like no one's watching. swim like you're a mermaid. exercise is supposed to be fun, so find one that you like.

make self care a priority. this includes taking your meds on time, starting to study for a test after procrastinating for weeks, deleting things that trigger negative emotions, and knowing when to let go and ask for help.

distance yourself from sources of negativity. learn to be ok on your own. know your worth and boundaries.

let go of the past. forgive yourself for the things you regret and start again.

let go of old relationships. there's a difference between missing someone and wanting them back in your life.

let go of your need to be perfect. it does more harm than good.

never compare yourself. it will always feel like a losing battle, no matter how amazing you really are.

keep in touch with people you don't speak to much. even a message can brighten someone's day.

be kind to everyone you meet, even strangers. if someone makes you happy, make them happier. compliment often, and be less judgemental. give someone a smile, you never know how much it means to them.

wake up earlier in the morning. wake up with the sun and fall asleep with the moon.

if you want to be calmer and more productive, remove things on your phone and social media apps that you don't need. (which is most of them).

make a list of qualities in the person you dream of becoming. write about your ideal life with what you have. make goals to be the happiest and healthiest version of yourself.

don't suppress your emotions, but don't overthink them either. have a kinder relationship with your body and your thoughts.

don't be afraid to ask for help, whether it's a teacher, therapist, friend, doctor or parent.

Study repeatedly - Overlearn. Take advantage of life’s little intervals (i.e.- riding the bus, walking, waiting in the grocery checkout line)

Spend time actively thinking about material - Exercise weak memories with rehersal and critical reflection. No skimming!

Make material personally meaningful - Write notes in your own words. Form as many cue associations (i.e.- images, experiences) as possible! 

Use mnemonic devices for lists - Associate items with peg words, create a vivid story involving the items, or chunk items into acronyms 

Refresh your memory by activating cues - Mentally re-create situations/moods where you orginally learned the material or physically return to the location 

Minimize interferences - Study about an hour before sleep. Don’t study similar subjects back-to-back (i.e.- Studying Spanish then French right after) 

Test your knowledge - Don’t be overconfident about recalling the material. Test yourself with the learning objectives. You can outline sections, define terms/concepts, create practice tests, or explain the topic to a friend without using your notes

On daily routine:

- As soon as your alarm goes off, sit up in your bed and turn it off. Don’t press snooze, it will only become harder to get up. -Always have a glass of water next to your bed, so when you wake up, you can drink as soon as you are up. If you like, you can put cucumber in it, it will be even more refreshing.  -Put on your socks and a pullover or sweater or nightrobe or whatever you like, and go to the bathroom. -Wash your face, then use your face creme if you like. -Have breakfast if you have time and appetite for that. -Then wash your teeth, and use some lipbalm if you like. -Dress up in an outfit THAT YOU FEEL GOOD IN. (Also don’t forget about the weather… take care of yourself.) -Pack your lunch, check if you have everything important (keys, phone, money, ID, etc.) -On the road, do something that puts you in a good mood, or prepares you for the day. For example, you could catch up on your reading, revise the things you’ll do that day, run through your notes if you have a test that day, listen to music, etc. -DON’T TAKE LOOOOONG NAPS IN THE AFTERNOON. It may feel as the most refleshing thing, but you will regret it: you lose a lot of time, and the worst is, that you won’t sleep thight that night. MY TIP is to rest for 1- 1 and a half hours when you get home. You could eat something, or rest your head for a good half hour. Then start studying. If you really can’t focus on studying after a long day, that’s totally fine. Go to bed a bit earlier, and wake up earlier as well! You’ll see that in the morning, you will be more efficient, which will keep you moving all day long. -DON’T DRINK CAFFEINE IN THE AFTERNOON- it’s the same as naps, but (for me) it’s totally worse!!!!

On self-care:

-drink water -eat when you are hungry -go to bed in time -every Sunday, make your night a self-care night (long bath, hairwashing, face hydratating, manicure, pedicure, anything you like…) -use face scrub twice a week -wash your face twice a day -don’t sleep with your make up on -wash you hair 3 times a week

On studying:

Hi there! Interesting topic, thanks for asking :)

Transition between University and High School

I wasn’t someone who found the academic transition between university and high school particularly difficult as I had already been going to a competitive high school. 

On top of that, I’d been someone who had more of a consistent work ethic, so I was pretty used to studying a little everyday to deal with high workloads. Dealing with university studies is about self-accountability and making sure you turn up to lectures and finish tutorial questions on time!!

Uni was just one step above that because it’s a little easier to find yourself falling behind just because you get really tired on long commutes. One thing I had trouble with at first was finishing maths tutorial sets on time, as I had to sleep an hour or so later everyday to get things done for all 4 subjects. Coupled with waking up 1.5 hours earlier, I was pretty exhausted the first semester and often slept on the train to and from uni. Protip make the best use of your time: get as many tutorial questions done in between classes and on the train home as you can, because you’ll be physically exhausted from commuting, which makes you mentally exhausted doing tutorial questions, which can end up cutting into your sleep and exacerbating the whole cycle. 

The first semester is always the hardest because you also need to balance social commitments - making new friends does take time because you share lunch regularly with other people, occasionally you’ll want to go out and explore the restaurants around your university, particularly if your campus is further away from where you usually live. 

Added bonus is that there’s no trouble with just hanging out with someone else if you don’t click with someone. Degrees where there’s no set subjects are good because things don’t get clique-y, and you don’t have to see people after one semester if you’re lucky. Conversely, keeping in touch with and making strong friendships is tricky because of a lack of contact. 

Furthermore, it’s also the time where everyone encourages you to join clubs. I went to a lot of club meetings but didn’t really end up finding one for me in first year that suited my hobbies. I wrote a post about Extra-Curricular Activities, but main point is: you either join to make a few friends or you join to make a nice notch on your career ladder, but don’t worry about it otherwise. 

You’ll also be trying to keep in touch with high school friends as well, and I would advise that you do, as it can be hard to make as deep a connection with others when you don’t see a particular person as often as you did in high school.

On top of that, a lot of people want to find a part time job to help with university expenses. I was tutoring after high school because I did okay academically, so I worked a little during weekends the first year. I did a post about finding a Part Time Job as part of my University Series below, so have a read of that if you’re interested, though I feel like I need to update it because it covers so little. 

So yeah, add all that up and it can really take time out of your day!

Differences Between High School and University

I ~kind of~ have a whole series on that LOL, but let me know if there was anything that I didn’t cover below! Main differences are basically more flexible timetable, friendship circles, workload and study topics, but more commitments, greater difficulty in study, and added stress of applying for jobs and internships. 

WHAT I’D WISH I’D KNOWN BEFORE UNIVERSITY 2016-2017

Part 0 Choosing a Degree - how do you know what’s right for you? popular!!

> Things to Consider Before Switching Degrees!

> Changing Degrees

Part 1 Administration - choosing majors, available services, choosing class times etc.

Part 2 Getting to Class - pros and cons of attending class, when you should choose not to attend, laptop and notebook recommendations, advice about choosing a backpack and other essential equipment.

> Laptop Considerations and Recommendations

Part 3 Studying - differences between high school and uni, basic tips on how to keep on track, class types like lectures, tutorials, etc.

Part 4 Extra-Curriculars - what clubs to join, what to do outside class, and other great things to discover around campus.

Part 5 Exams - everything to know about pesky examiners, how to prepare, what happens during the whole examination process.

Part 6 Social Life - differences between high school and university, some hard learnt lessons, etc.

Part 7 Part Time Work - how to land a part time gig

Part 8 Four Secrets The Uni Tells You

Part 9 Best Study Spots On Campus

Part 10 Saving Money 1 - Food, Transport, Entertainment

Part 10 Saving Money 2 - Textbooks, Tax, Scholarships

Part 11 Adapting to Uni Study popular!!

Part 12 How to Study From Textbooks in Uni

Dealing with Lazy Group Members - five options for what to do and how to do it! popular!!

Hope that helps! ^__^

set an alarm to go to bed. just like one to get out of bed, set one for getting into bed for a better sleeping schedule. 

try to keep a consistent sleep schedule for both weekends and weekdays, strive for at least 8 hours.

keep your bedroom dark, something as small as a glowing phone or a lit up clock can disrupt your sleep.

turn your bedroom into a sleeping only place. if you limit your bedroom to a place where all you do is sleep than it will help you get to sleep quicker. a bedroom should make you sleepy like a kitchen makes you hungry. 

cut off from heavy meals at night, if you’re hungry eat a light snack 30 minutes before bed.

have a wind down time. turn off electronics 30 minutes before bed and do something calming like reading a book or journaling. 

Hi all, sleep is very important to students like us. Sleep can help us perform better, decrease the chance of getting sick and lower the risk of obesity. On the other hand, if you have sleep deprivation, you are likely to be poor-coordinated and lose focus. Here are some tips to get better sleep as a student.

1. Limit naps. If you want to take a nap, make sure to take it before 4 P.M and it should be no more than 30 mins. The best time to take a nap is from 12 to 1 PM.

2. Avoid afternoon caffeine. Caffeine can impact sleep for up to eight hours after students drink it because it increases brain wave activity. If you are able to fall asleep, it would not be a deep sleep.

3. Shut off electronic devices before bed. The blue light from technology makes our brain thinking that it’s day time, which results in difficulties falling asleep.

4. Don’t fall asleep with the TV on. As programs change or go in and out of commercials, there are variations in audio, which affects your sleep quality.

5. Have a regular sleep schedule. Repeat your sleep schedule over and over until it becomes a regularity then stick to it.

6. Have a comfortable environment. Have a right room temperature, a quiet place and a comfortable to sleep in. Make sure to separate studying from the bed.

7. Practice meditation. Meditation would calm the anxiety and mind so students can get better sleep at night without worries.