#romanticize studying

2025 is the year of THE academic comeback, but it's not just a comeback, it's a full academic GLOW UP. The best part about these tips is that this is not meant to be short-term, this is meant to help you create long-term hot girl habits that will help you year after year after year.

Imagine being a student is like training in the gym: if you want to see long-lasting results, you don't go to the gym for a while and then drop off and get lazy, so why do we see studying as a long-term chore, when it's a long-term privilege?

So many people worldwide dream of having an education, but do we really want to waste it all by scrolling on social media and rotting in bed? I don't think so.

Get organised: Get your notes in order. Turn a subject topic into a cheat sheet or revision booklet. Update your notes after each class. Get your homework out of the way as soon as possible. Create a list of all your topics for each class and rate each topic Red/Orange/Green based on how confident you feel - when it's time to study, start with the red topics.

Create a schedule: If you like things being super organised down to the last detail, try time-blocking and schedule specific time slots to complete your tasks. If you like being more flexible and fluid, set subjects to focus on each day and write a rough to-do list (I set one main task per subject). Make sure you do the subjects that you hate more than you do the ones you like, revising is meant to be uncomfortable, that's how you train your brain and overcome challenges.

Stick to it: Use the Pomodoro technique if you struggle to sit down and start. Start on a 5-minute break to train your brain to slowly stop what you're doing and get started. I would recommend 25/5 repetitions but if you're like me and can deep work for hours with full concentration, do what works best for you but do not end up working for hours without breaks or water. Make sure you take breaks to move around, hydrate and rest your brain and eyes.

Just sit down to start: if you really struggle with procrastination, set up all your work, put your phone away, and just stare at your work - that always gets me to start working because I get bored.

Prioritise long-term gains: Top students focus on studying little and often rather than cramming the night before. This can be 1 hour a day for 5 days prepping for a test vs 5 hours the night before. If you have a period where you don't have any tests right then, but you know you have a long-term exam coming forward, why not spend just 15 minutes to make sure your notes are organised? Always think about the big picture. The topic might not be the most important thing right now, but you know it will be important in the final exam, so if you have some downtime, why not make sure you're confident in it?

Work-life balance: Whilst it's good to be an academic weapon, your social life doesn't have to suffer at the same time. This is why scheduling is so important - it helps you utilise your time efficiently, and limit how much time you waste trying to decide what to study, so you can have more time to spend on things you love. Dedicate 1 hour a day to something you love to do and make sure you do it!

Find what works for you: Experiment with different techniques. Just because one technique works for one subject doesn't mean it will work for another. Just because it works for even just one topic doesn't mean it will work for another. Don't be afraid to switch things up and curate your study habits to suit your tastes. Always remember - the only person it has to make sense for is YOU.

hi toki!! dw, i gotchu 💛

functional ways to romanticize an overwhelming day 💝

📝 step 1: make a low-effort, aesthetic* list

🧰 materials: planner of choice, notion/obsidian, or similar easy-to-use tools that you personally find satisfying to look at and work with

👍 things to do: be honest with yourself about what actually must get done. be absolutely ruthless about cutting out tasks that are no longer relevant and delegating what does not absolutely need to be done by you personally

👎 things to avoid: don't try to schedule things right away, just brain-dump everything first, then you can prioritize and organize

*- on different days, in different moods, my definition of aesthetic varies. it can be something as simple as writing slowly and carefully so that your penmanship is cute or a full-on notion template, whatever comes most naturally to you so that you don't add even more overwhelm

🎧 step 2: set the vibes

🧰 materials: music, background noise, scented candles, coffee/tea, inspo vlogs, whatever puts you in the mood to get your work done

👍 things to do: regardless of how you choose to set the mood, also take time to clean your space and freshen yourself up a bit. it makes a big difference! also, be intentional as you complete this step. you're not just creating an environment conducive to work, but also a mindset that allows you to focus well. visualize not just the nitty-gritty of the tasks you want to complete, but also the person you are when you do them

👎 things to avoid: don't spend forever picking a playlist or highlighter color. there's a fine line between functional vibes and vibes only for vibes' sake

NOTE: similar to step 1, don't overthink it, just do what comes naturally. when we're at our limit, every little decision we make can add a lot to our fatigue

⏪ step 3: reflect* on what you accomplished

🧰 materials: a friend, a journal, tumblr, etc.

👍 things to do: i love checking things off my list periodically throughout the day because it gives me a lot of motivation and momentum to keep going in addition to reducing my sense of overwhelm. i also like to write down how certain tasks made me feel, what my expectations were versus reality, and what i could've done differently. this allows me to put some of the things that have been bothering me in the past and focus on the present and future.

👎 things to avoid: don't beat yourself up if you didn't make as much progress as you expected. just return to step 1 and start again

*- i actually tend to romanticize in hindsight or foresight, almost never as the thing is actually happening. i do truly believe that the narratives we tell about our future and past selves are what shape our present the most, so it's not a bad thing to focus on those, i think!

An honest study tip is don't try to romanticize studying. Like, it's good but it works for around a week and then you're back to your lazy couch potato because you can't even sit and study and now you have added extra things that need to be done to actually study. You've added more steps.... Which makes it an even harder task.