studyblr truths: why having pretty notes doesn't matter
hello! im sorry i don't exactly have content to post today, so instead imma tell yall a studyblr story.
i’ve had a tumblr since i was 11, but i didnt get into the studyblr community until i was 12. i was introduced by my roommate in grade 7 to this part of tumblr after i had asked her why she made her notes so pretty.
and i was so overwhelmed. like, an entire group of people out there genuinely enjoyed making their notes pretty because it made them feel inspired to study.
i'd never actually actively tried to make my notes pretty before id seen studyblr because it just never occured to me that it was something that would make me feel motivated. but right then and there, my 12-year-old brain was convinced that this was how i SHOULD be studying, especially since my roommate had the prettiest stationary. it was also the first time i had seen expensive stationary, because as someone from the province entering the city, it was my first time to see so many different colors of highlighters and pens and markers and brush pens.
so when i reached grade 8, i decided i wanted my notes to be pretty. i would try to rewrite my notes every night, and use a color scheme for each "spread" of notes. i purchased a pack of 30 expensive colored pens, convinced that i needed them to study. i even used a compass to draw perfect circles when we were studying earth science.
and you know what? it was terrible for me. i would spend so much time rewriting my notes that i didn't have time to study. i didn't even use all the colors in my thirty-pack of pens. i focused on the aesthetic of my notes instead of the content. it was stupid, but 13-year-old me really thought it was better for my grades, when actually it was just leaving me be sleep deprived a lot of the time.
so i tried to make small changes. instead of setting a color scheme per topic, i made up a system of colored pens to use. i stopped buying expensive stationary. i learned to actually focus on digesting and understanding what i was studying, and realizing that i didn't need i actually didn't need nice notes to say that i studied.
and four years later, i'm back to using regular notebooks and regular pens. i have 1 black pen, 2 highlighters, and a ruler, and that's pretty much all i use for notes.
now im not saying that everyone shouldn't make their nice notes or that the studyblr community is bad. i love and adore the studyblr community with all my heart. i admire the people who put effort and time into making nice notes.
but it doesn't work for everyone. there are people who don't have enough time to rewrite notes or money to buy expensive stationary. there are people who just like the way they currently write notes. there are people who absorb information without even needing a highlighter (i dont know how u do this but,,,, ok).
the point is, you don't need that "studyblr aesthetic" to study or even start a studyblr. all that matters is that you know and love what you're studying.
- Elle 💜
check out some of my other posts here (yay i finally have enough posts to make categories!):
school and organization
how to organize your summer
101 bullet journal ideas
study moods: b99 edition
motivational phone wallpapers 1
motivational phone wallpapers 2
dormitory packing list: the bare essentials
30 things to paste or place in your bujo
mental health
little things to do to be a little better
10 ways to be productive that isn’t studying
things to do by yourself to reset
