A load of laundry, an extra episode of your favourite show or a few rounds of the new mobile game – whatever you choose to do to avoid studying, you know you are ultimately procrastinating. The habit has long-reaching effects – stressing you out, lowering your grades and jeopardising relationships with your classmates.
So for this exam season, get ahead of these habits by trying these tactics.
1) Break your work into little steps
A 4,000-word essay with an adjoining technical supplement and presentation slides is a big undertaking for anyone, but breaking it into digestible sections changes it from impossible to achievable. Your brain is hardwired to enjoy success so breaking a mega-task into micro-wins means you will have the high of many successes to carry you through what otherwise might be a long arduous task.
2) Change your environment
The same spot in the same row of desks on the same floor of the library can get a bit repetitive. Changing your environment gives you the novelty your brain seeks without sacrificing precious study time. Opt instead for a spot in one of Southampton’s many green spaces, on a couch outside the Arlott or in a cosy coffee shop.
3) Eliminate distractions
Your phone and laptop are great for keeping in contact. You probably have both connected to Facebook, your email, a messaging service and BlackBoard at all times. While this is great to find out about the next social event or discount offer from West Quay, it’s not great for your studies. Those quick checks quickly snowball into wasted minutes and hours, so to be most productive set aside your phone or turn off your alerts so that you can stay focused.
4) Set macro goals and micro quotas
Dreaming big and planning small is a sure-fire way to get work done ahead of schedule. Setting your mind to finish studying for an exam early is ambitious but to achieve it set daily minimums of what you have to accomplish in order to reach that goal. Micro quotas assure that you complete at least something each day and just enough to get to your goal – on days that you feel like working more, you will be ahead of schedule. So start today by identifying all the concepts you need to review for your exam, tomorrow organize all your notes and find the readings and the next day read just two of the sources and so on.