Deadlines vs. dopamine hits: the syllabus nobody warned us about.
Studying in 2025 doesn’t look like a library scene out of Legally Blonde anymore. It looks like a battlefield where highlighters are blunt weapons, caffeine is the only IV drip, and your enemy is a 15-second reel of the Bilautaverse with way too many plot twists which derails your entire focus cycle. Attention spans are fried… not sunny-side-up but deep-fried besan pakoda-style. We live in an era where you open your laptop to write a paper and somehow end up doomscrolling productivity hacks from a 19-year-old “study influencer” who colour-codes notes with 50 pens you will never buy.
Here’s the paradox: Gen Z are both the most ambitious and the most distracted generation. We crave grades, internships, résumés thicker than Shrek’s accent, but we also crave serotonin shortcuts like Reels, endless playlists, and scrolling the same three group chats. Welcome to studying in the age of burnout, baby. Where dopamine hits compete with deadlines, and the syllabus you never got was how to keep your brain from turning into dal chawal mush.
Studying in the burnout Olympics.
We’ve normalised exhaustion to the point that being tired is now a badge of honour. You’re not just a student, in this day and age you’re an unpaid full-time juggler. Classes, clubs, internships, passion projects, that one situationship you’re romanticising into a novella, all of it demands performance. Burnout is no longer the occasional villain; it’s the entire plotline.
And here’s the kicker: even when we’re resting, we’re not resting. “Breaks” become binge-watching marathons, and scrolling is disguised as self-care (spoiler: it’s not). We chase the thrill of finishing tasks but never let our bodies or brains reboot. That’s why half of us wake up more tired after a nap than we were before. We’re running on iced coffee, vibes, and sheer stubbornness, which, let’s be real, makes us powerful but also perpetually one bad Wi-Fi cut away from collapse.
Attention = span fried rice.
Remember when you could sit through 7 hours of school without checking your phone every three minutes? Yeah, neither do I. Our attention spans have been chopped, sautéed, and stir-fried by endless content cycles. Why read an entire textbook chapter when a 30-second explainer video exists… except oops, that video sends you down a rabbit hole of six unrelated reels about celebrity divorces and “how to fold fitted sheets”?
This isn’t just distraction; it’s dopamine economics. Every ping, notification, and reel trains your brain to crave novelty like a toddler on sugar. Meanwhile, deadlines require the opposite: monotony, patience, focus. It’s like trying to train for a marathon while living in a trampoline park. Chaos. Absolute chaos.
Doomscrolling in disguise.
Here’s the lie we tell ourselves: I’m just taking a quick study break. But one “quick” break later, it’s 1 a.m., and you’re suddenly an expert on beekeeping practices because of algorithm black holes. The guilt spiral hits: why can’t I just focus like everyone else? Spoiler: no one’s focusing. They’re just better at hiding their tabs during attendance.
What makes it worse is the performance pressure. Productivity culture on Instagram convinces us that if we don’t have the perfect 5 a.m. morning routine, we’re failing. Newsflash: no one actually wakes up that early looking like that. If you’re awake at 5, it’s because you haven’t slept yet, and you’re crying over assignments.
Balancing the scales (or at least pretending to).
Here’s the wholesome, elder-sis truth: you don’t have to study like a Pinterest board to succeed. Sometimes balance isn’t about deleting social media (let’s be honest, you won’t), but about hacking it. Use Reels as micro-rewards: finish two pages, earn 5 scrolls. Romanticise your study desk with fairy lights, masala chai, playlists that make you feel like the main character in a sad indie film. Trick your brain into wanting to be there.
Also: rest isn’t a crime. Romanticise naps like you romanticise crushes. Set boundaries with burnout culture by saying no to “just one more” commitment. And remember: your GPA isn’t your obituary.
Studying in the age of burnout and Instagram reels is a constant tug-of-war between instant gratification and delayed success. We’re all navigating it messy, imperfect, and caffeine-stained. The real hack isn’t about deleting distractions forever; it’s about building rhythms that let you both meet deadlines and enjoy dopamine without guilt.
So the next time you’re caught between a 40-slide PPT and a 40-second reel, remember: you’re not failing. You’re just human in a hyper-digital circus. And honestly? That deserves an A+.
Want more caffeine-fuelled chronicles, unhinged survival guides, and the occasional emotional support meme? Slide into Her Campus at MUJ, we’ve got the notes you actually want to copy. And if you’re wondering who dared to romanticise burnout with fairy lights and iced lattes — surprise, it’s me, Niamat Dhillon at HCMUJ.