I love to work smarter, not harder, so I’m always looking for ways to do exactly that. Luckily, my main area of study is full of cheat codes. Using material from my psych classes, such as Adolescence (which comes in handy considering my current stage of life) and Educational Psychology (learning about learning teaches me so much), I’ve tried to adjust my productivity habits to become an academic weapon. Despite my efforts, there have been some setbacks, but fully incorporating the following daily habits into my life has been a fun challenge that could help you lock in on your academics too!
Don’t Do Work (or Anything Else Besides Sleeping) in Bed
I love getting comfy under my blankets with my 30-page reading in hand as much as the next gal, and while it is one of my guiltiest pleasures, it is not worth it. It can confuse the brain — which wants to associate your bed with sleep — when I’m hunched over in a place meant for rest, highlighting a passage with all of the lights on. Light signals to the brain that it is time to stay awake, which is why it’s bad to scroll on social media before bed too.
I try to avoid staying in bed for activities that aren’t conducive to rest or sleeping, because I want to teach my brain to knock out once my head hits the pillow. As someone who typically has difficulty falling asleep, this habit change was the best choice to ensure I’ll fall asleep exactly when I want to. My sleep schedule can be a bit wonky depending on the day, but employing this habit has made falling asleep smoother on the daily. This habit may be the only truly successful one (so far).
Sleep and Wake at the Same Times Everyday
The regulation of bodily systems come up often in my psych class content (I promise we don’t only talk about sleep — but I will say that many of my textbooks over the years have clocked my weak sleep hygiene). In intro psych, I learned the importance of regulating my circadian rhythm by waking up and going to bed at the same time every single day. Even if my first class on Tuesday is at 8 a.m., but on Monday I don’t have class until 1 p.m., I have to wake up just as early every day no matter what (including weekends).
Now, did I say I’m a perfect participant in this system? No, not at all. The going-to-bed part is pretty difficult most of the time, but I’m determined to make these changes permanent, eventually. (I keep telling myself there’s always next semester.)
Split Up Studying
I like to start the semester off by memorizing my exam dates and blocking out at what point will I start studying for each. Reviewing content bit by bit will always be better than cramming (especially better than cramming during an all nighter). This is called spaced practice or distributed practice, where you split your studying into multiple sessions over time instead of reviewing in one long chunk the night before a big exam.
I have successfully adopted the anti-cramming mindset, but I’m still experimenting with timeline structure to figure out the perfect amount of time to start studying before an exam. I think best practice is to review a bit of content right after you learn it every day. That sounds perfect in an ideal world, but I hope the more I distribute my practice, the more I’ll improve.
I have high hopes that eventually, all of my courses will force me into becoming an academic weapon. I have access to all of the best tips and tricks, but knowing what to do and actually doing it are two very different things. We’ll see how well I fare at taking the curriculum and applying it to my own life this semester.