The prospect of spending seemingly endless hours studying can be overwhelming for even the most well-intentioned student. Everyone fears that dreaded study wall. That I-don’t-care-how-much-this-counts-for-my-grade-I-just-can’t-be-here-anymore wall. Here are some ways to refocus your energy, avoid burnout and make sure you spend productive hours in the library.
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Write Out a Plan: This comes down to being self-aware and really knowing how you study. Write out a schedule and stick to it to avoid last minute cramming or trying to write the last 15 pages of your paper on the day before the deadline. Following a schedule allows you to feel more productive, as you can neatly check off what you have accomplished each day. Try writing down where you plan to study as well and hold yourself to it. While it’s easy to study with a bunch of friends and waste the day sharing music and watching YouTube videos, if you need to isolate yourself, just do it.
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Work Out: Sitting for an extended period of time causes your brain to go numb after you do you too much of the same thing. You can no longer focus. Do you sit some more and stare at your laptop, just hoping you will get out of the funk? Well, we all know that never works. Instead of using your time ineffectively, take a Wilson break and allow yourself to think of nothing except how good a run feels. A 45-minute work out break will refocus you, pump up your energy levels and give you some good endorphins. The gym may also force you to take that shower you were ignoring when sitting in the library for days on end.
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Self Control Application: Sorry, this one is for Mac Users only. Most of us know the magnetic draw of Facebook, Twitter, Stumbleupon, CNN, Pinterest, Tumblr, Etsy, Cuteoverload. Any website is really more entertaining than whatever you should be studying for.
To save yourself from distraction, download the Self Control Application from this link: http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/31289/selfcontrol to ensure productive study time. The application lets you type in the websites you don’t want to use for a set period of time, ranging from 15 minutes to 1 day. You can enter in as many or few applications as you want. Self Control permits you to use the Internet, but for only for the coursework research you intended to do, not for researching your high school friend’s sister’s cousin’s profile pictures.
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Best of luck in your finals everyone. Get some coffee, buckle down and remember winter break is just around the corner!Â
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