In today’s work-until-you-drop society, it’s easy to feel as if we are a bit further from success when we are not working or studying. While frequent practice in preparation for an exam can be helpful, taking a step back and meditating can help boost your grades- even get higher scores on big exams like the LSAT, MCAT, or GRE. How? Meditation. While it can help you relax and de-stress, it can also improve your ability to focus. The secret? If you learn to meditate correctly, there will come a point where you can block out distractions and concentrate on solely what you are doing. Even if it means doing and thinking absolutely nothing.
So, how do you reach this point in your meditation skills? Discipline. If you are a rookie or have never given meditation a try before, it will take quite a bit of practice to become proficient. This might sound like a difficult task, but developing the self-discipline it takes to meditate well can make it easier to implement discipline in other aspects of your life- like studying, exercising, or keeping a healthy sleep schedule.
Practicing mindfulness is a good way to start and has been proven to help students with exams. While you might not be able to master blocking out every exterior stimulus instantly, studies have shown that the amount of time your mind is distracted while test-taking can be at least reduced in as quickly as two weeks.
While being mindful can reduce your proneness to becoming distracted studying and during exams, there are other benefits that indirectly help improve grades.
1. Anxiety Reduction.
Being able to focus enough to tone-out the anxious thoughts before and during an exam equals a calmer mind, which could equal better scores.
2. Sleep Quality Improvement.
The better your sleep, the better your energy levels and memory retention are.
3. Self-Awareness.
Being more self-aware helps you recognize mistakes and effective improvement tactics.
Sources:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/meditation-mind-body-spirit_n_5291361
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/12-benefits-of-meditation