5 Rules of Effectiveness for Students
“I can’t study as hard as I’d like to. There’s too much material, too many classes, too many assignments, and too little time,” – said every student, ever.
We can’t help but complain about the amount of studying we have to do before we graduate. Universities in Australia are particularly challenging. There’s another problem: more than half of Australian university students combine their studies with work. They have to earn money to cover their high living expenses.
So how do you remain effective in such a situation? You’ll see some students studying day and night and still not achieving impressive results. Others seem to be studying less in terms of time spent over the book, but they get better grades. The secret is in their effectiveness.
5 Standard Rules for Becoming a More Effective Student
1. Use an App to Plan Your Time
Relying on time-management software is essential nowadays. Sure; you can use a plain notebook to plan the month, week, and day. But you have to organize it well and use it on a daily basis.
A tool like Google Calendar or iCalendar will make things much easier. You can note down the deadlines for projects as soon as your professors assign them. The tool will remind you ahead of the deadline, so you won’t miss it. You can use the same app to plan all daily activities. You’ll notice that when you write things down, they don’t seem overwhelming. You have all tasks in a precise timeframe and you realize: “I can do this!”
2. Outsource the Tasks that You Can’t Complete
This is something that effective businesspeople do. When they struggle with too much on their schedule, they delegate or outsource. As a student, that’s a hard thing to do. You’re the only one responsible for studying, attending classes, taking exams, and having a social life in between. But you can outsource one thing: academic writing.
There are services that enable you to pay for your essay, like https://au.edubirdie.com/pay-for-papers. You’ll get the work on time and no one will notice that a professional completed it. This is a last-resort solution, but it works when you’re really stuck.
3. Be a Mono-Tasker
When you’re too busy, can multitasking help? No! That’s a myth! You can’t listen to a recorded lecture while completing homework on a whole other topic. You can’t work on two different papers at the same time, thinking you’ll complete them faster.
Your brain isn’t wired to focus on multiple things at a time. That’s why you should plan your schedule well, so you can really focus on the tasks at hand. When you’re studying or working on a paper, commit yourself fully to that task. Focus is one of the most important personal characteristics of highly effective students.
4. Turn Responsibilities into Habits
You find studying overwhelming? If you turn it into a routine, you’ll get used to it. Separate each section of the coursebook into several chapters that you’ll tackle in small bites, day by day. Studying every single day for at least two hours will get you far.
When you look at the habits of effective students, you’ll notice they do things at the same time every day. They exercise in the morning, attend classes, work, in the afternoon, and study at night. When they get used to that schedule, it’s no longer burdening.
5. Stay Healthy
We listed good qualities regarding commitment, focus, and time management. Let’s not forget about the importance of health. If you eat healthy, drink a lot of water, and have a balanced sleeping routine, you’ll be energized to face the challenges of the day.
Do your best to make smart food choices and take your vitamins! You won’t be able to study effectively if you start feeling unwell.
Do You Have What It Takes?
Of course you do. Everyone does!
The issue of how to be successful as a student is not a matter of talent you’re born with. It’s a matter of commitment. If you need some inspiration to understand that, watch Forrest Gump. It’s a great movie that shows how we can all expand our potential.
Being a student is not easy. But you’re not alone in this situation. You have the support from all your friends, who are facing the same challenges. You’ll be more successful if you stay healthy, plan your schedule, outsource some of the tasks, focus, and develop good studying habits.
BIO: Joshua Robinson is convinced that everyone can become successful if they set their mind to it. When he set goals, made plans, and started meditating to set the intention, Joshua realized he could do more than he ever imagined. Now, he writes blog posts to inspire others to do the same.
