I know it is a clumsy guide – if it is a guide at all
But it helps me pass exams – and have fun, overall.
Living through a semester at university is like running a marathon with
an uphill run at the end. You already see the finishing line, but the toughest
part is yet ahead - the scary time called exam period. You need to jump through
tests, overcome procrastination, study at steady pace and suddenly speed up the
night before the exam. Not an easy task to manage!
So what to do and how to do it during the exams time?
To plan or not to plan?
Some students manage to make a study plan for exams. Most of these
students also manage to not follow it at all. I, personally, fail my plan the
first day I make it and so the best option seems to be just awareness of the
exam dates put in an equation with the amount of study. If I have to learn 100
pages in 10 days and know that I can read those in 1 day, I will definitely not
read 10 pages a day. I would constantly postpone it till the last day and after
9 days of self-reproaching and procrastinating, I will hatefully start reading,
thinking that I could have used that time in a much better way.
My advice? Make a plan if you know how to follow it. If you don’t, then
just jot down the amount of work compared to the amount of time you have.
And then? Don’t waste that time!
By not wasting time I mean not pretending to study, if you seriously
don’t. Imagine all the time you’ve spent on Facebook or watching YouTube videos
just because you couldn’t really open that book or continue that boring chapter…
wouldn’t it be nice to have it back and fill it with something real? Just
follow one rule: You either study, or you don’t.
And when you don’t, enjoy that
time!
After wasting 3 hours procrastinating, your friends go out and you
can’t, because you haven’t studied yet. What to do? Stay at home and have
regrets that you’ve missed a good time? Or go out and have regrets for the good
mark you’re not gonna get? Both are wrong, and both you don’t enjoy. Just get
away from what disturbs you (park or cafeteria is a better study environment
than Facebook wall) and do your work. After that, enjoy free time. With clear
mind and no regrets.
Sleep, food, exercise, and other
things we don’t care about
Studying for exams involves a lot of sitting, hunched back, too much
computer, stress, little sleep, and coffee overdose (if you prefer energy
drinks, help yourself and try a cup of green tea or maté for a change – they
give a healthy kick to your brains). So
how can you take a nap, make a healthy meal, or go for a walk if there’s no
time to waste? Well, stop wasting it elsewhere! We all know that the only good
procrastination is none – and then maybe productive procrastination, too. If
you find yourself distracted and unable to study anymore, get out of books and
into fresh air. Your brains regenerate, and I guess they do so better if you
switch them off while exercising, than reading wall posts and so still
processing new data. Sleepy? Drink a coffee and take a nap afterwards – this
combination makes you rest and kicks you after you’re back in the study game
again.
Just remember: sleep, exercise, and healthy food weigh more than wasted
time does.
There’s no way of studying for exams without the real studying, but you
can make your time worthwhile. Balance it up and have no regrets. If you learn
well during night studying, then happily sleep in afterwards! If you need to
have a plan, then make it and follow! If you need to see friends, then see them
and then really study! Find your way and follow it. Just don’t waste time. We
have so little of it.
BZ
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