{"id":20429,"date":"2019-10-17T11:01:51","date_gmt":"2019-10-17T10:01:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stonebridge-blog.positive-dedicated.net\/?p=20429"},"modified":"2020-11-26T17:43:13","modified_gmt":"2020-11-26T17:43:13","slug":"these-10-hacks-will-help-you-study-better-at-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stonebridge.uk.com\/blog\/learning-experience\/these-10-hacks-will-help-you-study-better-at-home\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Hacks to Help You Study Better at Home"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ever wondered why it\u2019s harder to start studying<\/em> than studying itself?<\/p>\n

We have our brain to thank for that. The human mind is trained over years of evolution to maximise efficiency and simply solve problems. It\u2019s not a sign of laziness, nor intelligence. We evolved this way because it was essential to our survival. The process is called heuristics<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/span> (mental rules of thumb) and it means the quicker the decision-making process, the better chance we stood to survive. <\/span><\/p>\n

Studying is an investment of time, effort and money. On the face of it, it seems like a pretty rubbish way to solve anything quickly or efficiently. <\/span>However, learning new things was equally essential to our survival and evolution as a species all those years ago. The problem, it seems, was never the actual learning, but the motivation to do it. <\/span><\/p>\n

So why do we still find it hard to start the process of learning?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

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You\u2019re anticipating that hard work and dreading it.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is because the brain is excellent at conjuring the worst-case scenario (another evolution quirk). So, whilst you get ready to study, you begin getting anxious about how difficult the process will be, thinking about how much time and effort you will need to dedicate to the task and envisioning just how exhausted you will be by the end of it.<\/span><\/p>\n

To make things extra nice for you, your mind also throws in some fear-of-missing-out thoughts about all the other things you could be doing instead of sitting at a boring desk.<\/span><\/p>\n

The issue isn’t necessarily your brain though, but how you work. The key to studying successfully is working in a way that’s best for your brain so that it can overcome its hard-wiring and, in turn, help you. As long as you find what the mind is naturally inclined to do, you will be able to study better and more efficiently. So here are 10 tips to help you do just that:<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Wall plan it<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

There are plenty of wall planners for students out there. You will find wall planners for university academic years, college, middle school, etc.  Even preschoolers can have planners for parents to fill in. So, why not have a home study wall planner too?<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s one that you can download, print and fill out yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"wall-planner\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Download now<\/a><\/h5>\n

2. Make yourself accountable<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Get your family to quiz you. Talk to other students. Set up mock tests and ask a family member or a friend to supervise. When we make ourselves more accountable to others, failing to accomplish a task brings feelings of shame and guilt. These emotions prompt us to work harder and attempt the task again with more efficiency and energy than if we’d learnt completely by ourselves. <\/span><\/p>\n

3. Short bursts, rather than long sessions<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

\"flashing-neurons-gif\"<\/p>\n

Our brains are far more efficient when faced with short sessions of study, rather than long blocks. We are not wired to focus on one topic for 7 hours. Even if you wanted to cram in a full night of study, science tells us<\/strong> <\/a><\/span>that the mind will lose interest after about 45 minutes. So, if you cram, you will spend more energy bringing your attention back to study than actually<\/em> studying.<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Don\u2019t re-read<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Ask questions instead.<\/span><\/p>\n

You just learnt something new so it makes sense that you should read it all over again. Yet, re-reading a piece of information you just processed is not going to cement it in your mind. Instead, asking questions about what you learnt forces your brain’s neurons to make new connections, thereby enhancing memory and making it much easier for you to retain information. Think of the saying ‘use it or lose it’. <\/span><\/p>\n

Asking a question momentarily hijacks your thought process in such a way that you cannot think of anything else. The best thing about it is that you don\u2019t have to<\/em> force your brain to do this<\/em>. It focuses in on it automatically thanks to a reflex called \u201cinstinctive elaboration\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Take a moment to answer this question: “What was the last thing you studied?”. Have you been able to focus on anything else other than the last thing you studied?<\/span><\/p>\n

5. Switch it off<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Yes, the smartphone.<\/span><\/p>\n

Imagine you put an hour aside to sit down for a study, reading, or assignment session but find yourself checking your phone every 12 minutes (that\u2019s the average amount of time that passes before adults in the UK <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/a>check their smartphone again<\/em>). That means you have interrupted your brain 5 times from the study task. Even if you spent as little as 3 minutes checking a notification and 2 minutes returning your focus to study, realistically you have probably only completed 35 minutes of actual learning.<\/span><\/p>\n

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6. Mix it up<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Once a week, diversify your learning with a film, documentary or a vlog from a professional in your area of interest.<\/span><\/p>\n

This will tap into your existing knowledge and make new connections that will help you memorise things better. It will also raise new questions and curiosities that will drive you to learn even more. It\u2019s a virtuous circle of learning.<\/span><\/p>\n

7. Mind-map it<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Speaking of mixing different learning styles, why not try a mind-map? You can check out this free downloadable mind-map below. If it’s not for you, at least it is easy enough to try out and see for yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Download now<\/a><\/h5>\n
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8. Use apps<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Today, tech is everywhere and at our fingertips. And since it\u2019s such a great distraction at all times, why not harness its power to help you learn more quickly and efficiently?<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are 4 little apps that will work wonders for your study productivity:<\/span><\/p>\n