When looking for study tips, most articles emphasize the same factors: create a study calendar, examine yourself frequently, sleep well, etc.
This will help you enormously and, probably, is more than enough for your objectives. However, in this article, we want to go a step further and offer some tips that are not so widespread but that will help you stand out and get better results.
If you are a demanding student with yourself and you are always looking for newer ways to learn then this article is absolutely for you.
1) Combine Different Sources and form your Own Point of View
Commonly, students look for good notes (either by asking them to a classmate, creating them on their own or based on books / Internet) and, later, they start to study.
This approach can give good results but, to better excel, we recommend that you not simply use a source, but compare several different sources (for example, a book, a presentation and your own notes) and combine creating your own study material.
In addition, this study material should not be static, but be in continuous improvement. If you find a new datum or something that you find interesting, do not hesitate to incorporate it.
In this way, you will be sure not only to memorize the subject but to understand it and have your own point of view, something that most of your colleagues lack.
2) Measure your progress from the first day
It is quite common to perform small tests and simulations of exams before exams to check how we carry the subject and the “chances of success” we have. However, most students face these tests when it is too late.
The ideal practice is to perform small tests on a regular basis from the beginning of your study schedule to check and critically monitor your progress and act accordingly. This provides important benefits such as strong level of retention in terms of knowledge and information for a longer period or the reduction of stress levels.
3) Train your Mind
On many occasions, what really differentiates the most outstanding students is their emotional intelligence, that is, their ability to stay motivated and cope with stressful situations.
Therefore, you must learn to make use of your emotional intelligence, to neutralize or eliminate unfavorable paradigms and increase the strength of positive paradigms.
A good strategy to achieve this control is to approach our learning in an offensive way. Many students look at the subjects and think “I better study this in case it enters the exam”. With this attitude, the student is already saying that the only thing that matters is the exam itself. The chances of the material being assimilated and retained in memory are quite small. Instead, we recommend focusing on the intrinsic rewards of learning (the motivation to learn and improve) as your main study engine.
4) Do not compare yourself to anyone
It may seem ironic that one of the tips on how to learn to study better than 99% of your classmates is not to compare with them. However, success means a different thing for each person and does not necessarily have to come in the form of high notes.
Therefore, the best students do not look at what their partner next door is doing since they know that what matters, in the end, is their own success. In addition, the comparison can affect you negatively in the form of doubts, demotivation, and limitation of your creativity … so it is better to keep it on the sidelines.
5) Avoid Shortcuts
Following the line of the previous points, what really matters is you and your learning. Even if you know that you can find the answer of the exercise you are doing on the Internet or that you can copy from a partner, do not do it!
6) Improve your Communication
Although it may seem otherwise, the study is not an individual activity but a collaborative process. Therefore, we recommend you to develop a network of contacts (teachers, colleagues and any other person who may be interested in what you study) with which to communicate constantly to discuss ideas and share points of view.
Author Bio
Lara Hawkins is one of the best acclaimed and highly experienced professional in the domain of education management and career counseling. Lara started her professional journey from an assignment assistance company and excelled as a professional student counselor within a few years.
