How do you motivate yourself to study in tough times?

[sos]

i have a journal.Written in it are all my possible future predictions.....they expound on what I'd like to be maybe say a couple of years from now....so during tough times i just think about the targets I've set for myself in the near future and that helps me focus on my studies

[andre-nunes]

i have a journal.Written in it are all my possible future predictions.....they expound on what I'd like to be maybe say a couple of years from now....so during tough times i just think about the targets I've set for myself in the near future and that helps me focus on my studies

That's really good, we have trouble seeing our future self as something more than a stranger. We should see our future self as our best friend and do favors for him like we should do to any other friend. Be nice to our future self and be thankful of all the good things your past self did until you got where you are today, without your past self you wouldn't be anyone. You should also forgive yourself for the bad things that happened in the past.

Remember:

Do something good for your future self today.

Forgive your former self for making mistakes, procrastination and so on.

Thank your former self for doing something that got you closer to your life goals.

[Shamde]

Procrastination is my biggest enemy. It just seems to slip my mind that I should be studying. So I downloaded one of those apps that blocks certain websites. Now when I absent mindly try to go on facebook, it promptly shuts it down. That soon reminds me what I'm supposed to be doing.

[tikilalalove]

Uhhh! It's really hard for me to study! I'm really really lazy. But in order to motivate myself, I eat a lot then I get enough sleep! So when I'm up, I'm already energized and I was able to study well. I don't study for hours, only whenever I want. Because you can't learn if you're just pushing yourself to study.

[Oogles]

Focusing on reviewing notes is never easy to do, especially for those people who are like me and has no interest in tossing extra time in reviewing notes at home. But if I feel like I really need to study then I just tell myself that I should just suffer for a little bit rather than repeat the grade again and suffer longer.  :bored:

[dorannmwin]

Honestly, when I realize that I'm having a really hard time concentrating, I will take a break. I find that walking away from the things that are bothering me for a short period of time helps me to clear my mind and then when I come back to the work I am better able to concentrate on it.

[003]

I just keep on studying no matter how lazy or problematic I am. I forget a lot of things that's bothering me, even laziness. I don't try to think why I am doing the things I am doing, as when I do, I end up screwed. I also listen to music while I am studying to oil my pace and my study mood.

[HeyImLeeroy]

For me, if the trauma is emotional, I'd distract myself by focusing on studying for the exam.

LOL I've found that my reaction to emotional problems is like killing two birds with one stone.

It takes my mind off the problem long enough for it to be not a problem anymore and it helps me focus on studying too. Hahaha

[wander_n_wonder]

Sometimes, when I feel really tired or I'm having a bad day, I do give myself a chance to do a few cheats like missing my study schedule.  HOwever, I try not to do this often as I know it would break the habit.  Probably one cheat day in a month is ok.  I also do this as a reward to myself if I had worked pretty hard the past days.

[falcon001]

If you can't afford it, you can find a free course online, if you want, you can download a course from a pirate site. Most times the courses you pay have the same information you can find online for free. When I am sick I get angry before an exam because there isn't much you can do.

[FosterTXT]

When every am having a tough time studying, I always remind myself why I started learning a new language in the first place, and that is to speak with my aging grandfather who only knows Spanish. I don't know how much time he has left so that usually motivates me to study.

[TheStoryteller1]

For me, if the trauma is emotional, I'd distract myself by focusing on studying for the exam.

LOL I've found that my reaction to emotional problems is like killing two birds with one stone.

It takes my mind off the problem long enough for it to be not a problem anymore and it helps me focus on studying too. Hahaha

LOL...yeah I used to be like that. That's why getting into university was a blast instead of a problem for me:D.

However I have gotten into bigger problem period/issue. It's very complex, and it has many issues coming up all the time, and so sometimes it feels that I have to take time for that over everything else, or I should be using all my time to solve it(which of course doesn't help because it's an issue that needs time anyway). So while I am solving it, sometimes I can not concentrate on studies at all, because it doesn't feel like I can stop thinking about problems even for a moment...

It's been getting a little easier lately though, hope that continues....

Everyone seems to be doing a lot of great things this summer, and I am hoping one of my great things to be learning a bigger chunk of the languages I'm learning.

[calebmelvern]

Have you guys heard about the Pomodoro technique? I have been using this technique for several months now and it has improved my productivity by a lot. Basically, you work, study or do whatever you need for 25 minutes, take a 5 minute break and then start another 25-minute session. The idea is to work in short, productive bursts, and take multiple rests. I highly recommend this technique to anyone. Try it for at least a couple of weeks and see if it works for you.

[lei / Latifa]

I try to convince myself that studying is the only thing that matters. Once I complete the rest of school, none of this stuff will really matter. I feel you, it is so hard to study when your stress but sometimes you just have to tell yourself to do it.

[babyleans]

I usually talk to my Venezuelan friend and when i hear him speak Spanish so well, I just naturally get motivated!

[Trellum]

I don't need motivation because studying or focusing on reading gets my mind off things. I tend to forget my problems when I study my languages. I guess wanting to forget even for a while is large enough motivation for me to pick up my books.

Wow, you are lucky!  When I'm worried or just thinking about something else it's hella hard to focus on learning something, isn't cool. I actually need to have a mind free of worries and other distractions in order to learn, because i I don't then those things will surely get on my way.

[Baburra]

I just keep conscious of my goal and that is enough to keep me motivated through hard times. I have a dream of one day going to the countries of the languages I'm currently learning and I'm determined to be able to speak with the people there without having to resort to English.

[chigreyofthenorns]

For me, studying even if I have problems is more of a necessity than a choice. No matter how bad I feel, I still make sure that I spare some time to review my notes. To do this, I make imaginary boxes in my head. I put all my worries first inside a box to make room for new information. I compartmentalize a lot. This is a very important skill in my opinion not only in terms of studying but in someone's professional life or career as well.

[Amelie]

On 24/12/2013 at 10:52 AM, rodserd said:

When I was in college it was awful, I could never stay motivated.  My biggest problem was that everything came very easy to me (I know, complaining about the wrong thing, right?), which lead me to not being prepared for the really difficult classes I eventually had (since I did not build the correct foundations).

 

In my second BS, though, I am studying a lot of stuff I find interesting and challenging.  I think that is key for me, it has to hold my interest, and has to challenge me, or it will not win out against procrastination.

Oh gosh, it's like you're describing me! How has it been going so far? Is the new challenge keeping you interested and engaged? What other coping tools are you using?

My problem was so similar - I had it easy until high school, then when I got into a prestigious university, I couldn't keep up with my classmates. I knew they were all working hard to get ahead, but I couldn't follow suit because I didn't know how to. Until then, getting good grades was ridiculously easy. I really struggled for a long time.

[VinayaSpeaks]

It is really hard for me to stay motivated during though times. During my tough times, I try to assure myself that "tough times do not last,but tough people do." However, positive affirmation does not work for me. During tough times, my focus is to solve the main problem. I neither can work or can learn during the tough time, all I do is wait for favorable time so that I can start fresh.

[Milner77]

Stаy Fосusеd оn thе Big Piсturе!
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