1. Focusing On Things Outside of Your Control

It’s one week until you’re final exam or test, you haven’t even looked at the material that’s covered yet. Oh god, stress overload. Why didn’t I start studying earlier？You need to FOCUS on what you CAN DO and take back control over the situation. You still got a week left to work with.

2. Approaching Study as a Chore

There’s a BIG difference between HAVING or WANTING to do something. Do you have to study? No. You WANT to study. No one is forcing you to study and even if they try, you ultimately have the choice as to whether you will study or not. When you approach studying as something you WANT to do it’s a very subtle change that has a profound impact on how well you study.

3. Studying without Setting a Clear Goal

You need to know EXACTLY where you’re going and what you’re going to accomplish during your study session. And that brings us to our next point.

4. Not Utilizing Different Study Methods and Tools

Quizzing yourself and recalling answers is a great method for studying multi choice exams. Flash cards help tremendously with memorizing facts. Studying doesn’t ONLY mean reading text books, highlighting things, and re-reading your notes.

5. Copying How Other People Study

Some people are ‘geniuses’ that can read something just once and remember everything they read. We all have unique strengths and weaknesses - your job is to figure out what yours lie. Are you more visual, auditory, or kinesthetic? If you find reading textbooks difficult, switch over to audio material by listening to lectures and finding videos online.

6. Studying at the Worst Time

There are periods of time throughout the day when we’re MORE switched on, alert, and able to concentrate. You need to discover what the best times of the day are in order for you to concentrate.

7. Setting Yourself Up for Failure in Bad Environments

Make sure when you study with others they’re serious about studying and aren’t there to just goof off and socialize. Also make sure you hide your phone out of sight and put it on airplane mode so you aren’t tempted by it.

8. Studying like a Mad Man

You need frequent breaks to be able to concentrate. By taking a mini break then coming back to study, you’ll ‘refresh’ your ability to concentrate. Make sure you get enough rest and that you sleep well.

9. Finishing Study Sessions without Reflecting

You should reflect to learn more about how you best study. You need to take note of what worked and what didn’t work throughout your study session so you can make use of that knowledge in the future.

10. Misconstrued Views towards Study and Concentration

Studying and the ability to concentrate are SKILLS you should work on, hone, and craft over time. The ability to concentrate can be easily trained through meditation and other activities that require one to focus for a prolonged period of time.

11. Cutting Off Social Ties

Meet up with friends that leave you feeling like you have even more energy. You can bring this energy back to studying and you’ll be able to concentrate easier.

12. Remaining Sedentary

After you’ve spent a few hours studying take a longer break and go for a run, hit the gym, or play a sport with some friends. This WILL help you concentrate easier and allow you to study better.

13. Eating Junk Food

What you put in is what you get out. It’s as simple as 1 + 1 = 2.