[obsidianstudy]

september 20, 2018

“yes, we’re all going to die someday. but i have a million things to do first.”

How I take notes in class

[shirouvscollege]

AND ACTUALLY, REMEMBER STUFF AFTER

Originally posted by autodidacting

1. Most of the times, you don’t have to. You might be thinking, okay then wtf is the point of this post? That’s a reasonable question. I would like to argue that more often than not, taking notes in the class didn’t help me that much, but sometimes, it really was useful. I didn’t realise this until one of my professors called me out on remembering a lot of the lecture despite not taking notes. I decided to do a little bit of research by myself and surprisingly, I wasn’t alone on this one. Bloomberg Business summarizes it: “The human brain, it appears, is wired to recognize when information is being documented, and to “intentionally forget” that info so as to be able to free up room for other things. The brain assumes that since the information is written down, there’s no need to remember it.” I would encourage you to actively engage with the lecture by questioning what is being taught, discussing and even experimenting. You’ll be surprised by how much your brain actually retains that way. 

2. If you really have to, use the chapter outline. No one has a perfect memory, and we’re not good at everything either. So sometimes I do take notes using the chapter outline, especially in subjects I don’t get a lot. You know that one page where they outline the chapters paragraph and give it numbers? It’s been extremely useful to me. Why? Because the paragraphs are usually named after the main ideas of the subject. Let me give you an example. One of my introductory classes was Marketing. The first chapter is named Wat is Marketing? The first paragraph is The definition of marketing, the second The marketing concept and the last one The role of marketing in a corporation. So knowing the answer to these 3 paragraphs should give you a strong idea of what marketing really is. A 20-page chapter was easily summarized in only 3 paragraphs. This saves me lots of time and I’m able to identify the most important info right away.

3. Always write information that is not in the books. Most professors usually paraphrase what is in the textbooks but sometimes they come with original content. These can be additional information, examples or mnemonics. I don’t write these in great detail. Usually, one sentence at the margin of the page or on a memo would do the trick to remind me about it. Be as short as possible not to fall behind in the lecture tho! 

4. Write in your own language. I get classes in Dutch but I write my notes in English. This helps me to truly understand what I’m learning and I’m able to remember faster too. 

In a nutshell, you don’t have to take lots of notes. If you do, try to write the information clearly, in a few words and fast. That way, you can engage with the information that is being presented. 

Anonymous asked:

I need tips on taking textbook notes please! I always get bored reading and then I end up just writing down bolded words with no context (which is really bad I know) any tips to help take more efficient textbook notes without having to spend hours (because I have 3 content heavy classes that I need to take notes for)

optomstudies answered:

Hi there! I know this post may feel basic, but I feel like you’re struggling with basic skills like summarising a topic and writing things in your own words, so I tried my best to explain things in a step-by-step action-oriented list so that you can stand on your own ‘feet’ when you’re studying :)

The Basics of Studying From a Textbook

1. The textbook may be boring, but you’ve still got to read it. 

Unfortunately, high school and university isn’t a walk in the park :( I know, some days it’s hard, but you’ve still got to put in at least a modicum of hard work if you want to do well. 

Sometimes, the studyblr community perpetuates the idea that there’s some sort of “secret” to being a straight-As, 4.0GPA, HD WAM student, but there’s only studying techniques to make things easier. You’re still going to need a basic level of motivation, discipline, time management, organisation and study in order to do well. 

So even though the textbook is boring, you’re either going to have to convince yourself that the topic is interesting, or pull up your socks, buckle down, and actually read it. 

2. Reading speed is a limiting factor on how fast you can take notes. 

Try reading the textbook without taking any notes and time how long it takes you. That’s going to be the minimum time it takes, so if doing all the reading for 3 content heavy courses takes at least an hour or two, then reading and taking notes is going to be much more than that (roughly more than double the time), so you can’t speed it up any faster than your base reading speed. 

I recommend trying speed reading techniques, but that would take a whole separate post, so I won’t go into that here. 

3. Learn how to summarise a topic. 

At the moment it seems like you’re struggling and not really understanding how to summarise topics, and just relying on the textbook to tell you what’s important. 

To summarise something, you’ll need to write down the key points (the most important information) from something that you read in the fewest number of words reasonable. I’m sure you already knew that, but you must not be putting it into practice because of what you’re telling me in your ask. 

4. Write things in your own words. 

Again, once you learn how to summarise, writing it in your own words will solidify that information in your brain. Explain the topic in layman’s terms to a family member, which forces you to use your own words. If you live alone, try a stuffed toy or rubber duck. 

5. Start off by annotating your class notes. 

I think initially you should start off with annotating just until you learn what information is important and what’s not. Class notes usually have 80% of the important information in brief points, and the textbook colours in the rest. 

6. Use the “gummy bears” method. 

I know it’s elementary, but you seemed to be having trouble with discipline and boredom, so place gummy bears on every paragraph as a crutch to get yourself to finish reading everything. Once you train yourself to do things that you don’t want to do, then you won’t have to use any cheap tricks, as you’ll be disciplined enough to read pages and pages without needing constant “carrot on a stick” rewards. 

Once you’ve done those, here are my masterposts for content heavy courses:

Studying Content Heavy Courses

• Use my Unique Automated Study Planner Printable which uses spaced repetition to make you remember more strategically!
• Content Heavy Courses Study Guide - biology used as an example
• Self Studying Advice - when you have to study a lot by yourself
  
• Staying Productive No Matter How Much Time You Have
  
• The Blank Paper Method - for rote learning lots of information
• Part 11 Adapting to Uni Study - university basically mandates studying a large amount of info in a short period, so you’ll find this post useful for balancing 6 heavy courses!
• Part 12 How to Study From Textbooks in Uni
  

Hope that helps!!

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Follow optomstudies for daily original posts and study masterposts!
Links: all originals + langblr posts + 15-part college 101 series + web directory!

[bookbearstudies]

After finishing my fall semester, I have decided to compile some study strategies that will hopefully help any other college students out there (especially the premeds). These tips helped me get a 4.0 at an Ivy League school.

1. Cornell Note-taking is KEY. Especially if you use the question-answer format. For example, for my Biology class, I took notes on the lectures in the question-answer format. By covering one side with my hand and answering the questions out loud every day, I aced all the midterms and the final.
2. Study every day or at least most days. Trust me, cramming everything at the end is not fun. It may have worked well for a high school class but college classes have so much more material and it’s not worth it.
3. If you live on your college campus, I recommend finding a study spot that not many undergraduates or your classmates use. Whenever I go to the most popular study spot at my school, I can practically feel the stress in the air and I just cannot focus. On the other hand, if that kind of thing motivates you, go for it.
4. HYDRATE!
5. For papers and essays, write your drafts as early as you can and then go to your professor’s office hours. They will appreciate the time and effort you’re putting into the assignment. For my Writing class, I went to my professor’s office hours every week and kept asking her to look over my essay. I can guarantee I definitely wasn’t the best writer in that class but she appreciated the effort I put in and gave me an A.
6. For STEM courses or problem set heavy courses like Econ or Math, practice problems and office hours are so important. If you have practice problems in your textbook, do ALL OF THEM. I know it sucks and it can be terribly boring but it will pay off! Also, if you do not understand something on your homework, go to the professor’s office hours. Most of the time, you and the professor will solve it together and then you will definitely have the right answer (This is so perfect if your homework is graded on accuracy rather than completion).
7. Be friendly to the TA. Even if you are going to miss a recitation or two, make sure you ask questions and participate in the ones that you attend. That way, the TA will recognize your face when it comes time to put in your participation grade or give you a bonus point or two on your exam.
8. When you are in class, especially large lecture halls where the professor cannot see what you are doing, turn off your phone or put it on silent. Then stuff it in the deepest part of your bag. Do not look at it until the lecture is over. If you take notes on the computer, turn off your WiFi and take notes on Word.
9. Life is too short not to party a little. Remember to spend some time with your friends or go out every once in a while. I have found that taking a few nights off helps keep me from becoming burnt out.
10. Always remember that you are extremely lucky for being able to get an education. There are thousands of people who do not have this kind of opportunity. College can definitely be hard and I have had some bad days but in the end, mistakes help you learn. It is better to fail at something new you tried than never do it at all and never learn from it.

Thanks for reading! Hope you all have a wonderful Spring semester!

[schoollifeandstuff]

As you all know the secret to all memorization is revision. Revising can’t always be done the night before unfortunately, but has to be scheduled. Sometimes I find scheduling my studies quite hard, especially during stressful times. Here are some resources that can help you with scheduling your studies.

Making a study plan

• Study plan lay out (1) (2) (3) (4)
• Prepare for finals week video
• Study plan by an oxbridge student
• Study plan by a med student
• Schedule your school calendar
• Creating long term study plans
• Study plan printable

Ways of planning

• Bullet journal 
• Passion planner
• Choose the right planner
• Weekly 
• Daily
• Monthly
• To -do lists
• Minimalist planning

Balancing social life and studying in your study plan

• Finding time to study
• Save time during the week
• Organizing your life
• Balancing school life and social life
• Managing a heavy workload
• Make the most out of your day
  
• When you have a bad day

Useful apps/web resources for making a study plan

• App plan 
  
• Google calendar
• Calendars 5
• Forest
• Wunderlist
• Momentum
• Omnifocus
• Study apps

Other productivity tips

• 14 productivity hacks 
  
• Time management 
• Due vs do dates
• Stop procrastinating
• 5 minutes for a more productive day
• How to focus when a million things seem to happen at the same time
• Productivity masterpost
• The 2 minute rule
• Pomodoro method
• 5 tips for staying productive
• A question about productivity
• Stay productive when you are sick

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Guide #1: Reducing Distractions and Staying Focused

[attackonstudying]

Focusing is an action that is difficult to execute due to the number of distractions in your life.  You try your hardest to work on your paper, assignment, project … but, you just get distracted. Your attention diverges. It does not matter whether you use your phone for a few seconds to search up a word on Google. Next thing you know, you autopiloted onto your favourite sites when you should be focused on the work in front of you.

These are some focus tips that work for me. Hopefully, you will be able to apply some of them to enhance your focus skills and reduce those distractions in your life.

1. Before you start your task, gather all the materials that you need for it. Paper, stationeries, syllabus … put those items within an arm’s reach so you do not have to get up whilst you are studying/working on a task.

2. Making a to-do list of tasks.

It’s important to know what you want to spend your time working on. The best way to keep track of your progress is to make a to-do list.

What do you wish to accomplish? How would you go about doing so? Can you break it up into small tasks?

• Do not try to tackle the entire assignment/problem in one shot. You can finish any task by tackling the small tasks that make up that big project. As long as you are making progress, you will be able to complete the task.
  

3. If you need to use the Internet, then use it. But, as soon as you finish researching, looking up code on StackOverflow for example, turn off the Wifi if you do not need it. The Internet is a wonderful place full of knowledgeable content, but it can get distracting.

• During your focus time, you can use website/app blockers like Self Control, LeechBlock … to prevent you from autopiloting onto those social media sites and other frequently used sites.
  

4. Regarding Phones and Tablets: If you find yourself using Reddit, Facebook, Instagram … when you are supposed to be working on something else, you might want to uninstall those apps from your phone. You can always access the sites on your laptop or even from the web browser.

• When you delete the apps, you are removing the convenience and rewiring your brain to stop just launching the app when you are simply bored.
  

5. Notifications. Most of the applications nowadays automatically have the notification enabled by default. At times, it might be useful. For example, to know if you have a missed call from someone… But, most of the time, it’s a distraction. Do you really need to know in real time that someone liked your photo or followed you? Probably not.

• You can reduce your distractions by disabling notifications for those social media apps, game apps and most of your other apps. I tend to have my phone on Airplane Mode whilst I study. This way, I am sure that I get absolutely no distractions during my focus time. It might be a bit extreme, but it works.
  

6. Use a Pomodoro Timer. You most likely have heard of this timer before. There are numerous apps available for free which implements the Pomodoro Timer. I suggest that you give it a shot if you haven’t heard of it. You can adjust the amount of study-time/focus-time and break time to your liking with some Pomodoros.

• The important idea is that during that allocated time block, you focus on one sole task and give it your absolute all. Do not try to multitask.

• I do not consider listening to music and doing your homework multitasking since listening to music is a passive activity. But, surfing Reddit whilst doing your homework is considered multitasking because scrolling is not a passive activity.
  

7. Sleep. It is important to get enough sleep each night. Your body cannot thrive on only 5 hours of sleep. It might work for a day or two, but it will damage your focus. Try to aim for 7-8 hours of good sleep.

• I have had my fair share of experience where I believed that getting 4 hours a sleep a night is enough. I wanted to be more productive during the day, but I burnt out after a while due to lack of sleep.
  

You can use this Bedtime Calculator to calculate those REM cycles: http://sleepyti.me

** This is especially important during Final week/Midterm week. You can cram study and pull an all-nighter, but it is extremely risky taking an examination in that condition. A good night sleep is a must before those examinations if you want to perform at your optimal level.

8. Take Breaks.

Focusing is difficult. After a few hours, it becomes almost impossible to concentrate on a task. Taking breaks (included in the Pomodoro Timers) is a good way to let your mind rest for a bit. Stop for a bit on the task. Put all the stuff away and just breathe.

• My favourite way of spending breaks is reading material unrelated to school, playing video games or simply let my mind wander.
  

9. Locations. You might have a study space. Whether its the library, at home … If you start getting distracting from your frequented study space, perhaps changing locations can help. It will help break out of your normal routine.

10. Stopping Point. It is important to know what your limits are. If you are dozing off, unable to concentrate on the material and are rereading the page a couple of times because your brain is not comprehending the text, it might be time to take a small nap. Or, simply stop for the day.

You can always pick up where you left off the next day. Just note down what you have left to go somewhere and relax a bit. You deserve it after spending your energy focusing on the task at hand.

If you ever wish to buy me a coffee to support me, Buy Me a Coffee 

Best of Luck.

You get better every time you do something difficult. Your standards of difficulty rises and you will gradually improve.

My Professor (via attackonstudying)

top 5 videos that make me want to study

[thomastudies]

hey guys, on my instagram i asked if people wanted to see videos that motivate me studying, pushing my limits, and most important help me stop procrastinating. so here is my top 5 videos, hope you like them! (instagram: thomreads)

video number one: The ABCs of SUCCESS - Amazing Motivational Video for Students, Studying & Success in Life

video number two: Grey’s Anatomy, Cristina Yang: “Be unstoppable.”

video number three: Legally Blonde - I’ll show you how valuable Elle Woods can be!

video number four: Michaela Pratt | That’s My Girl (How To Get Away With Murder)

video number five: From FAILING STUDENT to ROCKET SCIENTIST - The Motivational Video that Will Change Your Life

bonus video: Rory’s system to study her finals (Gilmore Girls)

mobile.nytimes.com

Being a Doctor Is Hard. It’s Harder for Women. - The New York Times

[texanmdtobe]

Important reading

[descantforhope]

File under “no shit, Sherlock”

[md-admissions]

The fact that every single female med student, intern, resident, fellow, and attending has multiple stories of being discredited or disrespected for simply being a woman. Every. Single. One. Including. Me. It is absolutely harder to be a woman in medicine.

[soothingsuggestion]

work hard now. stay up those extra hours studying for that test. rewrite your notes by hand. read the textbook again. go over your flash cards a second time. it is tough but nothing can beat the feeling of getting a grade you worked hard for and earned. you can do it, i believe in you.