Asperitas And Mammatus

some things i’ve learned while studying in quarantine

drink more water instead of more coffee.

weekly goals are bullshit. set yourself 3-day goals. you’ll be less laid-back.

don’t just mindlessly stare at words. before you start studying, know your approach to it. have a plan.

summarizing the concept in your own words is the key part of taking notes. don’t just copy things down, convert them into your own way of talking, your own vocabulary, no matter how dumb and unprofessional it sounds.

don’t let the “studyblr aesthetic” fool you. studying doesn’t have to be pretty. summaries and notes can be messy as long as they’re comprehensible. you can always rewrite and reorganize them later. (honestly, you better do. and you better keep them.)

don’t throw away the papers you’ve solved your problems in. staple them to the fucking textbook. you need to see them constantly. cause you’ll need reminders of how far you’ve came, when you’re feeling discouraged.

don’t be an armchair analyst for your issues. if you have an idea then act on it.

remember: the exact point where it becomes difficult, is where your growth begins. take a deep breath, and try to focus on the paragraph in front of you.

get off your high horse and understand that if you’re a zero, you won’t go to 100 in a couple of days. first, you’ll need to reach 30, then from 30 to 60, and then from 60 to 90. nobody is 100 everyday. that happens very rarely.

you need to have fun everyday. you need to have peaceful time every single day. even on exam night. especially on exam night, actually. so make sure you’ve studied enough so you can have some time to yourself.

once you’re on a roll and in need of some challenge to stay on track, start writing down your studying hours. tell yourself you’re not allowed to do less than 80% of what you did yesterday. whatever the hell it was, even just one hour. so if yesterday you really studied for like, say 8 hours, today your goal is to study for at least 6 and a half hours. if you can’t keep up with that, make it 70%, or 60%. 

be forgiving of yourself. be kind to yourself. even if you bounced back and lost your streak. start again. as slowly as you did before. take your time. it’s okay, you were there once you can get there again.

Advice for studying in lockdown

Get yourself a thermos or insulated pitcher. Fill it with hot water. Bring a mug and a few tea bags back to your room. Now you have a day’s worth of hot tea at your fingertips.

Get away from the computer and take some pen-and-paper notes. I know it may be tempting to just stare at your screen all day, but any chance to rest your eyes is a good one.

On that note, invest in some computer glasses, or a blue light filter program for your computer. We’re all in the digital realm these days, and protecting our vision is important.

If you need to, set yourself a weird sleeping schedule. All of my classes are in the afternoon or evening, due to classmates in other time zones. I stay up til 2:00 am and sleep in until 10:00 am or later most days.

Have different clothes set aside for class. I understand the temptation to show up to that Zoom call in your pajamas, really I do. But your mind connects certain physical objects with certain activities, and it can be difficult to truly wake up when you’re giving your brain signals that it’s time to sleep.

For the same reasons, do not study in your bed. If you get sick of your desk or table, try spreading out on the floor instead.

Do not check the news before studying or class time. You will be distracted, anxious, and unable to focus. Get your own day in order first, then worry about what’s going on outside.

If you are struggling to feel productive even while you’re getting your schoolwork done, take breaks to do chores. It means you’re still getting things done, but you’re switching from mental progress to physical, tangible progress.

Go sit outside for a while. Leave your phone in the house and just sit on the front porch, or in the back garden. Being shut inside is not good for creatures like us, so we need all the sunshine and fresh air we can get.

Please, for goodness’ sake, do not compare yourself to other people. For every blogger out there proudly posting 3 pictures a day of their immaculate, artistic, detailed notes, there’s two dozen who have gotten absolutely nothing done and feel like shit because of it. Other people’s success is not your failure. We are all struggling right now, even those of us who are good at hiding it.

I may come back and color this at a later date, but here’s a little dragon flying around. No particular reason! Just some recreational drawing. :)

SCHOOL CHEAT SHEET!!

soothe yourself | self care

stationery  

printables

helpful sites

music for studying | more music

note taking methods  | another one

studying methods

english | physics | chemistry | biology | maths | languages 

how to learn a language

ultimate guide for writing | writing resources | writing helps | tips for writers

how to write a kickass essay | write a great essay | stuff you need to write essays | essay tips | essay checklist | grade your essay

how do I study for…

bullet journals | a guide to bullet journals

the testing effect

everything you need to succeed in school

time management

organisation

how to annotate | another one

guide to aesthetically pleasing notes | improve your handwriting

create a study guide

resources | helpful websites | there’s an app for that

get more out of google 

productivity resources | 14 apps to become productive | how to stay productive

lazy night owl school survival guide

apps for a better life | useful websites for students

masterpost of studying tips

social media citation guide

college masterpost | another one | starting college on the right foot | packing for college | how to survive in college

how to ace that college interview

food to stay motivated | motivation guide

how to stay awake in class

balancing a healthy lifestyle

studying on your period

huge masterpost for the semester

a very long list to help you survive school

not enough time to finish an assignment?

100 delicious cheap recipes 

53 posts for students

high school cheat sheet

other cheat sheets

Every single odd number has an “e” in it.

mmmmmm

Colleagues AUs

We have to do a project together and it’s like the group projects in school: one is doing the work and the other one’s only sitting around and comments on everything.

We’re sharing a small office and we always fight about the temperature.

There is only one copy room on our floor and we both have to copy something, but someone’s obviously having a good time in there, so we both stand there awkwardly and wait for them to finish.

You took the last bit of coffee and didn’t make a new one. That’s unacceptable.

Since you started working here you never stopped asking me out for lunch and it always seemed like a joke to you, so today I say yes and wait for your reaction.

The company is searching for a new slogan and made a competition out of it for their employees and we both want to win the car that the winner is getting.

I hear you swearing at your computer because it doesn’t open your mail account, move over, I’m going to fix it.

One of the colleagues is retiring and we were supposed to order a cake and forgot about it, the party starts in half an hour, we have to do something!!!

You can find more prompts on my sideblog: creativepromptsforwriting

Some idioms and phrases you should know about part I

Salt of the earth: a very good or worthy person.

Gut-wrenching: making you feel very upset or worried.

Make a spectacle of yourself: to do something that makes you look stupid and attracts people’s attention.

Pass muster: be accepted as adequate or satisfactory.

Putty in someone’s hands: easily influenced by someone else, excessively willing to do what someone else wishes.

Look before you leap: carefully consider the possible consequences before taking action.

Set the wheels in motion : to do something that will cause a series of actions to start.

Off the books: without being included on official records.

A long Haul: something that takes a lot of time and energy.

An end in itself: a goal that is pursued in it’s own right to the exclusion of others.

Night owl: a person who prefers to be awake late at night.

Kick the Bucket: to die.

Alter Ego: a person’s secondary or alternative personality immediately or extremely quickly; at once.

Freak of Nature: something or someone that is unusual, rare, or abnormal in some way / To avoid attracting attention to yourself.

Oooh, I tried this method in first year physics too! It was very effective, since I got fine details from the pre-reading, which was supplemented during the lecture! This method worked fantastic (as long as I kept a routine)! Good luck with it!

aug 25, 2021

✨2/30 days of productivity✨

started taking notes on QM today. i think i figured out how i want to take notes this year (at least in this course); reading and taking a bit of notes pre lecture and then i made a column of space for adding things during the lecture so i don’t have to write everything down during the lecture, only the things i missed in my notes! this way i can focus more on listening and understanding during the lecture, i damn hope it works lol