Hack your mind: 13 tips to learn anything better
Just your luck to be stuck with a roommate that seems to have it all together all of the time. How in the world do they do it? All of their assignments seem to be on time. They seem to glide through their essays without banging their heads against the wall. Research seems to come easy to them, while it makes your eyes ache and your head feel like it’s going to blow up.
Sure you can continue to buy essays online, but just once, or maybe twice, wouldn’t you would like to be able to put the words together on your own and turn in a paper on time instead of a late paper coupon, if your professor is nice enough to give them out.
The secret that your roommate has in their college arsenal, is that they know how to learn. We all do it differently. Some of us are visual learners. We have to see how things are done in order to get it. Some of us are audio learners, hearing lectures is enough, as long as we take notes, and some of us learn through experience. Although the old saying is that “experience is the best teacher, actually it is a slow teacher when it comes to getting to the facts. You have to go through something in order to get to the same outcome that someone tried to lecture you into learning. Think about the warnings that your parents gave, and you didn’t listen.
Finding out what type of learner you are is the beginning of a light bulb moment for many. There are many essays online written about what kind of learner you are, but in the meantime absorb these little tricks that can help you along the path to a better learning experience.
Repetition
This trick always worked when you had to practice spelling words in grammar school, and it still works. Studies show that repeating something over and over again makes it stick to your brain like honey on a bear’s paws.
Using Your Body
While studying a certain author for example, or time period, pull on your earlobe and associate that person, or date that you have to remember with that body part. Actors have been utilizing this trick for years to remember their lines.
Comparison
Do not throw away any of your old essays. When you write essays, or buy essays online, they are always a way of relearning what you should and shouldn’t do. Professors have their little notes in the margins that you could go to for reference on a new project.
Group Think
Get into a study group. Start one with that roommate that seems to have it all together and ask questions. Don’t go it alone. There are many students just like you who are struggling and the strength of many will help those grades rise.
Professors Office Hours
After interviewing several Professors, it was revealed that the majority of students do not take advantage of their Professors office hours until the last week of class, when finals are upon them. Professors have those office hours for the purpose of helping their students succeed, well and to eat their stinky cheese. Use those times to get some one-on-one time with your professor. These are relationships that are priceless.
Take Notes
A college student reported that she was always taking diligent notes and she had a classmate that would take pictures of her note with their phone. One day the classmate that took the notes with the phone asked her what she had gotten on a recent exam. She proudly told her she aced it. The classmate that took the pictures of the notes however had gotten a B- and didn’t understand why. Notetaking makes you have to listen, and listening is a better form of concentration that just taking a picture.
Get your paper written by a professional
Record the Lecture
While you are taking notes, record the lecture also. You will have double the learning experience allowing the information to become even more concrete for you.
Get Rid of Distractions
When you get back to the dorm, leave your IPod, phone, and any other social media gadget in your bag until you are done studying.
Motivate Yourself with Inventive Games
After taking notes, and listening to lectures, create little quizzes for yourself on 3 x 5 cards. This trick is amazing and it really works. Remember flash cards your parents would buy for those pesky times tables in grammar school? Yeppers, same process.
Writing Essays for Practice
While you are in the lecture stage, write essays as you go along on the information that you already have. Review these mini-essays with your study group to get feedback.
Review Constantly
Go over your notes nightly at least 2-3 times. This will help you edit them and add info that you may have skimmed but find that you remember later.
Organize
You can never be to organized with your notes, books and schedule. Keeping yourself organized will keep you from buying essays online, not that it is a bad thing when you are in a pinch, but the goal is to accomplish a learning style so you can do them yourself and turn them in on time.
Value Your Time
This is the last one because it is the most important one. It’s okay to make friends in college, but if you have friends that are always interrupting your study time and want to hang out when they should be studying, it’s time for new friends.
Now get to work on those A’s!