I was an average student.
My grades were decent, neither the best nor the worst. Average. But I struggled to learn new things. Most of the time, I used to think I don’t have time to learn new things and never start anything. And consistency (you have to sacrifice your social life for studies).
Years later, after finishing high school, I realized just how wrong that belief was.
- You don’t need to be talented, because everyone starts from zero.
- You don’t need to sacrifice your social life to study all night long.
You need an effective learning system.
Just use it and I promise you will feel the difference almost immediately.
Why you don’t need more time
Imagine you want to build your muscles.
For simplicity, let’s assume you have two strategies. One is to work out every day to grow muscle mass as quickly as possible. Another way is to work out for a few days, rest, and then work out again, without any clear structure, but doing it consistently.
Which one do you think would be better?
Of course, the second approach seems more practical. But the first approach is temporary. Who wouldn’t want to grow muscle in just a few weeks? In fact, many people choose the second strategy, even unconsciously. And they kept doing so, saying they just needed more time.
If we don’t get the results we hope for, we believe we just need more time.
But not necessarily.
You don’t need to go too fast, or too slow. You just need a reasonable structure. It may not seem like much at the beginning. But big habits are build from atomic ones. In the end, small but smart decisions and actions can lead to big positive changes later on.
But there’s still a difference between doing it linearly or not.
Don’t see it as going from A to B, think of it like a decision tree.
A task is made up of many sub-tasks, but these sub-tasks will also lead to new tasks. A linear approach (the more I do this, the more successful I will be) doesn’t match reality.
That’s why you don’t need a lot of time or to be super consistent.
You need a learning system.
Towards a learning system
Think of it as a learning algorithm.
A flexible step-by-step guide to learning anything. With it, say goodbye to uncertainty and forcing yourself to study. You will become a more effective learner. More confident. And smarter.
To build a smart learning system with the decision tree approach, just focus on these three key elements:
- Meta-learning.
- Effective study strategies.
- Planned study sessions.
In short, meta-learning means analyzing in advance how knowledge is structured. For example, introductory biology is offered by university programs that focus on weekly lectures (cell basics, DNA structure, DNA replication, etc.).
Meta-learning gives you a huge advantage because it helps you understand how the topic is structured before you start learning.
Only when the information is structured should you study it. But remember, we don’t want a linear approach. We want a decision tree approach. More time and effort doesn’t necessarily make you a better learner, but having a system and an effective study strategy will make you a better learner.
These are retrieval, spaced practice, interleaving, etc. Trust me. I have wasted many hours of study time by focusing on rereading, highlighting, and revisiting. One hour of retrieval work, such as using flash cards or recalling from memory, felt as effective as four hours of passive study strategies.
The last element is planned study sessions. Never start studying without knowing what you are going to study. Never. Also, avoid planning for long study sessions. Taking breaks in between is more effective in the long run as our brain needs time to absorb, store, organize, and learn new information.
My advice
- Apply meta-learning. Understand how knowledge is structured. Use your course schedule and stick to it. If you don’t have a schedule, create one based on other university schedules. This will help you stay organized and know what to do next.
- Study with effective strategies. Avoid rereading, highlighting and revisiting. Use retrieval, spaced practice, interleaving, etc.
- Use Pomodoro to organize and plan your study sessions. Keep study sessions under 30 minutes.
Conclusion
Just spending time and working hard doesn’t always mean you’ll learn well.
Being a BSc student has taught me that it is more important to study smarter. Of course, this won’t always be easy. You will have to study hard, but effectively. This is very crucial. Studying hard doesn’t mean that you study for hours until burnout.
That’s why you need a learning system.
And that will change everything.