10 Study Tips or Brace Yourselves, Exams are Coming!/10 nasvetov, kako preživeti izpitno obdobje

Photo by: Simon Kociper

Here it is! When December's jingle bells are silent, New Year's glam is washed off and January's depression becomes a routine... we slowly gaze into »that time of the year« (which is darker than some places above the Arctic circle in winter time). Exam period. I want to share my top 10 study »hacks« with you because it is just too easy to go completely mental during that period. With these 10 tips you can also make it a bit fun! Wait...what?

Pa je tukaj. Po tem, ko se je decembrski živ-žav umiril, novoletni »glam« izbrisal in ko januarska depresija postane rutina, za nas študente napoči »tisti čas v letu« (bolj temačen od 6 mesecev mraka na Severu). Izpitno obdobje. Z vami bom delila 10 nasvetov, ki vam bodo pomagali prebroditi to »krizno« obdobje in morda vam bo učenje postalo celo zabavno. Zabavno?!

1)      Don't study.

Yes, you heard me. Who said you HAVE to do it? You can just close your  books like a boss and order another beer at the downtown pub and not give a rat's ass about your future. But at this point you should know better, right? We can't all be models and movie stars and politicians and Kardashians. Some of us will just have to work our ways up. I heard the view is glamorous from up there.

1)      Ne uči se

Prav si razumel/a. Kdo pa je rekel, da se MORAŠ učiti?  Knjige lahko zapreš v tem trenutku in greš v mesto na pivo. Briga te za svojo prihodnost! Ampak na tej točki se že zavedamo, da ne moremo vsi biti profesionalni fotomodeli, filmske zvezde, politiki ali Kardashianovi. Nekateri si moramo pot do zvezd utreti sami. Slišala sem, da je razgled od tam gori fenomenalen...

2)      Clean your studying space

I did not say clean your room or even clean your desk. Clean your space, wherever that may be. Find some place where you feel comfortable, it doesn't matter if that place is under your desk, in the bathroom (?) or in your neighbors kitchen. I always study in my bed, so this is my personal studying space. It's so warm and  so comfortable I could simply...No, you can't doze off, you have a bunch of work to do! So I always make sure my bed area is clean and I open my windows for a while so I get some fresh air in. I have my notes and books nearby, my markers lying around; basically everything I need while I actively study.

2)  Pospravi svoj prostor za učenje

Nisem rekla, da moraš temeljito pospraviti svojo sobo, niti svoje mize pravzaprav. Pospravi prostor, v katerem se učiš, pa naj bo to kjerkoli. Morda se počutiš udobno pod mizo, v kopalnici (?) ali v sosedovi kuhinji. Moj prostor za učenje je moja postelja. Je topla in udobna, tako da bi lahko...Ne! Ne moreš zaspati, imaš še veliko dela. Jaz poskrbim da je okolica moje postelje urejena, za nekaj časa odprem okna, da je v sobi svež zrak. Zapiske, knjige in pisala imam zraven sebe, tako da imam na voljo vse za učinkovito učenje.

3)      Doping

Just kidding. But after hours and hours of studying you will probably feel the need to get 6 red bulls right into your veins. But you don't want to break your New year-New (healthy) me resolution, right? So don't drink that poison that tastes like-bubble-gum went wrong, try coffee instead. Just not the one in shiny packaging like Chococcino and Bananaccino and Whatnotccino. Coffee should be like your soul. Black but amazing (totally kidding, I am writing this while I took a break from studying, so I might still be a bit dizzy). Coffee is like middle-healthy; somewhere in between. If you want to be like a level-pro healthy, try some green tea. It is accompanied by bunch of antioxidants. Period.

3)  Doping

Hecam se. Toda po urah in urah učenja boš verjetno začutil/a potrebo po dozi 6 red bullov instantno v žilo; vseeno pa ne želiš prelomiti novoletnih zaobljub glede bolj zdravega življenja. Torej namesto da spiješ pločevinko tega strupa (ki ima mimogrede okus po postanih žvečilnih gumijih), poskusi s kavo. Toda ne s tisto, ki jo dobiš v bleščečem pakiranju (Čokočino ali Bananačino, ker je to samo sladkor pomešan z umetnimi aromami, o kavi pa ni niti sledu). Kava mora biti črna, kot tvoja duša. Šalim se, tole pišem medtem, ko sem si vzela nekaj odmora od učenja in se mi verjetno še malo vrti. Kava je nekako srednje zdrava izbira, če pa želiš biti popolnoma zdrav/a na profesionalnem nivoju, izberi rajši zeleni čaj. Antioksidanti. Pika.

Photo by Sindiana Jones

4)      Watch Gossip Girl

Back when I was young, that was my motivation. Now it is probably Game of Thrones or Narcos or whatever you like too. I always hated math. Still do, will do. However, I tricked myself into actually liking (brr) math, at least for a few days. Because I was really into Gossip Girl at that time (still do, will do) but had to take »the matura exam« (it's something like finals here in Slovenia) in a few days,  I created a little routine: 1 chapter of math, 1 episode of Chuck Bassssssss. It worked! I was really motivated, because I knew that after some »hard« work, I get my reward. Not to mention, I passed math. Forever. That really was one of my inexplicable personal records in like...ever.

4) Glej Opravljivko

Ko sem bila jaz še mlada, je bila to moja motivacija. Sedaj so bolj popularne serije kot Game of Thrones, Narcos in podobno. No, nazaj k temi. Vedno sem sovražila matematiko. Vedno sem, vedno bom. Kakorkoli, izmislila sem si trik, kako vsaj za nekaj dni vzljubiti (brr) matematiko. Ker mi je bila nanizanka Opravljivka zelo všeč in sem čisto »padla noter«, sem jo gledala brez pavz. Ampak sem imela čez nekaj dni maturo iz matematike in sem morala kvalitetneje preživeti čas (beri: ponavljati matematiko noč in dan). Ker pa sem želela delati oboje hkrati, sem se domislila trika, kako to lahko izvedem: ustvarila sem si mini-rutino: 1 poglavje matematike, 1 epizoda Opravljivke. Delovalo je! Bila sem zelo motivirana, saj sem vedela, da me po nekaj napornega učenja čaka nagrada v obliki serije, ki mi je všeč. Tudi matematiko sem naredila. Za vedno. To je še vedno moj osebni rekord vseh časov na veke vekov.

5) Make stories out of it

While studying, I always liked to create little scenarios behind the »science«. So I could make an amazing documentary out of my history exam and an Oscar-winning movie out of my heavy literature books. Use your imagination. And of course, you have to be at least semi-interested in what your are studying, so I hope you already found what makes your life complete. Besides Netflix and pizza. (Omg Netflix and pizza!:( I miss the times when life was a holiday and I had all the freedom!)

5)  Izmisli si scenarij

Medtem ko se učim, si snov rada zamišljam kot določen scenarij. Tako sem si iz gradiva za zgodovino delala v glavi neverjetne dokumentarce in iz leposlovja filme, ki bi lahko dobili oskarja. Uporabi svojo domišljijo! Seveda pa moraš biti vsaj malo zainteresiran/a za snov, ki se jo učiš. In verjamem, da si na tej točki že na pravi študijski poti in da delaš nekaj, kar te izpopolnjuje. Seveda poleg pice in Netflixa. (Netflix in pica!:( Kje so časi, ko je bilo življenje še brezskrbno!)

6)      Social media

Put that thing away. I mean it. All that buzzing is really deconcentrating (although very appealing!) while actively studying. My friend is always deactivating her Facebook account and deleting all her social media apps from her phone in exam period. I worship her. She is my goddess. This seems like a good idea for all the social media addicts; a bit radical though, but brilliant. Unfortunately, I can't do that, since I have to (I don't have to, I want to) write my blog, post it to Facebook, answer some e-mails, answer bunch of private messages, stay in touch with followers on Snapchat and regularly post on Instagram and after I am done, I do that thing all over again while I get inspired for my next posts. I am NOT complaining, but time management during exam period is really challenging and sometimes I wish I could take a »social media holiday«. But then I get the sweetest comment from one of my followers and life is just amazing and all my struggling pays off.

6) Družabna omrežja

Odklopi se. Resno mislim. Vso to piskanje je zelo dekoncentrirajoče, čeprav zelo privlačno, če damo na tehtnico učenje in Instagram. Moja dobra prijateljica si vsakič med izpitnim obdobjem deaktivira socialna omrežja. Občudujem jo. Imam jo za boginjo. To se mi zdi odlična ideja za vse nas, ki smo nekako odvisni od socialnih omrežij. Na žalost, se jaz ne morem (nočem) odpovedati blogu in vsem zadevam, ki vključujejo blog: pisanje objav, objava linkov na Facebooku, odgovarjanje na e-pošto,  odgovarjanje na zasebna sporočila, ostati v stiku s sledilci na Snapchatu in vsakodnevno objavljanje na Instagramu. In ko to naredim, se krog ponovi, med tem pa moram iskati tudi inspiracijo za nadaljnje objave. Se absolutno NE pritožujem, želim samo izpostaviti, da si je med izpitnim obdobjem potrebno narediti  nek »urnik« in se ga doslednjo držati. Verjamem, da bi bilo lažje, če bi si lahko vzela mesečni dopust od socialnih omrežij. Ampak ko dobim naslednji vzpodbuden komentar od katerega ali katere od svojih sledilcev, čutim, da je moj trud poplačan.

Photo by Sindiana Jones

7)      Eat, sleep, gym, repeat

Your body is under a lot of stress in exam period. You have to provide the right nutrition, sleep ENOUGH, do some exercise and take your breaks seriously. After that, take your studying seriously. No fast food, no Coca-cola and no whining about how life is unfair. All that energy can be spent on the treadmill and after you are physically exhausted, it is time to start your brain activity.

7) Jej, spi, telovadi, uči se

Tvoje telo je izpostavljeno velikemu stresu med izpitnim obdobjem, zato ga moraš še posebej negovati v tem času: jej zdravo, SPI DOVOLJ, vzami si čas za telovadbo, da telo pretegneš in vzemi odmore med učenjem resneje.  Ko si odpočiješ, je spet čas za aktivno učenje. Med tem res ne potrebuješ hitre, mastne hrane, Coca-cole in pritoževanja, kako življenje ni fer. Vso to nakopičeno energijo lahko sprostiš na tekalni stezi in po tem, ko si fizično utrujen/a, je spet čas za možgansko aktivnost.

8) Listen to Metallica

...or something else that keeps you calm and focused. You can also listen to silence, it is very refreshing.

8) Poslušaj Metallico

...ali kakršnokoli glasbo, ki te pomirja in ki ti pomaga pri koncentraciji. Lahko poslušaš tudi tišino za spremembo, včasih prav paše.

9)      Motivational quotes

You heard about Pinterest, right? So instead of looking for style inspiration, home-decor or make-up tips, look for some work motivation! It really helps when I loose my motivation. I just »pin« some powerful quotes and I feel like I am back on the track really fast.

9) Motivacijske misli

Saj si že slišal/a za Pinterest, kajne? Torej namesto da brskaš tam za nekimi stajlingi, idejami za dekoracijo doma ali nasvete glede ličenja, poišči neke misli povezane z delom in učenjem, ki te bodo motivirale. Meni to zares pomaga, ko malo zatavam z mislimi in izgubim motivacijo.

10)      Believe in yourself

You CAN do it. Be confident. You studied enough, you slept enough, you got this. And if by some odds you fail, it's not the end of the world. You can try again. Or perhaps again. Until you do it. Because you can! If plan A didn't work, the alphabet has 25 more letters. 

10) Verjemi vase

Zmoreš to. Bodi samozavesten/na. Učila si se dovolj, spal/a si dovolj, zmoreš to. In če slučajno izpita ne narediš, ni konec sveta. Lahko poskusiš ponovno. In znova. Dokler ga ne narediš. Ker zmoreš to! Če plan A ne deluje, ima abeceda še 24 črk. 

Photo by Sindiana Jones

Good luck on your exams! I believe in you.

Vso srečo na izpitih! Jaz verjamem vate!