You wake up motivated and promise yourself that you’ll study for at least 15 hours each day. But when you open your book, you find it difficult to focus. You spend most of your time daydreaming, scrolling Instagram, or drawing designs on the last page of your notebook. And you always end up wondering, “How can I concentrate on study?”
If you can relate, keep reading, as we’ll be discussing some of the most effective tips to stay focused while studying. Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Find the Right Environment to Study
A proper study environment is critical to staying focused while studying. If your study room is noisy and people keep coming in, you won’t be able to concentrate. You should ensure that no one enters your room when you’re studying. Importantly, your room should be noise-free. If there’s the sound of people and vehicles, concentrating will be difficult.
The next thing to focus on is your studying position. Many students study while lying on the bed, which is a terrible practice. It could make you feel lazy, and you might end up dozing off. Always study on a table and chair. Ensure that the chair is comfortable and the table is of the appropriate height.
Create a Routine and Stick to It
Once you have fixed your environment, the next you need to do is create a routine. Planning things is the key to productivity, regardless of whether you study, work, or do anything else. Let’s discuss the psychological aspects of productivity to understand this concept better.
Suppose you prepare to study in the morning. You sit on your desk to figure out what to study today. But what you see is dozens of thick books waiting to be opened. You’ll get overwhelmed, which leads to anxiety and distraction.
Instead, you should plan your day the night before. Before going to sleep, decide which subjects or topics you will study the next day. This way, you’ll know what exactly you need to do when you prepare to study.
Block Distractions to Concentrate on Study
Distractions kill focus. And in this gadget era, distractions have become too prevalent. If you check your phone every 15 minutes, you won’t be able to concentrate on studying. The same goes for other distractions. These include pets, kids, and even family members. Your study room should be minimalistic and only have things that you need to study.
While every person has their way of getting rid of distractions, you can follow these tips to get started.
- Keep your phone in another room if you don’t need it. If you must keep it nearby, turn off the notifications to minimize distractions.
- If you have pets, don’t let them stay in your room. The same goes for kids.
- Tell your family members not to disturb you when studying.
Embrace the Pomodoro Technique
The Pomodoro Technique is an advanced productivity concept that involves strategically taking breaks. The original Pomodoro Technique teaches you to do high-performance work (studying, in this case) for 25 minutes and take a break for 5 minutes. Repeat this cycle four times and then take a long gap of 20-30 minutes.
Now, there are two crucial things to keep in mind when following this technique.
- The 25 minutes should be highly productive. You should study the best you can during those minutes.
- Your breaks should add to your productivity. Don’t reach out for your phone during the break. Just close your eyes and take deep breaths. You can also stretch and do light physical exercises during the break to keep the blood flowing.
Here’s a helpful hack. You don’t necessarily need to follow the 25-5 cycle. Some people prefer 30-5, and some prefer 50-10. You need to try different combinations and figure out what works the best for you.
Find Your Productivity Hours
We all have different peak productivity hours. For some people, it’s right after they wake up. For some, it’s after breakfast. And for some people, it’s in the evening. You need to find the time when you are the most productive and study the most difficult subjects during that time.
In general, people are the most productive in the morning before they have breakfast. In fact, productivity experts state that people should plan their workday in an inverted triangle pattern. They should complete the most important tasks first and then come to less essential or easy things. This concept applies to studying as well.
Give Yourself Time to Concentrate on Study
Many students make this mistake. They start studying a few days before their exams and plan to finish the entire syllabus by that time. That’s not how it works. You need to give yourself time to study comfortably. When you study at the last moment, you have the pressure of studying everything.
Pressure isn’t good for studying and can lead to distractions. It’s best to start studying at least a month before your exams. This way, you’ll have enough time to study and revise your syllabus without studying at a stretch for long hours.
Multitask, if It Works for You
There’s a lot of debate on multitasking. Some people believe it kills your productivity, whereas others believe it can enable you to achieve more in less time. So, should you multitask or not? The answer is: it depends on what works for you.
Some students study well when they study multiple subjects in one day. For example, they study one subject in the morning, another in the afternoon, and another in the evening. On the other hand, some students spend the entire day studying one subject only.
There’s no right or wrong approach here, and you should do what works for you.
Conclusion: Concentrate on Study
Studying with concentration can be challenging for some students, and it boils down to poor planning and a distracting environment. By eliminating distractions and planning your study schedule, you can improve your concentration and study more efficiently. Also, don’t follow to take regular breaks and avoid studying at a stretch.
