Student life is a tough one. It’s a stage of life where you’re allowed to freely experiment with things and create new experiences and opportunities. And of course, mistakes are inevitable. Learning from your mistakes is the best way to better yourself. Treat this like an epiphany! But what if you don’t realize your error?
Here are 10 common mistakes students should never make.
Skipping Meals
A nutritious meal does a lot more than just keep your stomach from growling.
In the daily hustle of a student, you might find yourself choosing between a meal and an assignment that was due the day before. Go for a plate of food, you’ve missed the deadline anyway! You might think skipping meals to finish your tasks would force you to do better, but it won’t. Hunger is not a good motivator. It’ll leave you irritable and insatiable.
In the long run, missing out on important meals has quite a list of disadvantages. Its adverse effect on your health is not worth the trouble.
Depending On Processed Food
One of the worst things you could do to yourself is consume processed food.
As a student, your busy schedule may not always allow a lot of spare time for menial tasks. It’s not surprising to have no time to cook a full meal and depend on packaged food and takeout. Not every processed food item is unhealthy. It’s understandable that processed food is affordable and difficult to avoid. But a diet consisting of only heavily processed food is damaging to your health. Consumption of junk and non-nutritious food stunts mental and physical growth. Highly processed foods have a high content of trans fats, sodium, sugar, refined carbs, and artificial ingredients. All of which are bad in excess.
Not Taking Notes in Class
Students who take notes in class are reported to recall more information than those who don’t take notes.
Making notes in class encourages students to actively engage with the topic of discussion. Note-taking is a useful skill and there’s a technique for it.
Don’t write down everything you hear the speaker say verbatim. Notes taken using this technique are lengthier and hence harder to decipher later on. Writing as the speaker talks often leads to incomplete notes because it isn’t easy to keep up with everyone’s pace.
Instead, be selective about the information you see and hear. Choose the important points. This technique naturally makes you think about what had been spoken in class during revision. This helps strengthen your memory.
Only Re-Reading Notes
Although a popular technique, re-reading notes is neither productive nor an effective way to study.
Re-reading is generally skimming through the text. It is a passive activity. This would be ideal only when you’re trying to build a basic idea of a new topic that is yet to be taught. When you re-read your notes, you’re misleadingly satisfied. You may recognize a particular word but not understand its meaning or purpose. The sentences may look familiar, giving you a false feeling of security.
Consider adopting newer, more effective ways of studying.
Memorizing Without Understanding
Memorizing course materials without understanding falls under the rote learning method. And the eternal question before students remains – Does rote learning help in the long run? Memorizing your notes right before an exam may help you pass them. Remembering large chunks of information doesn’t equate to understanding it.
A course is designed to offer multiple learning outcomes. To make the most out of it, it’s much more beneficial to understand the concept instead of parroting it. When you understand, you’re able to apply knowledge. Otherwise, memorization doesn’t do any good beyond passing a class.
Procrastinating Until the End
The bigger the task, the more energy and time it takes to be completed. Naturally, a lot of students would try to avoid difficult assignments and keep pushing them back. However, this just increases the workload and shoots your stress levels up. Postponing once will lead to a cycle of procrastination. Sometimes, you might fail to plan your day and run out of time, thereby producing low-quality work.
Ultimately, it’s best to begin your task early in the day when there’s a lot of natural light and you’re energized after a good night’s sleep.
Skipping Sleep
Students constantly take on more responsibilities as they grow. Your mind and body need to be adept to change and require rest. Sleeping is the activity that helps the transition.
Missing out on sleep can lead to behavioral issues and bigger health problems that hinder your ability to learn and study well. It’s necessary to cut out activities that affect your sleeping schedule like scrolling through social media, streaming shows online, and more. Instead, set bedtime and follow a routine. Get used to sleeping and waking up at the same time every day.
Not Getting Enough Exercise
Regular exercise optimizes the quality of a healthy life. Research shows that the benefits of exercising and getting fresh air boost metabolism and help students perform well academically.
Performing some light exercises, like yoga and stretching, before studying builds concentration, power and energy. Minimize the usage of technology and improve the quality of your mental and physical health by dedicating time to working out. It’s not necessary to sign up for a gym membership to start exercising. Simply running daily can do the trick!
Trying To Work in A Disruptive Environment
Studying in a non-distractive setting is more effective. It’s possible to build a tolerance to a distracting environment. Avoid it. All it does is eat up more of your time. Maximize your ability to retain information and build a space for yourself. Avoid working around interruptive roommates, loud construction, and TV sounds.
If you’re met with an unfortunate situation where you can’t find your space, music (binaural beats) and white noise might help you drown the background sounds and focus better.
Refusing To Ask for Help
Self-studying is perfectly fine and effective. But, sometimes, refusing to ask for help can cost you. When you have someone to discuss your ideas with, it becomes easier to fill in the hypothetical blanks. Students get overwhelmed with tons of responsibilities. You may not find time for yourself in between all the essays and research papers you need to finish.
In these cases, you can depend on professional writing services like Writers Per Hour for an extra hand. Don’t be afraid to reach out to classmates, professors, and counselors. You’re not bothering them. Once you start talking to other people, their opinions and unique perspectives help you grow.
Asking questions and engaging in discussions shows your passion for the subject and it might even get you a few brownie points!
Conclusion
Hopefully, these pointers helped you gain more insight into student life and can guide you through it all. Getting the basics right is just the first step. There’s a long way to go. Make the most out of your time as a student and keep those stress levels low.
