How to Overcome Distractions When It’s Time To Study
You sit down at your study table and start reviewing your notes. Five minutes later, your phone goes off. It’s a text message from your cousin. She’s asking about the family trip that you’re going on after your exam. And when you look at the time, 20 mins already gone. Does this sound familiar?
- Put your phone on silent mode and place it at the other end of the room:
At the start of your study session, put your phone on silent mode and place it far away from you. Preferably, you should place it at the other end of the room.
This way, you won’t be interrupted by phone calls or text messages while you’re studying. You can always check your phone every 30 or 45 minutes when you take a break.
2. Turn off your Internet access.
You might intend to use your computer for work, but you can easily find yourself on Facebook or YouTube instead
If you need to access certain online resources, then download all of the necessary information at the start of your session before you turn off your Internet access.
3. Take a deep breath when you’re about to get distracted.
Distraction comes in waves, the urge to open your cellphone, to watch TV, to surf the web, call your friends, access social media…
But these intense urges only last for a short while. If you’re able to resist that initial wave, you’ll be able to carry on studying instead of succumbing to temptation.
Here’s how to fight off the urge when it hits you: Close your eyes. Breathe in for two seconds, then breathe out for two seconds. If the urge still persists, repeat until it goes away.
4. Ask people to give you privacy.
You can put a whats app status like “emergencies only” or something that is obvious that you are not free. Ask your flat mates not to bother you for a certain periode of time.
When you make such an intentional effort to ask others to respect your privacy and your commitment to academic excellence, they’re likely to show you that respect
5. Get eight hours of sleep every night.
As a student, it seems almost impossible to get enough sleep. There’s always so much homework to do, so many projects to work on, so many activities to participate in, so many friends to hang out with, and so many parties to go to. Compared to all of these things, sleep seems so unimportant!
But sleep is vital if you want to perform well academically. It’s an established scientific fact that sleep affects your memory, concentration and brain function. If you’re not sleeping enough, you’re not setting yourself up for success in your student life. When you’re sleep-deprived, you’ll also be easily distracted.
6. Use a tool to help you prioritize your tasks.
Students often get distracted when they think about all the other tasks they need to accomplish. They start to wonder if they should be working on another assignment or studying for another test instead. This hinders them from focusing on the task at hand. You can use your reminder, “keep notes” by google, you can go to www.asana.com.
In closing, you’ll need to make a deliberate and committed effort to stay on task.
Happy Studying Everyone
Reference: https://personalexcellence.co/blog/overcome-study-distractions/
