Studying can be hard sometimes, and it is most important to motivate yourself to study then. I exactly know how that feels. I recently struggled with my English studies motivation because, usually, I’m not particularly eager to do vocabularies or grammar exercises. That is especially true if the weather is fine and I want to hang around with a good book (which is not a grammar textbook). Although learning and studying are fun for me, I sometimes procrastinate and find new ways to find my motivation again.
To fix that and get rid of procrastination, I implemented bullet-proofed strategies to motivate myself to study. The best is, you can use these strategies for other issues as well, so keep reading on!
3 strategies How to motivate yourself to study
1. Get started for at least 10 minutes and motivate yourself to study
This first tip is a fundamental but straightforward strategy because most of the time, it motivates if you just get started. You can challenge yourself and make a game out of it. For example, you could set up a challenge for yourself or together with a colleague to do at least 10 minutes of work for a particular subject for a week. After that week you reward yourself with a small price if you want. I love rewards, so this works quite well for me!
2. Small tasks prevent overwhelm and motivate yourself
Huge tasks and exercises usually tend to overwhelm. I regularly feel overwhelmed by a single study that seems to be too big to get it done at once. Then, I break up the big task into small tasks and the small jobs into even smaller ones. So, you can start a tiny thing and work through the more significant milestones. This technique motivates you and sets your mind up to fulfilment and completion rather than quitting. If you quit anything too often, you are prone to become frustrated. Don’t step into this common trap!
3. First work and then pleasure
This quote may sound a bit old-fashioned to you. Maybe you’ve heard this from your parents during your childhood days. I did, and it wasn’t bad advice (all credits to my mum). If you are bored or unmotivated by a topic, e.g. learning vocabulary, then do that first. After you finished a part of that work, you can switch to a topic or subject you like better and feel more motivated. This pattern works like a reward and keeps your motivation until the end of your study duties. To all of you who think it seems weird to reward yourself with more work, I reply that learning can be fun. It is your responsibility to make the most fun out of it. After some practice, you will experience getting more accessible, and you learn faster with curiosity and a positive attitude.
Disclaimer: all of the tips above need some regular practice and implementation into your daily life. If you try them just once or twice, you maybe will get results, but most likely, the positive effects disappear sooner rather than later. I encourage you to make habits out of these practices to get the most out of my tips.
On the other hand, there is no big deal if you don’t feel like doing the least wanted subject on a particular day. You should listen to yourself and how you feel but stick to your new habit the next day again.
If you struggle with being too hard on yourself, you might like this
If you need support in personal growth, check out this community (affiliate link).
I’m interested in your experiences, so share them below in the comment section.
[…] Read more on motivation here. […]