The lazy student's guide to studying.

So its that time of the year again, semester exams looming around, and for others, its some exam or the other, because its that depressing time of the year, before diwali, and before the cheer and jolly of christmas... You have a whole book to study, an entire syllabus to study, but alas! You've been too busy dancing to Beedi Jaleilae, in the rain! (Thank you, Cyclone Nilam!). Now, with a few hours left on the clock, how on Earth are you going to do it?!  Here's a few helpful tips!

10. Open those books.

Yes, thats right. Go ahead. Take that most basic step! Sure, those books may look big and thick and intimidating, and sure, you're going to have people tell you that Rome wasn't built in a day... But remember, you're just a student! That doesn't really apply unless you're studying architecture so crack that book open, take a look at the syllabus, classify what you haven't done and what you have already done. Haven't done anything at all? Well, thats absolutely okay, in this case, classify the things that you can do, and the things that you can afford to omit.

9. Study smart, instead of hard-

Since you have very little time left to study, you have no choice but to study smart. This would also involve being realistic about your expectations, you can't expect to study the entire book in one night! You have to pick out topics that you can cover, study, understand, remember and recall. Pick out topics that need not be studied
(NOTE: Exercise discretion! Some teachers might even be sadistic and try to ask twisted questions from obscure portions in order to make life difficult for students like us, who may have to resort to last minute studying).

8. Prepare your study space

Sit at a proper study table. Make sure its clean and all your books and study material are neatly stacked and arranged on that table. Make sure that its not prone to distractions and remember, mess creates stress. (Besides, really, one of the world's most annoying feelings is to be studying something, put it down, lose it and never see it ever again, even though you could've sworn you put it on your desk for just a second....)

 Stay as neat as you can while studying, a calm mind absorbs information better than a hassled mind or a disturbed mind. Keep your pen, pencil, etc, by your side. Don't ever get up in the middle of studying in order to get one of these things, this will make you prone to distractions.

Which brings me to my next point.

7. Say NO to distractions!

This involves
a) Putting your cellphone away.
b) Logging out of Facebook.
b) Disconnecting your wifi connection
c) Closing the windows
d) Locking your room door
e) Putting away that interesting novel that's just calling out to you to read it...

As sad and as difficult as this step is, its absolutely essential to push all your distractions away in order to study and retain information effectively.

6. Call your friends up

But not to ask them how much they've finished. Discuss topics with them, ask questions, you'll remember their explanations when it comes to last minute studying. (NOTE: Don't waste time asking people if they've studied or not or if they've finished studying. 95% of the people fib that they haven't studied at all and they're generally the ones with smug chimp like grins on their faces when the results are announced. This is war. Its each man for himself!)

5. Don't waste too much time on the phone

As tempting as it may be to find out if Sita dumped Rakesh or if Rakesh kissed Sonia, it can WAIT! You have a lot of studying to do! Try to keep the conversations as short as is required and hang up quickly, try not to give your poor parents a heart attack with the phone bill ;)

4. Prioritize

Decide what has to be done, what need not be done, and don't waste time doing anything else. Stick to the plan. When you make a plan, don't start doubting it half way. Thats the worst possible thing that you could do. Make sure you have a concrete study plan that you can rely on, and stick to it to get the job done.

3. Know HOW to study

For those of you who are lucky enough to have important questions or a set of guide questions, remember that each question does not require pages and pages of answers, study precisely what the question requires you to answer


2. Resort to creative methods of studying.

Lets face it, you don't really have the time to mug up the entire syllabus, so while you learn, have some fun! Watch videos, conduct experiments, ask questions, do extra reference relating to your field of study. It makes the absorption and retention of information, both fun and rewarding!

The last and the most invaluable tip would be

1. DON'T SIT AND MAKE BLOG POSTS ABOUT STUDYING IN THE TIME IN WHICH, YOU CAN ACTUALLY STUDY :P

Coming up next....

The Lazy Student's Guide to acing exams! The most valuable secrets: REVEALED! Stay tuned... ;)

I dare you to dream!

DISCLAIMER!!!

THIS IS NOT A SHITTY MOTIVATIONAL INSPIRATIONAL BULLSHIT POST.

There. Now, that we've got that past us, here's a simple challenge, I'd like to throw at YOU, beloved reader.

I dare you to dream.

No, I'm not going to tell you to follow your dreams, i'm not going to tell you to dare TO dream.... its a dare FOR you to dream. No you're not a unique snowflake. Get over it. Take up the dare.

I dare you to step outside your comfort zone and to actually take up something you've never done before.

I dare you to not get discouraged when you try to make a point and someone tells you to shut up.

I dare you to keep going! Even if everyone laughs at what you're doing and tells you "You'll never make it."

I dare you to speak. God gave you a voice. Use it. I dare you to channel your anger against people who deserve it as opposed to people who don't.

I dare you to try something new. Sing a song, even if cats cry when you sing. Draw, even if a kindergarten kid gets a better drawing grade than you. Play the guitar, even if you don't own one....

The whole point of this post is, that people automatically associate dare to dream, with images like this

or this...

or maybe even this...

But sometimes, the inspirational stuff always goes over your head... If I was depressed and somebody tried to show me those kind of images to inspire me, I would most probably learn to not turn to that same person the next time I needed a shoulder to cry on.

Inspiration doesn't come from images and text, its impossible to draw inspiration from that.

You can only dream and be inspired, most effectively, by example. There are some people who are inspired by their favourite celebrities... I say, good for you buddy, but you'd most probably do better to look for inspiration much closer to you. Inspiration doesn't come from great people who claim to have achieved things, inspiration can come from little things. Things that other people may take for granted. Small words of encouragement, tiny pearls of hope, scattered on the sands of time... Quick! Pick them up before they roll away!

I still remember this simple quote, that inspires me till date. I put this quote before all that I do and I have spread the word to at least 5 other people. (I consider that a huge success.)

"The toughest steel has to go through the hottest of fires."

In the end, the sad fact that even if you're inspired to dare to dream or to follow your dreams, the system is pretty messed up and you may not achieve your dream in the first shot. What system am I referring to? Any system really. I'm pretty confident when I say that This is applicable to any system you might have in mind.

So what do we do when we want to bend, but the system tells us to be rigid? You make the system bend with you, thats what you do. You move. Thats the trick, keep constantly moving. The system will move with you, trying its hardest to stop you, but it won't be able to, beyond a point. It is at this point, you can confidently say that you have followed your dreams and will be catapulted towards being free from the pointless ramshackles of society.

I'd like to end this with a quote about perspective.

"We're all lying in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars"

- Oscar Wilde.