4 Tips I Picked Up My Freshman Year of College
The school year is quickly approaching and I'm sure a lot of y'all are like me and want to try out new techniques each semester to improve my productivity and success in school. I've rounded up a couple tips and tricks that I incorporated into my regular study system that I hope will help y'all out!
Photo by Cathleen Slagle
Google Docs Add-ons
I'm sure a lot of y'all use Google Docs for your schoolwork like I do and I recently found something that totally changes the game when it comes to essay-writing. I don't know if I'm just late to the game on discovering the Add-ons section of Google Docs but it has some great features. Just click the button labeled 'Add-ons' next to 'Help' on the menu and you can add in all sorts of apps including Easy Bib. By adding the Easy Bib app, you can make all of your citations directly within your document and it will even create your works cited page for you. Added bonus: it will cite APA for free unlike on the website!
Listen To Pink Noise While Studying
When I need to focus in the library I found that pink noise works best for me to block out any distractions. I didn't even know pink noise was a thing until I read an article about it in the paper. It's different from white noise and sounds kind of like a combination of rain and TV static. I like that it's just one constant noise so I can hear it but it doesn't distract me while trying to concentrate on studying.
This is my favorite one to listen to!
Awake Bars > Coffee
If you're not much of a coffee drinker but need that extra caffeine to get you through finals week, caffeinated chocolate is the way to go! A friend mentioned Awake Bars to me and they are a game changer. It's a caffeinated bar of chocolate with 100 mg of caffeine making it the equivalent of a cup of coffee. It just tastes like a completely normal chocolate bar (I prefer the caramel flavor) and is what helped me survive finals week. They sell them on my campus and in some Targets! (Disclaimer: This is not sponsored by Awake I just love them a lot :)
Use the Pomodoro Technique
I often find myself getting sidetracked in the library or being unproductive multitasking. It's 2017 and it's hard to part with your phone or social media for a few hours while you work in the library. I started using pomodoro timers to make my time studying more productive. With this system, you work for 25 minutes and then take a break for 5 or 10 minutes. I usually put my phone away for those 25 minutes and then use the break to check social media or respond to text messages. I use the website Tomato Timer and the app Focus Keeper.
Good luck on this next semester!
Thanks for reading,
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