Study motivation is a vital part of successful studying – we all know this. When we feel motivated, studying is A LOT easier. And when we don’t want to study – wow it’s hard!
I’m really feeling it this morning. I have a goal of writing a blog post a week for you guys but sometimes I don’t feel like it. I enjoy writing and I want to share my strategies so you can use them and see better results in your studying…but sometimes sitting down to write is so hard and I’d rather have a calming scroll of Instagram!
Today I’ve tried finding a soundtrack to boost my motivation but all of them are making my brain itchy! So this post is mindset in action right here guys. You’re getting to see that I don’t always have my shit together and then hear how I get over it.
The big myth about study motivation
Here it is…
“You need to feel motivated before you can study.
You shouldn’t study if you don’t feel like it.”
Do you ever feel like this?
I used to until I recognised this is a big fat lie. If you sit around and wait for study motivation to strike, you’re gonna be waiting a hellluva long time. A common excuse for not studying is that you just don’t feel like it. You think that you should wait to study until you want to.
The problem is, study motivation is unlikely to strike when you’re lying in bed eating M&Ms and you’re five episodes deep into Killing Eve.
Instead, action comes before study motivation. We have to flip the order. This is where most students go wrong so I really want you to understand this.
I WISH I could give you a magic solution to make you WANT to study – but I can’t. If I could I would have bottled that shit up and I’d be a millionaire sipping mojitos on a beach somewhere.
You have to START studying to gain momentum. It’s the momentum of seeing some progress that will give you the study motivation you need to continue. Once you complete a task and check it off your to-do list (best feeling ever right?!) then you’ll have started the ball rolling. You’ll feel more motivated to start the next task.
So how do we do this?
How to boost your study motivation in action
Here’s my best tips that I’m following too right now.
1. Grab some things that make you motivated right now
Whether that’s snacks, drinks, music, stationery, a pet…anything - get some of the things that will help you study.
I’ve made a pot of Moroccan Mint tea and I’ve grabbed a pack of beef jerky.
2. Pick a quick win
When motivation is low, don’t try and jump into a big task as that’s too overwhelming. Instead, pick a quick and easy study task to get you going. For example, if you need to start your essay then your quick win could be setting up your essay document.
My quick win was to outline the main points of this post as that felt easier than starting with a blank page.
3. Reward your damn self
Who doesn’t love a treat right? Choosing a reward for after your study session will help boost your study motivation.
My reward is that I’m gonna have a big, fat slice of cake when I meet my mum for lunch #screwthediet.
4. Get cracking
You’ve got everything you need right now – so go, go, go. No excuses.
And that’s it for this blog post. Short and sweet compared to my usual posts because I don’t want you to hang around on my site when you’ve got better things to do *hint hint * it’s studying. Andd I’ve gained the momentum I need from this task to get cracking on my book.
If you’ve found this blog post useful then I would love it if you could share with a study pal who might also be struggling to find their study motivation.