“I’ll soon be doing my final exams and I’m feeling quite negative about them. I’m finding it hard to concentrate and start revising. How did you revise and knuckle down with your work to get good grades?
I know I’m able to get the grades because I’ve succeeded in the past, but I’m worried my lack of revision motivation is going to ruin my chances this time around. I was hoping you could maybe give some tips?”
How to study for a test
This was my reply…
“I’m impressed by your level of self-awareness and your desire to improve.
In my opinion there’s something that’s much more important than any revision techniques or memory tips, and that is ‘PURPOSE’.
In other words, people need to have a huge emotionally charged reason why they absolutely MUST achieve something before they will actually do all the work that’s necessary to achieve their desires.
It’s nice to have hopes and dreams, but when a specific result becomes an absolute ‘must’, that’s when you become totally committed to gaining the result you want… and that’s when you actually start taking the actions that are necessary for success.
Achieving success became a ‘must’ for me only after I messed up my mock exams. That’s when I gave myself the kick up the backside I needed to dig deep and find my inner drive. I wanted to prove people wrong and show the world just what I was capable of. Perhaps most importantly, I wanted to prove to myself what I was capable of.
You’ve already proved that you’ve got the talent and skills to succeed in exams. So I don’t think it’s revision tips that you need.
Only when I had tapped into my deepest motivation could I then begin to answer the question, “How do I study for exams?” I believe the same is true for you and all students. What you need to do is unleash your inner drive.
You need to open up to your personal reasons why you absolutely MUST achieve the grades you want in your exams. Below are some simple steps you can take to make quick progress…
Simple steps for success in exams
You might want to try this:
1) Write down the specific grade you are committed to achieving in each specific course your taking.
2) Commit to your goals. Write, next to each grade, why you absolutely MUST achieve that specific grade. Consider this:
a) What will it ultimately cost you if you don’t achieve the grades? What do you ultimately stand to lose and miss out on?
b) What will you ultimately gain when you achieve the grades you want?
Consider the effects of your results on your self-confidence, your relationships, your career, your time, your health, your hobbies… literally everything every area of your life.
It’s important you consider the long-term impacts (5, 10, and even 20 years into the future) as well as the short-term impacts. Feel it as you write it.
3) Develop a study timetable. Successful students create a plan for how to study for a test before they start any work. So use a calendar to plot which subjects you need to revise and when, in order to achieve the results you’re committed to.
4) Take action. Make it your top priority to stick to your study timetable and get your work done using all the revision techniques and memory tricks you know. Then, reward yourself with something pleasurable immediately after every revision session you complete.”
Please don’t wait for someone or something else to motivate or inspire you into studying for your exams. This is your life, so like Shima, please tap into your inner drive and take control of your life and before it’s too late.
Be unstoppable!
Kevin
PS – I’ll be publishing more in this blog about how to study for a test, so stay tuned over the coming weeks 🙂