Study Habits
 

I need help. Well it's not that bad yet, but I don't want to continue like this. I'm a third year student who's been slacking every since he entered school. I know a lot of us are like this, but I want to change this so I can improve my marks.

When I hit a rut in my homework (mostly when on labs) I just go browse OOT (and 2+2 in general), check email, and browse an almost endless number of poker and non-poker forums. I've tried to tell myself not only how important it is to pass the course, but to actually learn the material.

I've read countless posts on how important it is to finish school written by many respected posters here who have written something inspirational. It motivates me for about 10 minutes, then I fall back into the rut.

So far, I've cut back on poker by cashing out on stars; a habitual thing for me to do was to logon stars and sit in a good game for an hour. I haven't touched online poker for a few days and it feels good (though I will play a bit on weekends). Unfortunately this has just led to more web-browsing.

So I've read alot on procrastinating and it seems like the only thing that's left for me to do is to suck it up and motivate myself. Is this correct?

Re: Study Habits
 

i also have the same problem.

btw, I too go to UBC.

Re: Study Habits
 

Yah...dude you need to buckle down for now.
I just started film school two weeks ago and find that I am having to put poker in the backseat for now. I play mainly on the weekends now unless I have a film shoot...sometimes I play online at work...but then that puts me behind in screenwriting and storyboarding....so keep yourself in action enough not to get too rusty but give your schooling the attention that it needs. You'll thank yourself later. [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

Re: Study Habits
 

hello fellow ubc student

i hope all goes well for you at filmschool

Re: Study Habits
 

i know of a really good way to end procrastination, i'll tell you about it some other time though.

Re: Study Habits
 

Aren't there drugs to help with this? If you find out, let me know 'cause I have the same problem.

Re: Study Habits
 

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Aren't there drugs to help with this? If you find out, let me know 'cause I have the same problem.

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Yes- Adderoll is absolutely amazing for studying. It not only makes you focus but somehow makes you enjoy what you're studying. It's a huge college-student drug, so if you ask around (discreetly) you'll more than likely find it.

(It also works well for long sits at a poker table.)

(Edit: I should probably mention that if you have any sort of heart problem, stay as far away from adderoll as you can get. Also, don't drink on it, or you won't be able to stop drinking. Just trust me on this one.)

Re: Study Habits
 

try:
neurostim, deprenyl, pyritnol, piracetam, aniracetam, Acetyl L carnitine, Centrophenoxine (necessary if you are taking piracetam and aniracetam), vinpocetine, hydergine and ginkgo biloba.

Thats a pretty good stack to start with. You might want to add in omega 3 fatty acids and a multivitamin.

I take that stuff and I get in the top 5 grades in my courses at washington university.

Adderall is definitely good too...but I'd be worried about raising blood pressure and heart rate, as well as possibly screwing with your head (small chance of causing schizophrenia).

Obviously if you consider this stuff please look into it first. www.avantlabs.com is a good place to start.

Re: Study Habits
 

[ QUOTE ]

Yes- Adderoll is absolutely amazing for studying. It not only makes you focus but somehow makes you enjoy what you're studying. It's a huge college-student drug, so if you ask around (discreetly) you'll more than likely find it.


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Is this like steroids for studying or something? Why do you need to take drugs to study? Did the universities increase the work load or up'd the difficulty level so much in the 10 years since I left school, that kids these days now have to take some kind of brain steroids? I'm not in this situation, but I can't imagine how it would be worth it to mess with that kind of stuff.

Re: Study Habits
 

It's a pharmaceutical drug for ADD or ADHD. They feed little kids this stuff by the bucketfulls nowadays.

And yes- there is a huge load on college age kids nowadays. Many have to work full-time jobs to pay for the school they barely have time for. Also, most scholarships require you to keep a certain (high) GPA. So yea, theres a lot to deal with.

Re: Study Habits
 

[ QUOTE ]
It's a pharmaceutical drug for ADD or ADHD. They feed little kids this stuff by the bucketfulls nowadays.

And yes- there is a huge load on college age kids nowadays. Many have to work full-time jobs to pay for the school they barely have time for. Also, most scholarships require you to keep a certain (high) GPA. So yea, theres a lot to deal with.

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... As it always has been, or has it changed so much in the 10 years since I've been in College? I guess it depends on the school and the person's ability to deal with school related stress, but I still don't see why someone without any kind of mental disfunction should take this kind of drug.

Also, why do you need to be discrete about it? Is it illegal to take without doctor's approval? If so, more the reason why you should not casually take it.

Re: Study Habits
 

Look, the guy asked, and I gave him an answer.

To each their own. I personally used it and it helped me greatly to crack down and do the stuff I needed to do when I felt scatterbrained. That is what this helps a person to do. I'm just answering OP's question.

I figured it would have been big with the poker crowd anyway.

Re: Study Habits
 

Is there any sort of online test to see if I actually need adderall? I'm not convinced I need it, and have no reason to be. Thanks for the advice, but the drugs seem unnecessary.

Re: Study Habits
 

[ QUOTE ]
Is there any sort of online test to see if I actually need adderall? I'm not convinced I need it, and have no reason to be. Thanks for the advice, but the drugs seem unnecessary.

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As someone else mentioned its one of the drugs prescribed for ADD/ADHD.. You can start your research, here...
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/adhd.cfm

Re: Study Habits
 

Don't go on the computer unless you absolutely have to. They are amazingly efficient devices: for wasting time. I recently graduated and I tried to only go on the computer if I had a particular task to do. There isn't much else to do to waste time on campus if you aren't surfing the net, so avoid the time wasters.

Re: Study Habits
 

I actually went to Barnes and Noble and read a book on how to stop procrastinating. Don't get it, it doesn't work.

Re: Study Habits
 

[ QUOTE ]
Don't go on the computer unless you absolutely have to. They are amazingly efficient devices: for wasting time. I recently graduated and I tried to only go on the computer if I had a particular task to do. There isn't much else to do to waste time on campus if you aren't surfing the net, so avoid the time wasters.



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I think argus is right. whenever you are on the computer you are obviously in danger. so try to avoid those situations. probably a timetable also helps.

Re: Study Habits
 

[ QUOTE ]
Don't go on the computer unless you absolutely have to. They are amazingly efficient devices: for wasting time. I recently graduated and I tried to only go on the computer if I had a particular task to do. There isn't much else to do to waste time on campus if you aren't surfing the net, so avoid the time wasters.

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I experience the same problem as OP at work. Unfortunately, my job requires me to be on the computer for 8 hours every day. I've also taken 3 out of 4 years of a software engineering program, where most if not all of my work requires a computer.

I can agree with your suggestion in that I've always been more efficient when not using the computer, and I typically try to do some work by hand every day, whether or not it is necessary.

I think the main problem here is motivation. I've been having this problem at the office for about a month now, where I run away from problems instead of attacking them head on. You need to find a way to get genuinely motivated about your work. Self-respect probably won't be enough. Maybe grades, references, money, being better than people, etc. I don't know enough about your personality and experiences to guide you further, but finding a reason to be motivated is the key. Ask a significant person in your life for help, like a girl or boyfriend, or your parents, or a teacher that you trust. Choose somebody you see/speak to often.