Study spot

YOUR STUDY SPACE SHOULD BE QUIET AND DISTRACTION FREE

In his book “The Essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson,” Emerson wrote:
At times the whole world seems to be in conspiracy to importune you with emphatic trifles.
Friend, client, child, sickness, fear, want, charity, all knock at once at thy closet door and say,
—’Come out unto us.’ But keep thy state; come not into their confusion.
Okay, that may be a bit on the extreme side, but you get the point. There are a LOT of
distractions out there.
First and foremost, you want your study spot to be quiet and free from distractions. This should
be obvious, but these days, it’s pretty common to study in loud places with lots of background
noise.
Or, many people will blast music or put on a movie in the background to “distract” them from
the overwhelming quiet. They feel that having something happening in the background actually
helps them focus. After all, nothing like “X-Men II” to put you in a calm, peaceful state of mind,
right?
But what most people don’t realize is that a quiet, undistracted place really is the most
productive when it comes to studying. Writing in Scientific American, Mark Andrews says:
Several studies have indicated that stress resulting from ongoing white noise can induce the
release of cortisol, a hormone that helps to restore homeostasis in the body after a bad
experience. Excess cortisol impairs function in the prefrontal cortex—an emotional learning
center that helps to regulate “executive” functions such as planning, reasoning and impulse
control. Some recent evidence indicates that the prefrontal cortex also stores short-term
memories. Changes to this region, therefore, may disrupt a person’s capacity to think clearly
and to retain information.
This means that, ideally, your study spot should be peaceful and free from noise. Your phone
and email should not be buzzing, and you may want to consider using a white noise generator
to create a pleasant background noise. Alternatively, you could run a fan to create the same
time of background noise.
There have been studies that have shown that a little classical music in the background can be
helpful, so don’t be afraid to gently pipe some Chopin through your stereo.
There are certainly times when it’s appropriate to study in a coffee shop or with your favorite
tunes bumping in the background, but for the crucial sessions, keep it quiet. Have the dance
party when you’re done studying.
YOUR STUDY SPACE SHOULD BE COMFORTABLE
This should be obvious, but your study space needs to be comfortable. If you’re going to be
spending long hours with the books, you need to treat your body right. The temperature in the
room should be cool, but not so cold that you’re shivering, and warm without putting you to
sleep.
Purchase a comfortable chair that will give you adequate lumbar support and a desk that you
can sit at comfortably. You may even want to set up a standing desk, which can save your back
if you’re going to be hunched over for hours.
If you’re a fitness buff, you could try a treadmill desk, but that might be a little extreme.
Your goal is to create an environment that you will enjoy being in for an extended period of
time. If your study room feels like a solitary confinement cell in Alcatraz, you’re really going to
hate studying.
YOUR STUDY SPACE SHOULD BE WELL ORGANIZED
You don’t want your study spot to look like a scene out of “Hoarders.” Everything around you
should be well-organized and easy to find. Having notes scattered everywhere may give you
that cool, “Beautiful Mind” feel, but it will kill your studying.
At the risk of sounding extraordinarily nerdy, we recommend keeping pens and pencils held
together neatly, papers filed in appropriate folders, and study cards in the right stacks. If you’re
a Post-It kind of person, stick all your notes on a piece of poster board.
Also think about organizing your digital files. You don’t want to lose a crucial paper or chart
during finals. If you’re having trouble organizing things, consider using one of the following
solutions:
Evernote
Google Drive
OneNote
These systems allow you to search for items, both by the name of the file and by words within
the files themselves. Evernote can even handle OCR (optical character recognition), meaning
you can put snapshots of handwritten notes in.
YOUR STUDY SPACE SHOULD BE PLEASANT
Not only should your space be comfortable, it should be pleasant. In other words, you should
create a space that you simply enjoy being in. This will dramatically enhance the studying
experience.
There are endless ways to customize your space. You can use candles or essential oil diffusers
to add a pleasant aroma to the air. If you have dream of being a wealthy billionaire and literally
rolling around in piles of money, there is actually a candle that smells like money!
Tasteful lighting can add a nice ambience to the room. Grab a few floor lamps or desk lamps
and get rid of all the harsh, interrogation room lighting.
Don’t be afraid to add your own little touches. Are you a diehard Braveheart fan? Hang posters
all over the walls. Do you have a weird obsession with Beethoven busts? Have him accompany
you during your studies.
As mentioned above, you can also add pleasant background noise to drown out distractions.
There are hundreds of apps and devices that create peaceful noises. If you want it to feel like
you’re studying at the beach in a rainstorm, you can make that happen.
This is your opportunity to flex your creativity. Make a space that you actually enjoy spending
time in. A space that you don’t dread. The more pleasant associations you have with studying,
the more you’ll actually want to study.
YOUR STUDY SPACE SHOULD ALLOW YOU TO KEEP ON SCHEDULE
This requires a bit of explaining. The most effective studying happens on a very rigorous
schedule. In other words, you know when you’re going to start and end, as well as when you’ll
take breaks. Maintaining a schedule allows you to focus as well as providing you a sense of how
much longer you need to study.
To take things even further, individuals who study best are those who break down their overall
study time into blocks. Many people use what is called the “Pomodoro” method to focus for
short bursts and then they take a short mental break.
For example, working according to the Pomodoro method, you could study for 25 minutes,
then take a 5 minute break, then study again for 25 minutes. After 3 or so study sessions, you
take a longer break of 15 or 20 minutes. Breaking up your sessions in this way allows you to
laser focus for short amounts of time, supercharging your studying.
Writing about the Pomodoro Technique, S.J. Scott says:
In theory, this strategy works because you completely focus on one task (like writing) without
shifting focus or multitasking. When the clock is ticking, you ignore the urge to check email, hop
on Facebook, answer text messages or do any other distracting activity. You’re in the zone and
completely focused.
To study in such a fashion, you need a simple time keep device in your study space, like an
alarm clock or timer. It doesn’t need to be anything elaborate; just something that will let you
know when to start and stop.
In addition to creating a schedule, you should also focus on studying during your prime time.
This means studying when you are freshest and most able to focus. If you work best in the
morning, that’s when you should be doing the bulk of your studying. Focusing on your prime
time will double or even triple your efficiency, allowing you to remember more in less time.