How to teach yourself stuff🧑🏫
One thing I noticed is that many people are interested in self-development, but find it challenging to learn all the different skills you can achieve. Most of us are used to learning the way we learn things in school. But especially in the field of self development, we have to teach ourselves certain skills all by ourselves, there is just no one to teach you certain skills. And for a lot of people that is something really hard, and I understand why you feel that way. In this article, I want to show you some things that can help you study by yourself.
Pomodoro technique 🍅
I discovered the pomodoro when I was looking for a way to study for my exams more efficiently, and funny enough, as I write this article I am using the pomodoro technique. The pomodoro technique is pretty simple. You have a small interval of work, let’s say 25 min, and then you take a break, let’s say 5 min, then you have a 25-5 rhythm.
And as simple as it seems, it works. You can work yourself up to longer work intervals, but I would recommend you start with a 25-5 or even a 10-5 rhythm. That way, especially when you can’t get in your “Zone” you have breaks to clear the mind.
There are 2 main way to track your study and your break time. The first being a normal timer you have on your phone or a dedicated pomodoro timer. A timer I can recommend is the studywithme timer for web, and as an app I would recommend you check out Forest.
You shouldn’t use your phone during your breaks. Try to get up from your desk, especially when you are doing long intervals like 50-10 or 60-10. So get up and get something to drink, a good coffee or a glass of water. Stretch a bit, or go to the restroom.
Study with me streams 💻
One thing I noticed was I could better concentrate when I was sitting in a classroom. Everyone was learning. The whole atmosphere of the room was focused on learning. And that helped me learn to. But when I was forced to learn at home, I found it really hard to get in the right headspace.
That’s where study with me streams come in. There are hundreds of study with me streams on YouTube and twitch. Often times they are even recorded, so you can press pause if you really need to. Some study with me YouTubers I would recommend are: Jay skullz and studio MD. But you can really pick anyone, these are just some I like.
Bonus tip: Deactivate the chat for the duration you are studying. A lot of people sadly talk trash in those chats, and it would be just distracting. You can also go to a study with me discord and study in a voice chat.
Put on some music 🎧🎶
The right music can make a lot of difference. Find a type of music or even some ambient sound that helps you concentrate. I tried many different kinds of music while studying, the classic being the Lofi-study with me music. But I found that, although it seems to work for a lot of people, it just does not work for me. I also tried some more electronic style music, and some rain sounds. But the music that stuck with me is classical music. Personally, I love the violin and the Piano, so I listen to classical music while I study or write articles like this one. Click here to get to my study with me playlist.
One thing I would invest in are some high quality noise-canceling headphones. I would recommend 2 typed for you to have. Some over-ear and some in-ear headphones. The ones I have are the nothing ear 1 as in-ear headphones and the Soundcore Anker Life. But please inform yourself before you buy something, these are just my recommendations.
CLEAN YOUR DESK! 🧹🚮
“Outer order, inner calm.“
That’s what author Gretchen Rubin said. The stoics called it “kosmiotes“, chefs call it “mise en place”. The preparation and the cleaning of your environment. Because people who are satisfied with a cluttered work environment, are satisfied with cluttered work.
Clean your desk. Seriously, clean it. Studies have shown that you are more productive with a clean desk. The reason behind that being that the brain has less information to process and can focus better on the task that is in front of it, rather the surroundings.
So before you get to work, clean your desk, “mise an place“ prepare your workplace, so you don’t have to get up and get everything. Do you have some water? Is your Laptop charged? Do you want something to snack on while you work? Prepare and then attack!
Turn your Phone off ✈️📴
This should be a pretty obvious one, but turn off your phone, and put it away for the time you work. This is working time, not a time to text your friends. The best thing you can do here would be to put your phone in do not disturb or airplane mode. If you really need that extra barrier, then you can turn your phone off. Whatever helps you best. If you find yourself distracted by other notifications, turn them off as well.
Some of you might say: “But what if there is an emergency.“ Well what if your phone died, and you didn’t notice. Things like that are out of your control. So don’t think about them. I have written a whole article about “How to stop worrying“. Feel free to read it after this one.
Conclusion 📕
Self study is not so hard once you get in your “Zone“. But getting in that zone is determined by many factors. Try to start with a simple 25-10 rythm, put some music on, get some water and just start. Allow yourself to be bored at first, this is a process. It takes time.
Feel free to check out the websites and products that are linked in the text.
Be great, get amazing!
I see you in the next one:)
If you enjoyed what you just read, please read some of my other posts as well. And if you want advice like this but in a shorter, more compact form, you can subscribe to my weekly email newsletter. Every Thursday, I will send you some advice to help you with your everyday trouble. Click here to sign up.
