"Is Education Important Or Making Money?"

Read this if you want study motivation!

• There’s a reason you’re studying what you’re studying. It’s is fun, it’s enjoyable, it’s something you like. Your studies aren’t a chore, they’re a hobby! Try to see them that way!

• Taking notes? Yay! Perfect opportunity to let your creativity flow! Now, you don’t have to have a journal you make super fancy, handwritten, colour coded notes in (don’t get me wrong, I love those, and bless the people who post pictures of theirs but grr! it’d just take me too much time!) - you can create a Google Docs document and use some fun fonts and add some pretty aesthetic pictures! Works just as well! And it’s fun!

• No matter how you’ve decided to be creative, the act of creativity itself will give you both a sense of accomplishment and of purpose (which is something I - and I suspect quite a few other people - struggle with sometimes). Yeah, it might take up a little bit of your time, but it’s totally worth it long-term because once you’re done you have a super pretty document/journal that will up the ~vibe~ every time you sit down to study! Besides, it’s totally up to you how much time you want to spend on your little project.

• The excitement you feel when you encounter the stuff you’ve learned out in the real world is amazing. I still remember when I was twelve and a friend and I were baking and were overjoyed about being able to say “hey, this is an emulsion! this is what we talked about in chemistry!” and oh my god you feel so nerdy and so smart and happy and it’s great.

• Studying really gives you a way of seeing life in a new light. It makes you so much more appreciative of the little things. If you study biology you’ll suddenly think about vacuoles when you’re watering your plants, study prejudice and racism and you’ll suddenly be able to tell when someone’s being an ass and have the tools to call them out on it like a boss, study psychology and chuckle at the cheesy commercial using psychologically appealing colours to try to get you to buy things, study geology and smile because now you’re able to tell that “that’s metamorphic rock”. Be nerdy and suddenly the world is filled with wonders.

• Getting started is one of the most difficult steps. Or rather, that period of time right after you’ve gotten started when you get to the point of “oh, I don’t immediately know everything there is to know in this field. hm.” or “what do you mean I won’t establish my own superior drawing style after just one drawing”. Many of us want things to flow when we learn. We don’t want it to be too difficult, or take up too much time and effort, or require too much dedication. We’d rather skip the step of having to learn how to ride the bike because, well, it’s annoying and kinda boring, and rather head straight to the part where we zoom down a hill like it’s the most natural thing in the world. I’m so sorry to break this to you, but you’re gonna have to know how to maneuver the thing before you reach the “wind in my hair” phase.

• How do you make it through the boring and annoying stuff then? I’d say focus on the very things I’ve written about in this post. Focus on why you decided to try the thing out in the first place; what was it that pulled you in? What goals do you want to reach? Focus on the fact that this is something you want to do - like to do! - and not something you have to do. Focus on appreciating the things you learn rather than solely focusing on what you haven’t learnt yet; take that newfound knowledge and rant to a friend, rant to your family, rant on your tumblr or in your journal. You know stuff! You’ve learnt stuff! How amazing is that?! 

Five general productivity tips

1. DO NOT DIVIDE YOUR ATTENTION:

Keep things straightforward. No multitasking. Don't lie to yourself that you can study English and do perfectly your job at the same time. Focus on each thing 100% then once it's done, move over to the next thing. Full, undistracted, fully devoted focus is going to give you so much more bang than divining your attention over 5 different things.

2. LESS IS MORE, AND DO NOT CHANGE WHAT WORKS.

You don't need 1747 apps for productivity. If your Google Calendar works for organization, no need to get two schedulebooks for your organization. You're bringing in clutter and chaos and distraction in something that needs to be kept SIMPLE. Do not try new productivity stuff when you're in a rush, about to finish for a deadline. Try new stuff when you're fully relaxed.

3. SCHEDULE TIME OFF AND ACTUAL WORK TIME.

Schedule your movie night, schedule your work shifts in your (online/paper) schedulebook. Planify your plan ahead and commit to yourself you're going through with it. Time off, sleep and down time are essential to be more productive, but at the same time, you HAVE to be productive to give meaning to your time off. Else it just becomes wasted idle time.

4. GIVE YOURSELF A DAILY GOAL.

Something attainable, absolutely DOABLE and a ACTION PLAN. It can be "I have the goal of reading 30 pages of this book, and I'll read this after my breakfast, then before bed." Accomplishing something easily doable daily gives you a boost of good mood and happiness which makes you more likely to desire accomplishing another goal, and another goal, and another goal and so on.

5. STOP READING ABOUT PRODUCTIVITY STUFF AND GO DO SOME STUFF.

That includes this very same post. You're probably reading this in need of direction, of "knowledge". But turns out you probably have some stuff and are procrastinating by reading productivity tips. Do yourself a favor, stop reading and go do some stuff for ONCE. 💎

You are the top tier.

You study consistently, every day, bit by bit. You get As. You have this thirst of knowledge and you quench it. Doors break open for you. You feel comfortable in your knowledge. There's no hesitation, and if you don't know, you know how to seek new answers, and if there's no answers, you know you don't bullshit others and you say humbly that you don't know the answer.

You're prepared facing obstacles, you see much farther than others, you prepare yourself ahead. You know how to navigate bumps smoothly because youre looking much farther than anybody else. You save much more than others, you don't go broke. You prepare more than necessary, you can help others.

You set aside money every time you receive your salary, you don't blow up every dollar on useless crap. You build up wealth, you invest in well researched investments, and money returns stronger than ever. You become comfortable, there's absolutely no worries of bad days.

You meticulously work hard, nobody can say anything wrong about you. You're extremely professional, and you give your absolute best. No weak answers. No obstacles, consistency wins over always. Your take no bullshit and give no bullshit. Always going up and up and up.

You captivate others by your exceptional listening skills. They feel fundamentally understood by you, there's genuine connections. All your friends are as high value as you, and conversations are always interesting. Children look up to you, they say "I want to be her".

You are the top tier.

What if, and hear me out, people DO love you

Your coworker who loves when they get to work a shift with you, even if you don’t talk

Your cousin who’s relieved when they see you at family gatherings, who thinks you’re “the cool cousin” but hasn’t said anything out loud

Your classmate who thinks you have great taste, even if they’re too shy to speak up about it in class

Your childhood friends who remember you fondly

The waiter you tipped during a busy night

That person you complimented on the street

The little kid you waved to

The old woman you made small talk with

People love you, because you’re lovable. And you’re worthy of love. Even if it doesn’t feel like it sometimes

(Self depreciating comments will be removed at best, bluntly and remorselessly told to shut the fuck up at worst. Fuck around. I dare you.)

Red Cantonese bear dog

(via)

“The only thing we can bring with us to heaven, is other people.”

— something I heard at church today that hit my heart right where it needed to (via @lovechangeseverythang)

☝🏽👌🏽

ETIQUETTE

The is your guide to ettiquite in daily life. Whether it’s table manners, or just everyday mannerisms that you can pick up.

BASIC ETIQUETTE

Let this sink in, be yourself. You are worthy of being treated courteously

A fundamental rule of good manners is to give. When you meet someone, it’s always good to think of a genuine compliment.

Don’t be boastful, arrogant, or loud. When in polite company, always exercise self control and good taste

Speak with kindness, but also speak with caution. This includes over sharing, being too critical. Your behaviour and even your clothing should reflect understated elegance.

Demeaning someone with a rude joke or an unwelcome nickname is disrespectful and should be avoided (being around those you’re close with that’s the norm of course).

TABLE ETIQUTTE

If you are someone’s guest, you must wait for a signal before sitting

If you are a host, point out chairs for your guest.

If you are sitting with someone who is left handed, it’s best that they sit on the left end or the head of the table.

Before eating, it’s best to wait until everyone has there food. However, if there’s a surplus of people, wait for the host to begin to eat.

Remember , used silverware should NEVER touch the table, have them rest in your plate. On that point, it is best to order food that can be eaten with a knife and fork in formal dining.

If you must leave, always excuse yourself.

PUBLIC SPEAKING

of course this can work with just general conversation, but these are the best tips I know.

Get some rest. When your energy level is compromised, you may struggle to deliver a concise message.

Inject humour. It will be helpful as presenting yourself as relatable.

Stay mindful of the sound of your own voice.

Pay attention to signals, tbhs can include not responding, backing away, looking away, body language is the feedback you need when you’re not sure when to stop talking about something.

THE DONT’S OF ETIQUETTE

Texting constantly, or checking your phone

Using R-rated language in a G-rated environment

Telling off-colour jokes

Interrupting or monopolising the conversation

Acting like a know it all

Gossip- I know it’s hard not to indulge, but this is one of the most dangerous things to do.

The 'No Excuses' Study System to Get That A

I  School Days 

1. Show up to class a little early. It’ll give you time to set up, read over some old notes, put your water bottle/thermos on your desk, fill out your planner if you couldn’t in the previous period(s), check your planner to see if you have something on that day etc.

2. Sit in the front or second row. I’m serious, you will definitely benefit. Write detailed class notes. Pick whatever system works for you. I usually write my titles in red pen, notes in black pen, underline points that are repeated/emphasised, highlight keywords at home

3. If you have time at school, do as much homework as you can. If you know you have commitments that day, please for the love of your education do your homework at lunch. I know you might feel awkward, but your friends will understand. 

4. When you get home, first list down all the homework received that day on a q card (cross off as you go). Then write the same tasks in your bullet journal, but as a daily spread. Use stayfocusd or self control for mac + leave phone in a different room. FINISH ALL OF YOUR HOMEWORK. If for some reason you couldn’t complete a homework task, write it on a sticky note and place it on your wall. After homework is done, write your revision notes (flashcard the info as well). Place the notes in your accordion folder/binder. If you have some loose sheets at any point, place them in a ‘To Be Filed’ box. Sort that out when you’re packing your bag for the next day.

5. Go through the flashcards made that day and the flashcards made on the previous days.  List out all assignments/assessments on another q card with their due dates. This will come in handy later.

6. Pack your bag the night before. Remember your accordion folder + make sure your ‘To Be Filed’ box is empty. Put water bottle in the fridge and make meals for the next day.

7. The next day, wake up early, complete any unfinished homework, go through flashcards again, read through revision notes, make lunch for the day, put laptop in bag, put food + water in bag, exercise (esp if you have commitments after school), shower, change, blah blah blah. Only do this if your schedule is packed, and in my case, this is a must.

II  Weekends

1. On Friday nights, first off, do homework. You will thank yourself for it. Whip out that list of assessments/assignments and allocate half days to knock off at least two of these little assholes. Work ahead, you will feel much better.

2. Do your readings. For English, knock off some wider reading novels, for HSIE, knock off some textbook unit readings (two units ahead), for science, knock off some more textbook readings. Write summaries of each page. Type these summaries. Print these summaries. Place in accordion folder/binder. Flashcard the info. Spend like half a day doing this lmao.

3. Spend 1-2 hours going through the flashcards you made that week for each subject. This counts as studying my friend. 

III Weekends When You Actually Have Assessments 

1. Due to your working ahead, homework completion and readings, you shouldn’t be panicking too much. Get those revision notes and slot in the textbook readings notes. Highlight, annotate, read aloud, go through flashcards and get someone to test you on the content. Make sure you know all terms, formulae, key concepts, vocabulary etc etc

2. As for assignments, again due to your working ahead just print them out and heavily edit those little asshats. Then type the edits into the doc. Repeat this process four times. Then get someone to read it. Make sure all your assignments are on your USB + email them to yourself because you never fucking know tbh. 

3. You’ll probs have to sacrifice your reading time but that’s chill because the teacher/prof will probably be focusing on prepping you for the actual assessment + you gotta do what you gotta do.

SUMMARY

Seriously, just do your homework the day you receive it, write revision notes, do your readings, write notes on those readings, make flashcards, knock out assignments as soon as you know they actually exist, read every wider reading novel (analyse these novels), read your required readings (analyse this too), go over flashcards every morning/afternoon, make use of spare time in class, do homework at lunch if needed, stick to your schedule, buy coffee/hot chocolate in the mornings and put it in a thermos, keep a necessities pouch in your bag, keep your P.E shoes in your locker, use a planner, track your spending, wash your hair, brush your hair, go to commitments, attend school events, attend events you’re invited to, go shopping, watch movies, be kind to yourself, take bubble baths, light candles, listen to music, SLEEP, get that A and most importantly be proud of yourself.