fightingdamonkebrain

Battling against my outdated human hardware towards success, sharing my strategies/study tips.

[fightingdamonkebrain]

cosmic horror vibes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Havana_syndrome

[fightingdamonkebrain]

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. — Aristotle

[fightingdamonkebrain]

Just 6 million years ago, a single female ape had two daughters. One became the ancestor of all chipanzees, the other is our own grandmother.

- from Sapiens, by Yuval Noah Harari

[fightingdamonkebrain]

[fightingdamonkebrain]

Alright monkebrain, to study, you gotta make yourself accountable. Is that really it?

I do truly believe making yourself accountable is the only study tactic that works. However, it isn't that easy to spring out of bed every other day and head to your library, coffee shop, etc.

This is where all those fancy habit strategy things come into play.

Layering accountability. Example: Tell a study buddy you'll meet them at the library at 8:00

Remove delays. The night before, pack your books, charge your laptop, etc. Minimize the factors that can slow you down on your way out.

Consistent rewards. Might seem kinda stupid, but people are animals like any other, so exploit the fact that you have a monkebrain, take advantage of it. Treat yourself to a nice coffee, a pastry, anything really once you are en route. Because showing up is 95% of the battle.

[fightingdamonkebrain]

[fightingdamonkebrain]

Do you ever go to some lectures and have no idea wtf is going on? These small changes helped me:

Figure out what the next lectures going to be about. (view lecture list, ask the prof, etc.)

The night before, get a really rough idea about what this topic is. (only 2 minutes!)

Learn some of the important terms relating to this topic. (5 minutes, bold words in the textbook are a good starting point)

Optional step: If the topic is really rough, try finding a short video on the interwebs explaining it, or read through the pertinent part of the book.

View the lecture.

An ungodly amount of practice questions should cement your knowledge.

[studyblr]

me, at 2 a.m: let’s get my life in order. this is a new beginning. a new era. everything will be different. i have finally cracked the code. starting from now, i will unlock my full potential. i—

me, the next morning: actually? nevermind

[fightingdamonkebrain]

This is the best time to take action. Exploit the stress you feel, use it for productivity. Screen-time your phone, delete some apps, make it difficult for yourself to enter the vicious cycle of mindless scrolling in the morning.

[fightingdamonkebrain]

My brain is very uncooperative when it comes to studying. Here's how I get around to doing it. 

We humans have a monkey brain that will chase random hits of dopamine rather than study, even when we're pretty motivated to advance ourselves.

If you live with someone, tell them you need to study, and go sit in a communal area where they will likely see you. If you live alone, you'll have to haul yourself to a public library, friends house, whatever. This is called making yourself accountable.

That's it. The most effective study tactic I've figured out after studying hours daily, for years.

[philosophybits]

“The worst enemy you can meet will always be yourself.”

— Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra

[fightingdamonkebrain]

monke brain tries to foil my every move

[fightingdamonkebrain]

Humans were not programmed for the society we've managed to create. That's why shits rough.

Our brain (and the rest of our body) has been fine tuned for hunting on plains and forests, foraging for food. Not for sitting-in-a-chair-for-50-hours-a-week type bullshit.