If I gave you easy to follow 10 tips to stay self-motivated during your exam preparation, do you believe you can ace the game? A student’s life is anyway filled with uncertainties, contemplations, and a future with unpredictability.

Moreover, the word ‘exam’ has always created a pressure and panic in students all around the globe. But sitting for exams is not the difficult part. There are many hurdles to reach the exam hall. The first and foremost being how to keep oneself motivated during the exam preparation.

So, there is still time before the exam begins. You have butterflies in your stomach. And whenever you sit to study, you lose focus within a short span. There is a lot to finish, but at the same time, you are not able to concentrate. You fear the worst, as most of your time is spent procrastinating. Is this you? Let’s give you some hacks to keep you motivated.

Simple To Apply 10 Tips To Stay Self-Motivated During Exam Preparation

Make a Study Plan: It is advisable to have a study plan ready. A study plan is a chart or a timetable you create and follow religiously to meet your daily study goals. How to Create a Study Plan: Use a calendar or make one yourself. Divide the time you spend on different activities apart from studying, during the day, like spending time with family, social media, and social obligations. This gives you a fair idea of the amount of time you are spending on various tasks. Remember, you know how much preparation you need to get the grades you are aiming at. So, mark the calendar, balancing time to study and fulfilling other duties/chores.

Divide Subjects You Can Cover During The Day: The biggest mistake many of the students make is that they are in a state of confusion when it comes to deciding from where to start. Know your strengths. The subjects that you find easier to study should be done at that time of the day when your energy levels are on its way downward. Because it is something you are familiar with, and you wouldn’t have to push yourself hard to understand and finish those chapters. Keep the subjects that need concentration for the first half of the day while your mind is in a state of euphoria.  

Make a List of Chapters on the Scale of Easy to Hard: You may be good at some chapters, while others may need your undivided attention. Start with easy chapters to set the flow of study. You have ample time before the exam begins, utilize it wisely. Once you are in the flow, it is easier to increase the pace and the level of difficulty.

Set Achievable Goals: Setting smart and achievable goals is the secrets of self-motivation. Always be ready with short-term and long-term goals. Just keep your goals challenging and realistic. The sense of achievement when you reach your goals is addictive and a self-driving force.

Try the 20-5-20-5 Technique: In a world where we are easily distracted, it is hard to keep at one task for long. According to a study, the attention span of an adult is 20 minutes. After which a break or change becomes a must. When you sit to study, set a timer for 20 minutes. And learn with complete focus. Once the timer goes off, get up, stretch yourself, take a water/washroom break. But remember to be back within 5 minutes. Repeat this step again. Set the timer for 20 minutes and take a break for 5 minutes. This will help you stay attentive while studying, stop you from overthinking or getting bored in the learning process, and your mind gets the break it craves after every lap.

Watch Motivational Videos: Where do you think people find inspiration for anything they want to achieve in life? Motivational videos by the new age motivational speakers on YouTube, podcasts have become the ‘go to place’ for inspiration. There are new age motivational speakers whose videos you can listen to, to keep yourself stimulated. A few suggestions about people you can listen to on YouTube are SadhGuru and Sandeep Maheshwari. Watch TED Talks or read the successful stories about students who didn’t give up in spite of their challenging circumstances. 

Clean Study Area: For all those who think not taking showers for days and keeping your study place unkempt can keep you inspired in life, let me give you a Gandhian push; ‘Cleanliness is next to godliness’. The importance of cleanliness cannot be denied. Humans feel confident when they feel good about themselves. If you don’t clean your body or don’t keep your environment clean, you will not feel motivated to work on your goals, however big or small they may be. Keep your room clean and tidy. Open the doors and windows to air out your room in the morning. It helps boost your mood, and a stress-free mood is what you need to focus on when preparing for exams.

Take Time Out: If we keep thinking about exams all the time, we will be hounded by the pressure. Think of it as a necessity to take a breather. Keep your evenings booked for yourself. Do one activity that makes you happy, and lifts your mood, anything apart from picking up the books. It could be going for a walk, listening to your favourite music, exercise, stretching, craving ice-cream – go get it, write a diary entry. Whatever you do, stay away from your smartphones. This is the time to observe your study growth. Make amendments to your study plan/list if there are any.

Create Flash Cards: Make a list of topics subject wise where you feel you need extra practice. If you seem to forget what you study. Make flash cards for those topics. When you write, you leave a visual impression for yourself to remember. It is like an image imprinted in your mind’s eye. What we see is what we remember.

Keep a Time to Use Your Smartphone: I always tell students that smartphones are not that smart. It ain’t got all the answers you require, or the solutions you seek. The irreparable mistake of losing your precious time during exam preparations that you can make is not being able to curb your need to stay away from your phones. Have you realized that when you pick up your phone at the first ping, you fail to keep the phone back without indulging on your WhatsApp or Instagram, Facebook or Twitter? And that’s the biggest time killer that can lead you in an unending cycle of guilt, thinking about all the time you lost.

So, during exams preparations, it is best to set aside a time of day to use your phones. It will help you study without any distractions.

How to stay motivated during exam preparations is the biggest question students face. Many students tend to give up in the preparation phase for various reasons, like:

• Lack of motivation
• Cannot handle the pressure
• Make bigger, unrealistic and/or unachievable goals
• Lack of time management
• Cannot cope with the mental stress

What Can You Do When Pressure Takes a Toll On You During Exam Preparation?

However much you try to keep yourself motivated, sometimes lack of confidence or the constant nagging from the family members can affect your state of mind. So, what should you do in those times? We all idolize someone in our life. It could be an elder brother or sister, a friend, a teacher, or a mentor. Talk to them and share your concerns. People whom you trust are usually the ones who know your strengths and weak points. They can pep talk you out of the negative self-talk you may be unconsciously doing because of the way people around you push you to the edge.

Next, sit and think, why did you begin this all in the first place? The real driving force can only be derived from within. With that said, we can turn our surroundings into a productive environment if we feel positive and uplifted from inside.

I hope these 10 simple tips will inspire you and help you stay motivated during the exam preparation. You can try following all hacks or the ones that fit your plan. 

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