According to a study by UCLA Center for Mental Health in Schools, between 40 and 60% of students have significant test anxiety that interferes with their performing up to their capability.
Yeah, you’re not alone; it’s exam time at many high schools and colleges. That knot in your stomach, the pounding in your head, the sudden urge to clean your entire room instead of opening your textbook—it’s all part of the lovely pre-exam package.
The good news is that stress doesn’t have to be your enemy. In fact, pressure can be used as a motivator. The key is to harness that annoying little voice in your head saying, “Hey, you should probably get on that studying thing.”; take that nervous energy and channel it into productive action.
So, let’s ditch the procrastination and the panic attacks, and talk about specific steps you can take to get started studying.
Stage 1: Master Your Mindset and Schedule
Visualize Victory: Embrace the power of planning. Block out exam dates and chunk in study sessions for each subject, starting today. Work backwards to see how much time you truly have, not how much you’re stressing about not having. You’ll be amazed at the space that opens up!
Stage 2: Reactivate, Relearn, Retain
Lighten the Load: Don’t dive headfirst into a textbook marathon. Begin with a light review of past notes. Tell yourself you only need 20-30 minutes per subject to dust off the cobwebs and jog your memory.
Find a Friend: Studying alone got you down? Create a study group, grab a classmate for coffee, or swap notes online. Sharing the burden makes it lighter, and you might even learn a new study trick or two.
Turn Past Stumbles into Stepping Stones: Pull out those old tests and quizzes. Highlight the areas that still haunt your dreams (or at least gave you a mini-freakout). Let those be your launchpad for targeted studying.
Teacher Time: Still just as confused about derivatives as you were on Day 1? Don’t suffer in silence! Flag those tricky topics and head straight to office hours. Additional one-on-one instruction can help hard to grasp concepts become more concrete.
Bonus Stage: Beg, Borrow, & Steal (the Good Kind)
Feeling uninspired? Ask a friend or your seatmate how they plan to attack the material. “What’s your favorite hack for memorizing historical dates?” Borrow ideas, adapt strategies, and let their process spark your own.
Start with any one of the above steps and you’ll be that much closer to conquering your procrastination demons. So, grab some highlighters, your favorite caffeinated beverage, and face those exams with confidence!
