Why You Should Learn How To Study

Picture this: You wake up every morning with the sound of an alarm clock (add a bit of swearing to that). You do your morning routine and get ready to go to work. After going to work you do your job for 8 hours and go back home for the day. And then repeat for 5 days.

Sounds pretty bad, doesn’t it?

But there is a light at the end of the tunnel. After those 5 days, you get to enjoy 2 days for yourself. You can even get a permanent vacation if you work hard enough. Oh, and let’s not forget to work for long enough (just around 40 years).

But after all of those struggles you get to enjoy the efforts of your hard work (assuming that you are not dead at that time, of course). And all of that at the age of 65 (if you are lucky enough to retire that early).

This sounds like an intro to a financial YouTube video, how does this relate to studying?

While all of those things have a close relation to the world of finance, the root of those problems starts at another point.

That point is your lack of knowledge.

If you want to live the life described above, you can do that, I have no power to stop you. The problem is that most people start to live that kind of life without knowing about all of the consequences. What is even worse than that, is that most people think that is the only option for them, which is again caused by lack of knowledge.

If this is not enough to convince you that you should learn how to study look at the situation of the people around you and think if they could benefit from extra knowledge.

After pondering for a while you may come to these conclusions:

1. all of the people have something they could improve at
2. learning something new could improve someone’s financial situation

When is it too late to start learning and what if I am too old to start learning now?

Here is a cliche answer: it’s never too late to start learning. If you ask me, all you need is to be alive and nothing else. If the cliche answer doesn’t work for you here is a story that might inspire you:

After her husband’s death, at the age of 62, a woman started playing piano. Her whole family thought that it was just a passing phase of her life. You know, to somehow distract herself from her husband’s death.

But she never stopped. After some time, when someone hears her playing, there is almost no one who believes her story. No one believes that she started learning piano at 62.

If you are young and are wondering why someone asks if is it too late to start something, this is the reason why. People simply don’t believe they can achieve something past a certain age.

The biggest reason for that is that they do not have enough time (or so they say).

So if you could increase your learning efficiency, you could make use of what little time you have, right?

If you are convinced that learning something could help you in some way, then there is no reason for me to tell you that “learning the right way” is the first thing you need to learn.

What you learn and how you learn depends on your situation, and whether you are a student or already started working. Well, if those two have one thing in common it’s that they both always don’t have enough time😃.

Students

Is there a reason for me to explain why a student should study?

Yes, there is. While many people (including you, maybe) think that a student’s job is to study, that one sentence is not enough to explain why a student should study.

The reason a student should study is to satisfy his curiosity.

Although such a view might seem idealistic to you, give it a try. Try to study to satisfy your curiosity regardless of the grades you get. I say these words to you because I wish someone had said them to me when I was a student.

I hated nearly every part of the school when I was there. But I still wanted to do well, so I studied. After that, I tried to find ways to improve my efficiency and it worked. I had so much free time after that I could do whatever I wanted.

But, going to school killed any joy of studying I had left. It would be many years after school, that I would find joy in studying. I always thought that if I had loved learning new things back then as I do now, I would have been much happier.

If going to school is a must, the only thing you can do is accept it. If studying feels miserable to you, or you are doing it to please someone else (mainly your parents), try being curious. It won’t hurt to try it once.

But I need good grades to get into a good university and get a good job.

Stop it. Are you someone who thinks like this? Or did someone who “definitely” knows “what is best for you” tell you this? Whether I think good grades (and a good university and a good job) are important doesn’t matter.

What matters is what YOU think.

Look through the data and see for yourself how useful they really are. Ask people what they think of the jobs they got with those good universities. Don’t just ask about the good things, but ask about the downsides.

And when you think you finally have enough information, ask yourself is this really the right path for me?

And whatever answer you choose, you should be happy for yourself. YOU have done the research, YOU weighed your options one against the other, and YOU made the decision. And that is what matters the most.

Thinking that good grades in a good university are necessary is the same as thinking that they are worthless. In both cases, you don’t think for yourself and let others make the decision for you.

Older students

To me even if you have worked for 50 years you are still a student since we don’t truly stop learning even after our schooling is over. Although, people don’t pay much attention to their learning since that is not considered your job (unlike when you were in school).

After finishing your schooling you will probably find a job (if today’s market allows it, that is). Now, get ready for endless tasks that take all of your energy away leaving you with nothing to use for learning. Besides that, you don’t have time, and you work hard, so it’s better if you reward yourself. right?

After that, comes marriage and kids, and after your promotion more responsibilities at work, and you know what that means don’t you? Even less energy and even more excuses to not learn anything new.

If I just had more money I wouldn’t have to work so hard and I would have more free time.

What do we see here, is that another excuse? Sure if you say that is the case, then why don’t you go and earn more money? Because you don’t have any financial education? So the next logical step is to study finance and learn how to earn more money.

And this is where the “I don’t have enough time” excuse comes in. First of all, look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself if that is really the case. Even if everything else is really important to you I can guarantee that you spend more time on some things than you need to (like your mobile phone or television).

I hope that you carve out some time to dedicate to learning. Even half an hour of daily studying could get you far. People (you included) underestimate how much they can achieve if they focus on learning something every single day.

I mentioned getting a financial education because most people complain that they don’t have enough money. But that is not the only way. If you learn new skills that are connected to your job you might get a higher pay. There is also the option of learning other skills and starting a side hustle for more money.

Whatever the case every single option starts with learning something new.

* * * * *

Hopefully, you can now see how powerful it can be to learn something new. This is the main reason why I consider learning how to learn the most important skill anyone can have. Think about how much faster you could learn something if you knew the best way to learn it.

Not the conventional best way, but one suited to YOU. Everyone learns in their own way, but throughout school, most people are forced to learn only one way. If that way suits them then they are labeled as “intelligent” students, and if does not then they are labeled as “studying is not for you” students.

If you grew up with this kind of mindset it’s no wonder that you don’t want to learn and think you are not suited for it. But whether you are still a student or a full-grown adult with work experience you can change that.

I hated studying while I was going to school, but after deciding to learn how to properly study, not only did I learn new things much faster, but I also enjoyed it much more. I hope that you get to experience the joy I feel when I study.

Remember:

People are stuck in a situation they don’t want to be because of their lack of knowledge.

You can start learning something new regardless of your age.

Try out different ways of studying to see which one suits you best.

Learning how to study efficiently can shorten the time you study, resulting in more free time.