“Push yourself, because no one else is going to do it for you”
Summary
- Tips to self-motivate yourself to study hard
- Methods for teachers and parents to motivate students
Finding the right motivation to study could prove to be tougher than studying itself. The first step in pursuing anything is difficult until it sets in as a routine and becomes easy like a breeze.
Motivation or the lack of it is one of the factors that determine your interest in something. Especially for a student, finding the right motivation to study is very important.
Remember all your dreams can come true if you have the courage to pursue them.
Through this article, we endeavour to elaborate on some points that can help students find the right motivation to study hard for exams.
There are two ways to look at this:
- One- from the students’ point of view and
- Two- from the teacher or parents’ point of view.
When we look at it from the students’ point of view there are many methods and ways to find motivation to study hard for exams.
You can find motivation in almost everything around you. Friends, peers, parents, mentors all motivate in some form or the other. However, let’s specifically take a look at what you can do to motivate yourself.
1. Take Baby Steps
To motivate yourself to study, it is advisable to start with something easy and small rather than starting with a subject that is tough.
This doesn’t mean that you ignore the tough subject altogether. It simply means that you start with an easy subject.
When you start with something small and easy, you are able to grasp the concept quickly. This serves as an encouragement.
As you go along you can dig deeper into tougher topics. The point is to start with small baby steps and then take big leaps. Nothing is hard if you break it down into smaller jobs.
2. A Positive Attitude Can Achieve Anything
Staying positive and removing all negative thoughts from your head is one of the ways you can motivate yourself to study hard.
Always think that you are going to do well and you will automatically create a positive aura around you. This positive aura acts as a motivation to achieve your target and goals.
3. Think About What Demotivates You
You might wonder why you should think of what demotivates you if you want to be more motivated. Well, you must think of what demotivates you so that you can try and eliminate it from your routine.
- Why do you procrastinate?
- Do you feel lethargic to study?
- Why do you feel lazy?
Once you know the answers to this, you can try and find ways to eliminate them from your routine. If you feel down yesterday, stand up today.
Identify your strengths and weaknesses. When you know your strengths, you can use them to overcome your weaknesses.
Your strengths and weaknesses can be your biggest assets when it comes to motivating you to study hard. for your examination.
Taking a small example related to examination, if you have great analytical and critical thinking power then you may be better in math and science subjects.
Use your power over these subjects to make up for something you are weak in. Find motivation in your strengths and weaknesses.
4. Form a Habit
A habit is defined as a regular tendency that is hard to give up. Therefore, if you make studying a regular habit, it will be hard to go a day without studying.
Make studying a routine. Once you make studying a routine it serves as self-motivation to not break the habit. The more hours you work today, the more hours you can relax tomorrow.
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5. Improve Your Study Techniques
One of the best ways to motivate students to study is to change or improve the way they study. Research has shown that studying with good breaks bears better results rather than studying for long hours in a day without breaks.
According to an article published in the well-being thesis Micro-breaks, lunchtime breaks, and longer breaks, have all been shown to have a positive relationship with well being and productivity.
By taking regular breaks you can boost your performance.
6. Rewards
It is important to reward yourself every time you complete a task. A reward can come in any form. It just has to be something you like. Rewarding yourself is a kind of self-motivation technique.
7. Future Planning
One of the best tips for motivating students to study is to think about the future. Think about where you would like to see yourself 5 years from now.
This is one of the biggest motivations for students. Thinking about your dream college or dream job can work as one of the best motivators.
You must also think about why you want to do well in your exams. There could be many reasons you want to do well.
It may be that you want to improve your knowledge for your own sake or you want to earn a good living in the future. Thinking about the reasons you want to do well serves as a motivation to study hard.
Setting academic goals is somewhat short-term planning for the future. It sets targets for your immediate future. Planning your academic goals can also be a huge motivating factor to study.
Your goal may be to pursue a post-graduation or Ph.D or even complete a master’s course in a particular field. This academic goal motivates you to study now so that you can pursue your goal later.
8. Happiness Creation
Another method of how to yourself motivated to study hard is to think about who will be happy if you get good grades.
Think of the bigger picture. What can give you more joy than to see the pride on your parent’s and teachers’ faces.
9. Study to Understand
One of the best tips for motivating students is to study to understand the concept rather than to memorise it for the sake of examinations.
Understanding a concept will allow you to discover more about the subject. You tend to give attention to details which you otherwise would not have paid heed to.
When you understand a subject, you develop a sense of liking towards it. This itself becomes a motivating factor to learn.
10. Mentor Stories
Many students have mentors or people they look up to. It is always nice to know how these people got to the place they are in now.
Many success stories are not weaved from golden thread. Some of these stories have a lot of sweat, toil and failure too.
It is encouraging to hear the life stories of some of the world’s most successful people. TEDx programs which are available online, showcase some of the world’s best stories that are worth sharing.
Take time to hear these stories and get encouraged to face your own challenges.
How Can Parents and Teachers Motivate Students?
From a teacher’s or parents’ point of view, there are many ways to provide motivation to study hard for exams.
1. Communication
One of the best ways of how to motivate students to study hard is to develop a channel of communication with the students.
Sometimes it is difficult for students to communicate with parents or teachers. There could be many reasons for this gap. It may be reverence or fear that prevents students from communicating with parents or teachers.
The first step is to open up a communication channel with the students so that they feel comfortable talking and sharing their problems.
2. Peer Groups
Another tip for motivating students is to encourage them to form peer study groups. Many times, students are more comfortable with friends and peers rather than teachers and parents.
Some students are comfortable opening up with their own age group. When friends can help another, it serves as the greatest motivator.
3. Rewards
Teachers and parents must motivate students to study with the help of rewards. Knowing that the prize sits at the end of hard work is always a motivating factor for students.
4. Avoid Admonishing Failure
Many students may fail a couple of times before they are able to succeed. Not scolding or admonishing them when they fail can also be motivating for students.
Parents and teachers must help the students to pick up the bits and move on. One of the methods of how to motivate students to study hard is to make them aware that if they fail, they still have a second chance.
Quoting the famous basketball player Michael Jordan “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life, and that is why I succeed.”
5. Appreciate
Solely judging a student’s performance on the basis of marks scored can be discouraging for some students. Some students may perform better in subjects that involve critical thinking while others may perform better in subjects that require analytical thinking.
Therefore, parents and teachers must appreciate the students for his or her attempt, irrespective of the marks.
6. Be a Role Model
Students learn better from live examples. Therefore, it is necessary to be a role model for the students.
Whether you are a parent or a teacher, try to be the best role model for the student. This is the greatest motivation to study hard for exams.
7. Hands-on Learning Experience
Teaching students through practical training is one of the ways of how to motivate students to study hard. When exposed to practical training, students get very involved in the process.
It makes learning interesting. When learning becomes interesting it is one of the biggest motivations to study hard for exams.
Conclusion
Though you may feel that studying is tough, always remember that being a failure in life is tougher. So, motivate yourself to work and study hard because everything you do now is for your future.
