ROMANTICISING STUDYING

Romanticising is the recent phenomenon that allows something that generally would be dreaded, to be glamorised as something much more aesthetic and enjoyable. Give something a romantic aura, in order to trick your brain into enjoying it more.

Having recently completed my Bachelors degree at University, I wanted to share a few of the romanticising techniques that kept me sane.

Although I did enjoy studying and academia, the intensity of studying, and the stress associated with it, often left me feeling incredibly burnt-out and unmotivated. Therefore, I quickly curated an ensemble of ways to make studying more appealing.

- STUDY DATE OUTFIT INSPO -

going on a study date in the autumn/winter

- ROMANTICISING TECHNIQUES -

1. Make a vision board

Where do you want to end up? Think about your dream job, lifestyle, ambitions. By creating a vision board of all of these things, it can help to drive your focus onto pushing through to reach the life that you want for yourself. Subconsciously, I also found that when I actually materialised those ambitions on a physical vision board, I felt more accountable in actually working hard to achieve them. The goal became more tangible, and so I felt incredibly motivated to work towards it (particularly as I kept the board on display in my University room).

2. Create a calm and comfortable space

Tidy room, tidy mind.

This is crucial in making sure that you're not overwhelmed by everything around you. Before I entered the heat of the exam season, I would deep clean my room to make sure that it was a calm and clutter-free space to study in.

3. Background noise

Find the right background music and noise to fit your style of studying. I tended to gravitate towards classical music playlists. However, I also relied on lofi playlists and the ambience videos of thunderstorms or café sounds.

4. Find study inspiration

Whether it's a friend who seems to always have everything under-control, or a character from a show, find your inspiration. How would they study? Rory Gilmore is an example that I kept seeing everywhere during my time studying, and her attitude towards studying significantly motivated me to keep going when I felt burnt-out.

5. Wearing cute outfits

Never underestimate the power of a light or dark academia outfit in putting you in the right mindset and motivating you to study. You should dress in the way that you want to be, and that may well mean dressing up, even if you feel exhausted.

6. Study in a coffee shop

This is like a step-up from the coffee shop ambience playlists. You can sit with an over-priced coffee in a window seat and crack on with that piece of coursework.

7. Pick a font and colour scheme for your work

Having a consistent style for your notes is surprisingly helpful in memorising the work. This also helps in organising your notes, as you have a simple design and structure for how to display them.

8. Have a detailed study plan

I always have an A3 plain paper notebook handy, to draw out a grid calendar and plan everything. Make sure to use different highlighter colours for different modules and topics, as well as adding on fun things, like going out and meeting up with friends. As well as this helping to keep you organised, it means that you can see how the hard work will then free up your time to go out and enjoy yourself, or relax, for the rest of the day.

9. Stay organised

Invest in a small diary to keep in your bag so you can always have a mini copy of the things that you need to do. I would spend an hour each Sunday to get myself organised for the week. This included cleaning my space, making sure that I had updated my giant calendar plan, and added my weekly tasks to my handy diary.

10. Pretending that you're in a tv show

This top tip is oddly motivating. It may seem trivial, but sitting at home in cute PJs and memorising flash cards whilst pretending to be a character studying in a classic teen film, is actually incredibly inspiring.

11. Study with friends

Depending on how intense your study session has to be, you could go out and study somewhere with friends. If I was cramming before a test or rushing to meet a deadline, group study was no use for me, as I never got as much done. But if the studying can be more relaxed, then group study is an easy way to enjoy it more, as you're sat with friends, a coffee, in comfy clothes, with chat breaks.

12. Light candles

Not only does this create a calming space, but choosing the right scent can help you focus and relax enough to fight through any burn-out or stress that may be clouding your study session. Alternatively, for University rooms with fire alarms, purchase a salt lamp.

13. Having a mix of study activities

This helps to break up revision, and makes it easier to focus on the tasks. Memorising is brilliant, but active recall tasks can really help in making sure that the memorised information sticks in your brain.

14. Cleansing your social media

Have a wealth of study motivation and inspiration accounts in your feed, and put do not disturb on your phone. I always had allotted rest breaks, in which I would go onto social media or watch something. Often, I followed a two hours on, one hour off rule, in which I would study for two hours and then take an hour off to watch an episode of a show or take a break outside.

15. Study breaks

This could be meeting with friends or going out by yourself, but it's a simple way to refresh your mind. Particularly as I lived in a flat during my time at University, I did not have the option of studying in the garden, and so popping out for fresh air was a nice way of decompressing and having a little break.

16. Have a lot of little snacks

I was never far from a bowl of fruit or chocolate, and always had a coffee or tea. Even buying the snacks can make up a part of the romanticising of studying, as you can pop out to the shops and pick all of your little study snacks whilst getting some needed fresh air.

17. Use study zoom videos

There are many pretend zoom call videos on YouTube with celebrities, that are surprisingly motivating. These videos imitate a group study session, and feel as though there are people studying with you, from the comfort of your own home. The many 'Stray Kids' and 'BTS' versions of these study zoom videos practically saw me through my first year of University.

18. Make detailed notes in your classes

Not only will this make studying easier, but it helps you to learn how to easily sieve through and find the relevant information. When you then go through and make your notes neater and formatted, you end up re-reading the material and actively engaging with it to figure out whether it's relevant or not. Interacting in this critical way with your notes helps memorisation, even though it may seem as though it is just a relaxing organisation task.

19. Lots of pillows

Against all of the advice I was ever given by my tutors, I tended to study sat on my bed. Not only did this give me more room than I would have if I was sat at a desk, but it was much comfier. The key to this comfort was the cloud of pillows to lean into whilst studying, creating more of a

day-bed/sofa feeling in my little University room.

20. Try to enjoy it

Much like the other aspects of University life, this is a short and amazing chapter of your life. Even though studying is perhaps the least enjoyable part, it doesn't have to ruin your experience. Although it's easier said than done, changing your mindset to trying to enjoy studying and learning new things, and feeding off of the addictive academic success that comes with it, will help greatly.

- AFTERTHOUGHTS -

Particularly in autumn, this romanticising of studying can be surprisingly easy. You can study in a café with a hot drink, and then walk back to your warm flat, admiring the orange trees. End your day of studying by lighting a candle, wrapping up in a blanket and watching a movie with a hot chocolate.

Make studying as much a part of your day as eating or drinking or going for a walk. It's just another thing on your to do list, instead of it feeling like a chore.

Good luck studying - you've got this!