Secrets for Success
From GSLISWiki
So you never have to buy a "how to be a successful student" book.
Contents |
[edit] Attitude
[edit] Keys to Success
- Hard Work
- Fear of being ignorant
- Lack of fear of appearing ignorant- i.e. the courage to ask questions
- Disgust for shoddy workmanship
[edit] Helpful Attributes
- Insatiable Curiosity
- A Drive that does not let you sleep at night
- The ability to Focus on a task until it is done, and every detail is understood.
- Strong feelings of Discomfort when leaving a task unfinished
- Confidence in your own abilities
[edit] Skills and Approaches
[edit] Organized & On the Ball
- Schedules
- Filing System
- Calendar
- Planners
- Set yourself intermediate deadlines
- Create a reward system where you reward yourself with something you like after you accomplish something (ice cream, jog around the block, your favorite show on C-Span)
[edit] Reacting to Impending Deadlines
- Surround yourself with positive affect, and change it all to negative affect when deadlines loom.
- Keep a shelf well stocked with books and papers you would like to read, so when you are tempted to get distracted, you have something "productive" to do.
- Let a computerized calendar do your remembering for you, especially for any even that is not happening today (or tomorrow).
- Make a list of stuff you need to do before you forget it. Look at it once a week to remind yourself of the stuff you never think about.
- Sleep as needed, but make sure you keep a few days free so you can crash if need be.
- Relieve stress through socializing.
- Have some of those organized people as your good friends to remind you of deadlines, holidays, the end of the semester, etc. They work better than electronic Calendars cause you don't need to spend the time programming them. And they're programming themselves anyway--it would be a shame to let their extensive efforts go to waste.
[edit] Taking Care of Yourself
- get enough sleep
- eat enough food
- eat primarily healthy food
- eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, or make sure you get enough vitamins from some other source (pill)
- eat enough variety of protein
- this is of vital importance for vegetarians--there is a reason why many cults use vegetarian diets without soy products
- schedule activities which allow you to relax
- Incorporate some exercise into your daily routine. Transportation to and from work/school is the ideal way to do this, but if you are ambitious, or actually like moving around, scheduling something can do wonders for your energy levels, you joint pain, your outlook on life.
- One Psychologist I knew prescribed two hours of exercise to every patient he saw who had symptoms of depression, and in some rediculously high number of the cases where his patients actually listened to his advice (like 80% or something), that was all that was needed to get the patients out of their funk.
- Don't quit smoking right before your exams or before you need to write a major paper.
[edit] Secrets for Those of Us Who Don't Have Time for All That
- Join a lot of stuff-- it gets you a lot of contacts and lets you see how the new place you're at works. The sooner you can understand the culture of a place the easier it will be to succeed.
- Know where hard work counts-- A good portion of life is showing up on time and looking interested. Figure out what you can do quick and dirty (ie homework) and still do fairly well. Then figure out what it is that you actually have to do quite well in, and funnel energies there.
Categories: Research | Academics | Resources | Thesis
