In May, I made a post on Instagram about my struggles with productivity, which in my terms is spending time accomplishing important tasks – like studying. At the beginning of this summer semester, I studied at least 10 hours per week. Now that I’m 2 weeks away from being a 3rd year DPT student, I’m pretty sure I study less than that. When taking classes in university, the rule of thumb is 2 hours of studying for 1 hour of lecture. In PT school, there’s NO way to abide by this ideal rule and fit in time to exercise, socialize, and practice self-care.
In addition, restarting PT school brings additional pressures – especially doing well in my courses. This is a normal feeling. When I lack the desire to study, I feel even more stressed and get upset with myself for not being more self-disciplined. However, thinking that spending more time studying to be more successful as a student isn’t necessarily true. So how can we as students balance the scale of productive (and effective) studying?
1. Find moments that work best for you.
Do you work best in the morning, afternoon, or night? How about right after class or after dinner? Personally, I need time to decompress after classes before I can get back into studying. I am also a night owl. Sometimes, my best work is right before I go to bed.
Although, this doesn’t mean that you have to block out 4-6PM every day on your weekly schedule just to study. Consider your mood throughout the day. I have rebellious tendencies, so I do what I want to do on my own time. In other words, I will study when I feel like it. By knowing the best times/moods to study, it makes it easier to do said task.
2. Consider the quality of your studying.
If you read my previous post, you’ll remember that re-reading your notes is insufficeint. You have to recall the infor from memory. I was inspired by YouTuber Liam Porritt to jot down what I learned that day in a notebook. [You could type it, but I limit my screen time before bed.] It’s essentially a nightly brain dump. I mark uncertain facts with a “?” and go to sleep. I feel like this has helped me boost my confidenc on the knowledge of the subject. Therefore, I don’t feel as bad if I did not have a good quality study session in the afternoon.
Perhaps the quality could be group discussion. This past week, I was able to practice hands-on skills while teaching + reviewing vestibular concepts with a classmate for 2 hours. This really gain more confidence in the information, and I didn’t feel the need to study after that, so I rewarded myself with spending quality time with my mom watching movies on Disney+ [Blog post to come later.].
3. Remember there is no perfection when it comes to productivity.
So what if you didn’t accomplish one, two, or all of your tasks? Consider reducing your daily task list to 2-4 items, so you can set low expectations for yourself. And if you still did not cross off those few tasks, that’s okay. [I run into this problem constantly.] You will find time to do those things. Giver yourself some grace and promise yourself to devote the next day or hour to study. Understand that the more time we spend hustling and worrying, the faster we will reach burnout and excessive guilt.
Productivity can be a driver of today’s workforce when it shouldn’t be. Instead of beating ourselves up about not doing enough, we can reframe our thinking by finding our study rhythm, setting minimal expectations, improving the quality of our work, and giving ourselves some slack once in a while.
I hope this helped you picture productivity in a new way. As always, you can follow me on Instagram to keep up with my journey #forthedpt.
Until Next Time,
Jordaine Enriquez, SPT + Amateur Productivity Manager