How to Study When You Don't Feel Like It

If you hear any wham-bam, thank you ma'am, my landlord thinks it's a good idea to redo someone's kitchen, like now, so... Let's try to do this, even though now I don't feel like it. Hi everyone, in today's video we are going to be talking about how to study and or be productive when you don't feel like it. So if you find yourself in a bit of a slump and want to know my personal secrets on how I give myself that much needed kick in the butt, keep on watching. Number one, the path of least resistance. We as human beings are wired to choose the path or the option that can lead to the least amount of psychological, emotional and physical discomfort or pain. So anything that might lead to us not surviving, we tend to avoid that. So it is no surprise then that when you see studying or getting work done as something extremely stressful, your subconscious mind is going to be like, we want to survive that, so you know what, why don't you just, you know, not do that and go back to watching Game of Thrones, because she hot though. So now you might be asking yourself, okay Anna, but how can we go against this deeply ingrained thing that is inside of us? Take a piece of paper, you got it? Okay, now draw a T. The T chart is simply drawing this and doing the pros and cons of something you don't feel like doing. If I don't study, I'm going to flunk my exam, my parents are going to be hella unhappy, I'm going to be hella unhappy. Versus when I actually do my work and study and be productive, I'm going to ace my exam. The teacher is going to be like, wow, super proud of me, my friends are going to be like, how you do that though? Can I copy your notes? But really, now, to your subconscious mind, is the easiest way that avoids pain and suffering and discomfort and all the other parts of that T. It's doing your work. Number two, building momentum and minimal effort. The number one thing we all struggle with, like struggle with, when we have to do something and we don't feel like it, is starting. For the love of, we cannot start. We just procrastinate and try to be like Cinderella and start washing the windows when they're not even dirty and it's not even my house. But this roadblock is caused by the huge amount of work that I'm sure we all have to do. So when you look at it, it looks super intimidating and a lot and it looks like you're going to be in there forever once you begin. But a way to avoid this is to dissect whatever you have to do in the smallest, most minimal and least impactful, trivial thing you could possibly think of. Example, you have to write an essay. Start by writing the date on a piece of paper. Let's just start, you know, by like writing chapter one. That's done. What else can I do? Well, I can use the color orange and underline chapter one. What can I do? I can just look and open the first page and just look at it. Wow, there's some words that stand out. Huh. Well, I can just write one word down, right? Just one. One word. Well, since I already wrote that word down, maybe I can write the definition of that word. Okay, I'll just, you know, I'll just write the definition. Just... See that? That's how I want you to get the ball rolling. It's all about creating momentum. Just tell yourself that just this one thing, just this small, I'm just gonna do this one small thing. Now, I swear to God, you will not be able to get the word just out of your head. I'm gonna shut up, but, you know, it works. Number three, implement successful habits. Why? Because habits tend to be the thing that we automatically resort to when we don't know what to do. It's, you know, when you go to the bathroom, it's night, my automatic reaction is put toothpaste, start brushing my teeth. I don't even think about it. I just know night, bathroom, brush teeth. That's how you have to be when it comes to studying. Because, again, we want to give ourself and our subconscious mind the path of least resistance. So, what do we automatically fall back into when we feel, like, uncomfortable or threatened or, you know, like, we don't know what to do? You know what? Boom! Habits. Make sure they're successful and lit AF, okay? If you have trouble implementing, creating, and, most importantly, maintaining successful habits, start with triggers. Productivity or study triggers. I have two videos on that topic. Trust me, you won't regret it if you look that up, okay? But in a nutshell, how they work is, if you put yourself these cues all over the place, after a while, it will become so second nature and, like, habitual of you, that you won't need the triggers anymore. It's just to give you a little extra eh. So, why not? Number four, if, then, rewards. This is the simplest thing in the world to do when you don't feel like doing something. Give yourself. Writing it down is more helpful. And, on top of that, if you write it down and then you sign what you just wrote, like a little mini-contract, mini-promise. I talk about that a lot. Basically, what you're gonna try to do is link a somewhat boring, not-feel-like-doing-it thing with a reward. And, once you connect those two and form a solidified bond, your mind will automatically connect studying with the reward that it gets after. If I read chapter three, then I can binge-watch America's Next Top Model for the rest of the night. Tyra, I see you. When's it coming, girl? Okay? And, finally, number five, the need to feel like it. I want you to leave it in the comments down below. And, tell moi, because I don't know when and, most specifically, who in the mmm told you, and all of us, actually, that we need to wait until we feel like it to do something. As a matter of fact, what does feeling like it actually feel like? If you're talking about motivation, inspiration, drive, ah, now, see, those are things that you actually have power and control over. Feelings, as much as we like to tell ourselves that, Anna, I can control my feelings, it's not that hard. Emotions are spontaneous and unexpected and they can come out of the blue. Why are you relying, studying, and being productive on something that might happen on a fluke when a full moon rises and the werewolves sing, you know? Take control, take responsibility over your actions and your behavior. Do you think I feel like doing my work? No one feels like reading a 3,000-page textbook and then doing practice tests until, like, March, because that's when my exam is, okay? Of course I don't feel like it, like, ever. I'd rather do something else, you name it. But I don't let that make me not do it. So the next time you tell yourself, I don't feel like it, I want you to replace that statement with, I don't want to, and see how that feels. Because I don't want to is on you. So get up, I mean it, and get to work. So with that being said, thank you so much for watching. Please don't forget to give this video a thumbs up if you like it because I feel in a good mood and I think, you know, please. And subscribe to me if you like what you see because I post videos every Thursday and I will see you next week with another awesome school video. If you have any requests, leave them down below and let's get inspired together.