Study Prof

Pet owners know that pets quickly learn routines. Your dog starts bouncing off the walls when you put on your walking shoes; he’s anticipating checking his p-mail at the local park. You fire up the electric can opener and your cat leaves claw marks in the linoleum as she races across the kitchen to belly up to her bowl. Even my beta fish figured out that when I moved my hands close to his bowl, he was about to get fed.

Our bodies are pets too, in a way. Establish a routine with your studies (and make sure it ends with a reward), stick to it for a few days, and pretty soon your body will learn the pattern and come a-runnin’.

Here’s an example to get you started. As I step out the door of my Chem class I keep my pen and notebook in my hand and walk the 200 meters to the library. I find my favorite study carrel on the fourth floor and sit down. I carefully spread out the materials to be studied in front of me, take off my watch and set it in my line of sight, turn of my cell phone, and close my eyes. I take a few seconds to think about how good it will feel to be done with my studying an hour from now, how I can feel proud of myself for getting it done, and how I can then reward myself with a big scoop of my favorite ice cream at the campus snack bar.

If I do this after my Chem class every time, it soon turns in to a fixed routine, and just stepping out the Chem building door with my notebook in hand leads me inexorably to studying in the library.

BONUS: Make the routine follow some basicPlease log in or sign up to read the rest of this content. Find out more.

CAUTION: You MUST end with a good reward or you’ll just learn to hate the cue. When my dog saw the pooch shampoo come out from under the sink, he quickly found a bed to hide under. The less you enjoy the activity (statistics homework, anyone?) the more sizable the reward at the end needs to be. “Okay, thirty minutes of stat problems, and then I’ll take that week long trip to Aruba.”

Be Sociable, Share!

•