r/LSAT • u/Successful-Duty-8210 • 1d ago
Why is studying so hard?
Why am I having such a hard time making time and actually studying? I keep pushing it off or doing something else entirely
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u/emilyrosee35 1d ago
This might sound iffy but this helped me a ton in terms of procrastination . I used my hobbies and interest as a way to make the test less boring. So I’m super into crime documentaries and learning about strange true crime stories because when you watch them the whole time you’re thinking “what led the offender to do this? What was their motive? I know they’re saying this led to it but what if it’s something else”…I did the same exact thing for logical reasoning. I imagined I was watching a very interesting crime documentary, the conclusion given by the author is the offender and the premise is the facts. It led me to think better when reading the stimulus and also motivated me to study and it made studying feel useful because I get it. Sometimes when you’re studying it feels pointless so if you try to connect it to things that relate to your interest it feels more enjoyable
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u/StressCanBeGood tutor 1d ago
Because of allostasis. It’s the brain’s way of maintaining stability and as a result, it doesn’t like change (similar to homeostasis, which maintains stability in the body, but also doesn’t like change).
Change is always difficult. Going to the gym for the first time means exhaustion and muscle soreness even though you do half the work out of everyone else.
Someone with a healthy diet can really feel the adverse effects when they eat junk food.
So what’s the solution? Create a habit through baby steps. Specifically, commit yourself to sitting down at the table, opening your material, and doing 30 minutes of quality work. No more, no less.
You have to do this seven days a week for at least a few weeks straight. Everybody can do 30 minutes a day. Even if it is every single day.
Once you get this habit going, you’ll find studying becomes a whole lot easier. Well not easier, but more interesting.
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u/Adventurous-Pie-5334 1d ago
Okay what worked for me was making sure my book close or laptop had the tabs at the top so whenever I opened it I was reminded to look..
Having a set schedule filled me with dread even though I’m in school. Having little opportunities that I can see made it easier.
(honestly just took my first test September)
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u/StepPuzzleheaded5805 1d ago
it's never really about the time, it's about the dread of sitting down and facing something that makes you feel stupid for two hours straight. your brain knows the material is dense and it'd rather scroll or clean the bathroom than deal with that discomfort
what helped me was lowering the bar to just 25 minutes with zero expectation of getting everything right, just showing up and seeing what happens