Being a student can be challenging. There are so many new things changing in your life and so many responsibilities that you can’t even find time for yourself. Instead of procrastinating or trying to change the system, you’d better find some shortcuts that’ll help you work smartly. While, working hard is necessary to win in life, working smartly on the other hand can help you accomplish even more.
If finding a balance is a problem for you too, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we are going to discuss a few tips that will change your school experience for the better – and most of them are quite easy to do.
Record Lectures
If you want to simplify your studying process, here is what you could do:
• Record classroom lectures (make sure you professor agrees)
• Download the recorder on your laptop or tablet
• Play it loud and make sure you understand the content
• You can edit audio quality using QuickTime Pro or Audacity
• Play the recordings again, at twice or triple the speed
• Start learning
Voila! Now you don’t have to spend hours looking through your old notes and various textbooks. All you have to do is press play!
Set Your Schedule as Your Wallpaper
Its hard to remember your schedule and room numbers the first few days of class. One tip is to take a picture or type out your schedule and take a screenshot of it. Set it as your phone, tablet, or laptop wallpaper and you will have it available at a moment’s notice.
Use Google Translate as an Essay Checker
Writing essays can be boring. There’s so much structure, and so much work to do. Professors can be pretentious, and deadlines can be a pain in the bum. Shorten your time spent at your desk by using Google Translate.
• Write down your essay
• Copy the first paragraph
• Paste it into Google Translate
• Press “Translate”
• Close your eyes, and let Google read your essay out loud for you
• When you hear a grammar mistakes or spot a typo, correct it in your oroginal paper
• Repeat with the following paragraphs
Why not use this free tool to improve your writing — and your grades?
Use Amazon Prime for Free
Laila Johnson, freelancer worker at Essay Geeks service and former Manager at Amazon, shares her advice:
“Did you know that if you are a student, Amazon Prime is free for you? For every e-mail ending in ‘.edu,’ Amazon gives out amazing advantages.”
You can:
• Download Kindle books for free
• Read unlimitedly
• Get instant videos in a second
• Benefit from two-day shipping, and many others
Since you are already a student, open up an account with your school’s e-mail, and benefit from unlimited options!
Use Noise Down
The new intelligent App application called Noise Down automatically detects the noise level in your home, class, or wherever you are. All you have to do is tune your app to suit your needs. If the background noise exceeds your own settings and preferences, an alarm will sound. This is an amazing way to realize whether you need to change study environments or not.
For instance, studying in a café is only a great choice as long as others don’t distract you from your work, right? Know where that boundaries lay by using Noise Down.
Learn How to Use Photoshop
We all know that being a student means living on a tight budget. As technology is developing as such a fast pace, learning how to use Photoshop will always be of great use to you to create presentations, posters, and funny memes of course. Why not start learning, while still young? Not only will it help with your graphics for school, it might even help you get a job down the line! Adobe offers Photoshop to students at a discount as part of its Creative Cloud.
Create a Special Playlist to Stay on Time
This life hack is one of my favorites! Because who doesn’t like listening to music in order to figure out time?
• Choose your favorite pumped songs
• Set up a special Playlist on Spotify
• Listen to it a couple of times
• Start playing it early in the morning, and try to finish your routine by the end of your playlist
Great music while showering, great music while taking breakfast, great music while preparing for your day. Could you ask for more?
Conclusion
If you decided to work smart, here is your opportunity. Record your lessons, set your schedule as your phone’s background screen, use Google Translate to correct your writing mistakes, use Amazon Prime for free, try out Noise Down to focus better on your work, learn how to use Photoshop, and create a special Spotify playlist to always be on time.
Chris Richardson is a journalist, editor, and a blogger. He loves to write, learn new things, and meet new outgoing people. Chris is also fond of traveling, sports, and playing the guitar. Follow him on Google+.