| Written by Breanna R. |
A lot of different factors play into academic success.
Are you eating right? Do you get enough sleep at night? Is there a social support system available for you? What was your high school education like? What’s your financial situation? Do you have any medical issues or learning disabilities? Are your parents divorced or married? Has there been a recent death of someone close to you?
All of these factors played and continue to play into mine. Although we cannot change many of these circumstances, we can have awareness of them and understand the way we cope with them. Reflecting on what circumstances we’re dealing with and recognizing how they may challenge our performance in school is half of the battle. It’s when something is hurting us and we don’t realize it that it can become especially dangerous.
When I lived with my dad from my sophomore to my senior year, my younger sister and I shared a bedroom in a small apartment. I didn’t have a quiet place to study at home, so I found myself working in the library on campus late nights until it closed. Although I love the energy in an academic environment, not having a space set aside at home for homework and study was affecting my success in school. This was obvious to me at the time. I took the opportunity to move out sooner than I would have completely on my own by moving in with my boyfriend who, at the time, had a full-time job.
After a few months of living there, he had switched to a part-time job and was home a lot more often. I quickly realized, “Well, this isn’t going to work either.” Even with the door shut in my designated area, I was still distracted by the simple fact that he got to watch Netflix and relax in the living room and I had to slave away over some monstrous and seemingly indecipherable text. The temptations of having someone in the next room to hang out with (that didn’t have their own homework or studying to do) was enough to gradually lower my level of motivation to “hunker down,” as my dad calls it, and get my work done. I still found myself waiting around for when the “time was right” and my boyfriend was at work or out with friends to do my schoolwork.
What’s important to realize about being a successful college student is that you have to make your own schedule that works best for you on your time, not someone else’s. It seems selfish, but you kind of have to be when you’re a college student, and you can’t really blame yourself for that. Although we had a few talks about my inability to concentrate on school because of our living situation, ultimately that inability is my own fault. I can’t expect him to sit in silence or read Hamlet just because that’s what I was doing. That’s unfair. So, I had to make a few changes for me.
It wasn’t until I moved out completely on my own that I understood how important my time and my space was in order to effectively tackle my education and the responsibilities that came along with getting it. Some people work well in the company of others. I’m one of those people to an extent; there are terms and conditions, apparently. The people that are in my company need to be working in the same way that I am, and in that way, they act as motivators. Living with family or a significant other can be great, as long as it works for you. I was so caught up in the bliss of sharing an apartment with my boyfriend that I didn’t realize until much later that it wasn’t working for me in the context of school.
I’ve learned that making the right decision is often making the hard one, and that, even after you’ve made that hard decision, things continue to stay difficult for a little while you adjust; however, if you’re patient with yourself during the adjustment period, you usually end up feeling better in the longer run. At my own apartment I am not distracted by anyone else’s schedules or habits. I also have a large desk that is all my own where I can spread out my work. No one is awake watching television throughout the waking hours of the morning while I need to rest up for my night class. And reading (and comprehending information) is all the easier.
The main takeaway from sharing my experience is to bring to your attention that, if you’re having trouble finding motivation or getting your schoolwork done, pay attention to your living situation. In my experience, it has, I realized, been the number one inhibitor of my success. The other factors that play in, like not eating well or not sleeping well, I will always have to work on, because I have control of those things. Family issues, finances, loss, ailments, those things will come and go regardless (that’s life). I’ve been through them all during my time as an undergraduate and a graduate student. The thing that almost stopped me in my tracks, however, was my living situation. Take a moment to make sure that you’re in the best environment for yourself. If you’re not, but you don’t have the means to make a significant change, just having the awareness that the situation is a stressor to your education will give you the knowledge you need to make smaller, necessary changes.
Talk to your family or roommates; there’s a good chance that they’ll understand and adjust as much as possible within reason.
Make sure you have a study spot that is clean and for your schoolwork only.
Ask for blocks of “quiet time” if you have younger (or even older) siblings.
Request that others where headphones when playing video games, listening to music, or watching videos.
Try a pair of noise-cancelling headphones.
Meditate for 5-to-10 minutes before you begin your work.
Remind yourself that you’re doing this for you, so it’s you who needs to remain focused.
Utilize other study locations whenever you feel necessary.