College Life

    As everybody's school schedule is getting busier, I thought I'd share the secret of my "stress free" success. A couple months before school started I was searching for on Amazon for something that would put my total over $25 so I could get free shipping, and I stumbled across some books buy Cal Newport about college.

Both of these books have been incredibly helpful, I don't know what I would have done without them. College is such an important step in our lives we all have our own idea of what to expect. I think the biggest misconception about school is the Idea that you are not working hard unless you study all available hours of the day. To quote the red book:

"In the college environment, simple brute force study methods can end up requiring a lot time and causing a lot of pain. Nevertheless, most students still rely on them. And this is why they find themselves regularly pulling all-nighters and developing an antagonistic attitude toward their courses. The Taxing effects and spotty success of these methods also underlie the common belief that only geniuses and grinds can score top grades."

Even though most of you know what the point of this blog is some of you out there are thinking "yeah it sucks to study all the time but it's the only way" That isn't true!

The Authors red book lists several strategies used by real students at Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Dartmouth, Brown, Columbia, Duke, Amherst, and Skidmore. And for me if students studying under the Harvard curriculum can get A's using these strategies they're good enough for me. Here's a list of the how-to topics in the red book:

• Manage your time and deal with the urge to procrastinate
  
• Take targeted notes in class
  
• Handle reading assignment and problem sets with ease
  
• Prepare efficiently for exams
  
• Master the Art of exam-taking
  
• Write incisive critical analysis essays
  
• Conduct thorough research
  
• Write standout term papers
  

The yellow book is a little different but still really awesome, it's a list of 75 things that will help you "win" at college, It's a really good motivator, it never fails to get me pumped for college life. I know many of you are still skeptic but I promise that these books will make a positive impact on your college experience. Cal Newport, the author, has a weekly blog called Study Hacks on which he answers questions submitted by students, he will also personally answer question if you email him. www.calnewport.com/blog

You've got to believe me on this one, I'm the sort of kid that has major anxiety when I feel I am coming up short on something, and I haven't felt any anxiety this school year and I give full credit to these books. Also if you have ADD these books will help tremendously on creating study habits that work with your ADD.