Are you someone who struggles to get motivated to study and with another bank holiday, how could you possibly consider studies over social times with friends or family?
I am one of those people, I find it hard to remain focussed at times, so here are some tips that I keep in mind to keep me on track for my studies, even over bank holiday weekends!
Firstly, it is important to recognise how and why we procrastinate, you may think that the subject matter is beyond your abilities, or you might be thinking if now is the right time to begin a new course or learn something new, but let’s face it, there will always be something, c’est la vie!
Take some time to reflect on those irritating sticking points, by better understanding them, you will be able to identify your motivators which is a great place to start, so don’t be hard on yourself because you feel you’re lagging behind, pick yourself up and find your starting block.
The most useful tool that I use is my handy ICS study planner, this helps me to effectively plan my study weeks which is really helpful when planning my time for work, study and my other commitments so I create a balance and study in my own time. By dedicating time to prepare my week in advance, I know exactly what I need to get done, because a huge demotivator is seeing a load of coursework and no idea where to start, so by breaking it down into smaller tasks, it makes it easier to understand the subject matter and it doesn’t make it so daunting. Traditionally, we are creatures of habit, so by building a healthy routine, it’ll quickly become the norm and will effectively make it difficult to relax without getting your study time in.
Have a routine, but life happens! Don’t be hard on yourself if you have an off day, we are human after all, and if you’ve had a tough day at work and are simply not feeling it, don’t be hard on yourself, move one of your relaxing evenings around and study the next evening instead.
Studying your CIPD level 3, 5 and 7 with ICS Learn takes the stress out of distance learning studies, so to join me on my journey to becoming a Chartered CIPD member, find out more and enrol here.
Natalie Ellis HR 