You Study But Can't Remember Anything? Use These 10 Psychology Hacks To Study Smarter

Smart students don't study all day. You are studying wrong. But no one tells you this. You keep reading. You highlight. You feel productive. But you don't remember anything. It is time you start studying like a topper. And that doesn't mean to study harder.

Studying harder is the worst advice ever. If you are studying for hours but still not retaining anything, the problem isn't your effort. It's your strategy. Studying harder is pointless if you are not able to remember anything. So what to do? 

A few hard-hitting facts before we jump to the hacks. Reading silently has the lowest retention rate. Whereas reading, speaking, writing, and practicals increase the retention rate to 90 per cent. Studying at the same spot lowers your attention levels, whereas changing your environment can increase your focus and retention.

You Study But Can't Remember Anything? Use These 10 Psychology Tricks To Study Smarter

1. Scan the book. Before jumping into the chapter, do a quick scan of the book, such as the table of contents, headings, important tables, etc., and outline the core topics. This creates a mental skeleton or mind map of the book you are going to study.

2. Make notebooks and pens your best friend. Passive reading isn't studying. Write what you just learnt in your own words in your study notebook. Review it the next day. 

3. Active reading session. Read a chapter for 30-40 minutes with deep focus. Put your phone aside. Forget Google or AI. Simply read and highlight (about 10 per cent of text) important words. Use sticky notes to summarise the text in points and stick it on the corner of the page.

4. Create memory stations. Pick five spots in your room or house. Assign one subject to each spot. Put the sticky notes in the relevant spots. Walk into each spot and read from the notes while brushing your teeth or making your peanut butter sandwich.

5. Practice time blocks. Your brain works in 90-minute cycles. Study for 30-40 minutes and take a break of 15 minutes. No scrolling. Take a walk or do breathing exercise. Have a small piece of dark chocolate for instant energy boost.

6. Do the picture method. Draw simple symbols for each point. Students in Japan use this technqiue where they draw a basic doodle or geometrical shape like a box or a lightbulb to represent the topic. You may try mnemonic also.

7. Create info chunks. Group information into sets of three to four items. Remember the handy sticky notes? They are ready to use notes for revision.

8. Teach yourself. Explain a concept wrong on purpsoe, then correct yourself. Finding errors and fixing them tells your brain to memorise the correct answer.

9. Do random recalls. Set three random alarms today. When they ring, take a test. Yes, the surprise tests at your school or college. Quiz yourself and see how you score on a topic.

10. Test before sleep. Another best time to strengthen your recall power is right before bed. Quickly revise the topics you studied during the day, refer to the important concepts, and sleep on them. Your brain strengthens these memories while you sleep.