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Situation :
Doing home study courses on Comp TIA A+ [completed]
Comp TIA N+ [final stages]
AND CCNA .................
Question :
How do YOU keep the momentum going ?
Do you have any tips to help an old fart keep it up ? :)
I am trying to fit in at least an hour a night, sometimes more, sometimes a LOT more.
But recently I feel that it's getting stale, just need some study tips to help it along.
TIA
Perhaps you're suffering a bit of burnout. Sometimes taking a day off from studying and doing something not related to what you're studying is a good thing.
I'm trying that :)Quote:
Sometimes taking a day off from studying
got a Motorcycle rally booked for August 5th - 7th ................
I'm just hoping that I might get a few different ideas.
Even off the wall thoughts .............. ones that WORKED anyway :D
I've paid a fair bit for the courses, as I'm aware that I would probably drop away from just doing it myself, from books that I'd bought.
But even the thought of the improved career prospects AND being able to sort my own system out :eek: is not sufficient at this moment.
could always have a drink ?
now THAT usually works.
Foxy,
I'm doing two courses with the OU.
I know exactly where you are comeing from. My problem is, I'm not learning a whole lot at the moment, just the academic way of presenting my answers and its making it real hard to focus................................My solution so far has been to leave my asignments to the last moment. Then panic and spend 38 hours solid on my box doing the asignments, mostly half pissed.
But then I have gone from 100% down to 60%....So it is telling.
Hi foxyloxley,
Well...a well placed bomb under the chair on a timer usually provides ample incentive to get it done in time to disarm :D
aside from that...I find I can concentrate better at mundane tasks if I'm listening to music...not so loud that it'd give the woman who lives next door a heart attack...but loud enough that it distracts from the tedious.
Eg ;)
Well, I take a lot of Vicodin, then I sit down and play some Final Doom, Doom, Doom 2, then when it has taken effect, I grab a **** load of my books (Learning PERL, SUSE books, The Complete Free BSD, Free BSD, Linux admin, Hacking exposed) and then read a lot because I can't do it any other way, my ADD is severe.
The Doom before research keeps me all ready to roll, and I don't stop for much, other than smoking every hour, getting coffee or MD.
Human brain absorbs information better in the morning. Try to read on your way to work/school. (It is also better to exercise in the morning)
Also, study half-hungry. Don’t stuff yourself.
Think about the fact that you have to study all day. Prepare yourself mentally for it. That way you won’t just brush it off easily.
Most importantly… TAKE NAPS. Don’t fall asleep, but make yourself get up, eat fruit and study then.
gore ... you seem to be almost proud of all the **** you throw into your body... It’s not “COOL” I’ve experimented in my days but it’s nothing to brag about. I remember something about you having an accident or such, but pumping yourself up w/ painkillers solves nothing.
…why the **** would you take Vicodin for ADD. If you gonna go w/ opiates at least go for oxy.
Oxy is .... Well, it works, but Vicodin / Hydrocodone, does actually help with ADD and is helps with depression. It's closer to Morphine than Oxy is, which by the way helps too.
And for the record Opiates were a lot of things long before they were pain meds. The things I use them for were what they were used for long before they were something for pain. They don't distort your perception like LSD or beer would, they intensify it, thus making it easier for you to concentrate.
hey foxy, I'm in the same boat. Got my A+ and studying for network+, and trying to stay caught up in school (summer classes). I find that I do best after a little nap. Also, I don't watch TV for at least an hour before I study, I usually clean the house, or go jogging or something. If I am feelling extra out of it, I can't even get on the internet because I get too distracted. Caffiene does hell on me cause I alwasy feel like I have to get up and go do something instead of study. Besides that, the usual. Lots of water (not too much, don't want to get up every 20 minutes), good food, etc...
....Works for me anyways
Besides what was listed I do this too:
Drink Mountain Dew AMP, Full throttle, RedBull.... Heh.
what I had to do when i was craming to learn about active directory for the first time in a week I would get myself out of my normal habitat.....
Studying at home leaves you open to way to many distractions because you are used to where everything is and you will think about doing it to get away from studying (eg, TV, vid games, music, women, phone, etc)
I would either take off outside if it was nice and read/study somewhere or go to a coffee shop and grab a drink and sit in the corner and study. Proved to get me somewhere far enough away from home I wouldnt do whatever and didn't provide the usually distractions
I'll second Spyrus. I used to go to the library during the day (loud kids at school hopefully) to get away from distractions. It's amazing how appealing daytime TV is when you're studying.
I also used to study late at night 1am - 4am when the house is very quiet but that might not be any use to you if you are still working/looking after kids etc.
Take breaks unless you are on a roll. Get up walk around go outside and get some air, stretch your back.
My only other aid was coffee, lots of coffee.
Here's how |The|Specialist studies...
Remember the money, your stuff, the girls, the locations you've been, and where you could go next.
And you'd figuer for a group of guys who will most likely waste thier lives infront of a screen all of the above would be naturally forced to seem a million times more important. Thats something you might want to keep a perspective on when you feel your loseing your momentum sort of speak.
WOW :
Lots of response ..............ALL sensible ..............
Am not able to leave house, as I can only get to my study period at about midnight.
Do a couple of hours then.
I have to work in the mornings, and as I am only getting at most 4 hours sleep, I'm not giving THOSE up without a fight ......................
Coffee is ALWAYS a good idea
Vicodin................ maybe not :)
The biggest distraction ..................... the PC :D
Just need to get through the N+, and that should give me some impetus into the CCNA paperwork.
Thanks again, it helped to see others reply, but of course, I had to be at the PC to see them :D
SO:
I've changed things round, and now get to bed a little earlier, and get up earlier.
Start my studies at 07:00 for an hour, then work raises it's ugly head ........
Get to do an hour or two of study / revision / reading tech books around about 22:00.
Even take a book to work, in case I ever get a spare moment :D
Thanks again for the replies.
Pax
I got a home studie aswell. Guitar, with homework :( .My best advice is to make a plan on what you have to do per day. And if yuo get well over you day planning you can do something fun tomorow. BUt if you fail you have to punish yourself. Like: not going on the pc for the next few day's until you have your work done or something like that.
Good mental exercise that. I take great pleasure in my daily mental workouts. They vary from taking apart a system and putting it back together to reconfiguring the entire network setup at my house, just because it's there. I also like to play round with other software packages I'm not familiar with just to see where I can cause crashes, or make function better some obscure snippet within them. It's all about keeping those few brain cells you haven't killed with alcohol in top form :)