Tips for finding study time

5 tips for finding the time to study

Taking courses to improve your knowledge and skills is a worthy pursuit. One of the big challenges is trying to find time to study when your days (and nights) are already filled with work, family obligations and more.

It’s important to succeed in the courses you take, so put in the effort and prioritize studying in your schedule. The more distractions you can avoid, the more productive your studying will be!

Here are five tips to help you find the study time you need:

1. Try to set aside a consistent time each day for studying. This predictability will get you in a routine and impose a study discipline to follow. If it helps you with accountability, find a study buddy to keep you focused, share thoughts on the course content and quiz each other.
2. If the course is related to your role or is an actual work requirement, see if your manager can let you block off some regular study time on your calendar, subject to workflow, meetings and other tasks, of course. You can also use breaks at work or part of your lunch time to study.
3. When possible, try to study while commuting to and from work. Maybe you’re a passenger in a car or have a long bus, train or subway ride each day. It’s a great time to squeeze in some studying – just not when you’re driving!
4. Make use of short bits of free time throughout your day, even if it’s just to read a section or a few pages from a section. You can also do some sample test questions or review content that you’ve already studied. Get creative and you’ll be surprised how many opportunities you’ll uncover to squeeze in some studying.
5. Everyone has routines and things they simply enjoy doing. It takes a bit of sacrificing when taking a course, so consider temporarily cutting back on some activities that aren’t crucial (e.g., watching TV or regularly checking social media). You could also multi-task and study while doing laundry or preparing meals.