I went from a 2.9 to a 3.6 studying less than half the hours. here's everything I changed.

I've been posting about study methods on reddit for a while now and people keep asking me to put everything in one place so here it is. everything I actually do. no fluff.

where I started: 2.9 GPA. studying 4-5 hours a day. had notion, anki, quizlet, google calendar, forest app, and a pomodoro timer. six apps minimum just to sit down and study. my setup looked like I was launching a satellite. my grades looked like I wasnt.

the wake up call was tracking every minute of my study time for 30 days. out of my "4 hour sessions" only about 45 min was actual studying. the rest was organizing notes, re-reading stuff I already knew, setting up the perfect playlist, and checking my phone on "quick breaks" that were never quick. I was basically cosplaying as a student.

what I actually do now:

1. I close everything. notes, textbook, laptop, phone. everything gone.
2. I try to explain what I just learned out loud from memory. like I'm teaching it to someone who knows nothing. when I get stuck thats my actual study list. everything else is stuff I already know that I was wasting time re-reading.
3. 10-15 min per subject. every day. not a 6 hour sunday grind. short daily sessions beat marathon cramming every single time.
4. I space it out. same topic day 1, day 3, day 7, before the exam. each time the recall gets easier.

thats literally it. no color coded notes. no notion dashboard. no aesthetic setup. just me feeling stupid in my room trying to remember things.

recently I started using learnzy and it basically automates this whole process. you type a topic it breaks it into a short lesson then tests you with recall questions right after. handles the spacing too so I dont have to remember when I last reviewed something. its the only tool I use now besides google calendar for deadlines. learnzy.io if you want to try it first lessons are free.

but honestly the method works without any tool. a blank page and your brain is enough. the tool just makes it less annoying to stay consistent across multiple classes.

results: 2.9 to 3.6. studying maybe 45 min to an hour a day instead of 4-5 hours. I have my evenings back. I actually go to things now. made more friends this semester than the last 2 years combined.

the hard truth nobody tells you is that real studying feels terrible. theres nothing pretty about it. you feel dumb the entire time. but thats the point. if studying feels comfortable youre probably not learning anything.

if you try this for one week and come back and tell me it didnt work I'll be genuinely shocked. but you have to actually do the uncomfortable part. no cheating by peeking at your notes.

ask me anything in the comments happy to help