Year 12 can be a long and stressful year, and it can take loads of energy to stay motivated to reach your goals. There are definitely mornings or long evenings where you just don’t want to Study. But you can get through these periods. Remember, the HSC is a marathon, not a sprint- and the only way to push through is by staying motivated. Here some key tips for keeping up this motivation throughout the year.

1) Take some time to know what makes you motivated.

In the holidays before I started Y11, I became totally engrossed in everything study-related. I filled my feed with pictures of pretty notes, gorgeous planners, and read so many articles on how to do well in school. Whilst at the time, I thought it was largely just a time-waster, I found that I was actually gaining insight on what I wanted to achieve in my last years of school. In a way, it was like research; I was finding out what drove me to organize and work.

Because of that experience, I think it’s really valuable to sit down and work out what motivates you personally. It could be success stories, it could be images, it could be descriptions of dream courses or jobs; whatever gets you inspired. And then hang onto these things for the next step.

2) Create ways to see these motivations.

As I have previously talked about in another article, my pinboard was a massive contribution to my motivation. I printed out a bunch of images and quotes to stick onto my board (which I dedicated purely to motivation, not study notes). Even things like my phone password, my laptop wallpaper, little comforting quotes beside my bed. All of this contributed to wanting to study and achieve my goals. So also make sure you can regularly remind yourself WHY you’re Studying and it will help will keeping on top of things.

3) Switch things up a little.

If you’re doing PDHPE, you’ll know the principle of variety is important in a training program. In order to stay fresh and on-track, athletes need to switch up their fitness regimes whilst still targeting the same muscle groups and skills. The same goes for study. Doing the same thing over and over will tire you out and certainly bore you. Find ways to make your study new; whether it be moving location or trying a different type of learning. For example, recording a lesson with your teacher (with permission) and listening to it to try some auditory learning, or watching some summary videos, as opposed to reading a textbook.

You can also find a way to challenge yourself in your subject; extend beyond what is just in the syllabus and learn about something that interests you. This can also help remember original content. I did this a lot in Biology, because as a science subject you can always go out and find out some new stuff.

4) Take a break.

Balance is important! To make sure your life is not consumed by the HSC and you end up studying for hours on end, take some time for yourself to do the things that you love. This way your mind is not only on the HSC and you can come back to study feeling refreshed. I liked to take Friday nights off just to have a break from everything, rather than power through every day and become both exhausted and bored.

Good luck!

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