Life often has a way of sneaking into your study plans.
Maybe you felt burnt out and decided to take a break from studying, or something unexpected cropped up in your life, forcing you to step back.
Or you chose to focus on other aspects of your life and return to your studies later.
Whichever category you fall into – taking a long study break is often much needed – for your sanity’s sake.
However, returning to your studies can feel daunting. You feel out of your element, and like you’ve forgotten how to be a student.
This is especially true if you entered the workforce and are now returning to your studies. It’s a dramatic change of lifestyle. However, with a few tips, you’ll be able to pick up the pieces and get back on track with your studies.
A few things to do to get back on track with your studies are to ease yourself into it and set new realistic study goals. Also, put together a study plan that allows for plenty of breaks. And finally, use active learning techniques such as flashcards and practice quizzes to retain information.
In this article, I’ll expand on the above tips on how to start studying after a long break and introduce a few more to help you regain focus without feeling like you’re losing your mind.
Table of Contents
How to Start Studying After a Long Break
1. Ease yourself into studying
When returning to the student lifestyle after a while, it can be tempting to reach for the stars.
Motivation, when starting any new task is going to be high. We’re geared up and ready to conquer mountains in those first few days. But after that, the novelty wears off.
And that’s when you feel extreme fatigue and have the urge to quit your studies entirely.
Therefore, to keep your sanity intact and stay motivated in the long run, you need to take things easy at first.
And there are two ways to ease yourself into studying: Set realistic new goals and create a study plan that fits your lifestyle.
Set realistic new goals
Setting “new” goals are essential, as your old goals might not be what you’re geared towards now. For example, if your goal was to initially write one exam every three months, maybe that’s changed to 6 months. Re-evaluate your current goals and plan accordingly.
Avoid setting lofty goals like – “I’m going to study for ten hours a day.” Instead, figure out how much time you actually have to dedicate to studying based on your lifestyle – it might be one hour, two, or five. Whatever it is, set your study goals based on that time.
Create a study plan that fits your lifestyle
Your study plan will depend on your daily responsibilities. It’s important to create a plan that fits “you.” Don’t feel pressured to create a hectic plan because some study YouTuber makes you feel bad about your life.
If you work a 9-5, then make sure you fit something around your work schedule – that is good for your mental and physical health.
Also, there is no need to rush or push yourself to the brink because that’s when people give up on their studies for good.
Take it slow
Throwing yourself headfirst into a task is admirable, but you will burn out fast.
Therefore, when you first start – start by studying for 15 minutes a day, and slowly build up that time.
Also, instead of studying five modules at once, first study one.
It’s also okay to miss a day of studying. Your brain isn’t yet accustomed to this change – so it’s normal if it needs a break. Be easy with yourself. You’re building a habit – and every habit takes time.
2. Learn actively and avoid passive forms of learning
A fast way to study AND learn more is through active recall. I talk a lot about active recall on this blog because it’s been life-changing for many successful students and me.
Active recall means forcing your brain to remember something. It sounds scary, and yes, it is very uncomfortable. But it’s a study technique that benefits you in the long-term.
When you pressure your brain to remember something rather than merely read, take notes, or highlight it, you cement that knowledge in your brain and retain it for the future.
In the smart words of this article from Atomi, active recall is “moving information from short-term to long-term memory so that you can easily draw on it again when you need it most.”
Also, when coming back to studying after a long period, you’re probably strapped for time. And nobody wants to waste their time making pretty notes. Those notes aren’t going to help you much unless you’re studying something relatively straightforward. But if your topic is complex, actively recalling information will cut your study time in half.
You can actively recall information using flashcard apps like ANKI, physical flashcards, or a spreadsheet. With the spreadsheet method, you write your questions in one column and the answers in the next – but in white font, so you never see the answer. And then, you simply try to answer each question by retrieving the answer from your memory.
Be wary of re-reading, notetaking, highlighting, and listening to lectures, as these are all passive forms of learning.
When returning to studying after a long break, it’s tempting to use these methods to convince yourself that you’re doing something important and aren’t procrastinating.
But the truth is, the more uncomfortable you get when studying, the better you will perform.
Here’s a quick method to actively recall information:
First, make your notes (if you like), review them, and write a few questions to actively recall. It will initially feel very uncomfortable, but you’ll slowly build your confidence the more you try.
If you don’t get answers right on the first go, that’s great! You’re not supposed to – that’s the whole purpose of active recall. It highlights your weaknesses so that you can brush them up before your exam. Just go back and review the topic again! And repeat with active recall.
3. Incorporate study breaks into your schedule
Starting anything new is draining – physically and mentally.
Therefore, when studying after a long break, it’s crucial to pencil in enough rest time in your schedule.
Just “starting” takes a lot of mental effort. And well done to you because you’re already ahead of the rest.
However, if you go in with a single-minded focus, things will get boring soon. It’s inevitable. The human mind cannot sustain motivation for a very long period. And when this happens, throwing in the towel and giving up studying altogether is easy.
Therefore, ensure that you give yourself plenty of breaks during your study day and throughout your week.
I take what I call a “zero-study” day.
This day will benefit you more than any other because you’ll get to refresh your mind and body to gear up for another week of studying.
4. Don’t procrastinate any longer
It’s normal to want to avoid studying, especially when you’ve taken a break for so long. At some point, every bone, joint, and muscle will cease up. It doesn’t want you to take the plunge.
Because studying is uncomfortable.
It’s a lifestyle change. It also might be too important to you; that’s why you feel like giving up or procrastinating.
But the longer you procrastinate, the more uncomfortable it will feel, and the more time you will waste. Whereas if you just start, it will get easier.
A great way to overcome procrastination is to go back to the first point – ease yourself into studying. Never pressure yourself to do too much too fast.
Start by only studying for a few minutes a day and then work yourself up from there.
5. Focus on another project to avoid burnout
Your education – like almost everything in your life (that you’ve been doing for a while) is going to become routine. And anything routine has the power to turn into something tedious.
A solution to combat this is to focus on something else you’re interested in – a passion project.
I know productivity gurus have said that it’s always best to focus on one task at a time before moving on to another to increase your chances of success.
However, I disagree when it comes to your studies.
In fact, my one biggest regret is that I didn’t start my blog during my undergrad. Instead, my focus was only on college, so I grew to hate it.
I became so burnt out and done with college that I just gave up.
So, try pursuing another project – you’ll be less stressed, overwhelmed, and you’ll have a creative outlet.
6. Join a support group and ask for help
Studying can be a lonely journey – but it doesn’t have to be so if you befriend like-minded people. These could be people studying the same thing as you or something different.
You can gain support and give some too to make this life transition more manageable.
Other students might also share different study methods that can help you out. Too often, we shy away when we could reduce our learning and transition curves by just interacting with those in a similar position.
And if you find yourself stuck on a topic, it always helps to get different perspectives rather than waste time trying to figure out something by yourself.
Final Thoughts
Studying after a long break isn’t an easy life change or decision.
Kudos to you if you’ve chosen to come back to your studies. You can’t go wrong with more education.
Remember to ease yourself into your studies and create a plan that fits your lifestyle.
Also, adopt active learning techniques rather than passive forms of learning – you’ll just speed up your study process and have more time to rest!
If you enjoyed this post on how to start studying after a long break, here are a few more posts to help you throughout your student journey:
- 10 Non-Depressing Ways to Concentrate on Studies for Long Hours
- 10 Powerful Ways to Successfully Manage Working and Studying
- How to Overcome the Fear of Failing Exams: 11 Easy Ways