Having difficulties concentrating when studying.

abdulazizhabiba997

As an international student from Ghana, I am having difficulties concentrating for more than an hour when taking PTs. I don't know how to resolve this, as I am registered to write the October LSAT and I don't feel prepared enough. If anyone here can help me with some useful tips on how to study better and maybe help me with study groups.

My time zone is GMT +00, I am available at any time and ready to put in the work to get my desired score please. Help a sister out ;(

jaylenebritt

Hi! So, I was having trouble concentrating and focusing on my studies as well. What helped me a lot was I took the Laser Focus Gummies & Daily Energy Gummies from Olly, and I also purchased Think patches from Target. I also started using the Pomodoro Method. So far, this has helped me a lot!!!

abdulazizhabiba997

Thank you so much for the feedback. Will try that and let you know how it goes.

mvayda2

I got a lock box for my phone on amazon. I lock it in for an hour at a time and then give myself 15 mins of walking around/scrolling etc. between study breaks and drills. It helps! It also helps to schedule an amount of study time. I try to do 2-3 hours a day and then try to do something I enjoy. If I plan around my studying, then I am forced to focus during that time.

ailema03

I would say to always set yourself a realistic time goal when studying; 2-3 hours a day should be enough to not burn out and depending on how far your exam is you can possibly afford days off the studying. This will be my third time taking the exam, I took it twice back in 2021 back to back Feb and April of that year, and I burned out to the point I got the same score twice. I am now planning to take it my third time without the logic games (they were my downfall) and I plan to take it Jan 2025 so I am going to go easy on my studying; I have studied for 4 hours at most, and I don't feel tired or bored, so in my case 2-4 hours a day is not bad, and that way I can still balance between studying and a full time job. If setting the realistic goal and as others have said to put the phone away, one thing that can help concentrate is music, specifically classical; another alternative is chewing gum, or so I've heard.

tjh361

I believe this is something we all suffer from at one point or another. Try to focus on quality versus quantity. If you can only focus for an hour, that is plenty. How many questions can you drill during that time? Spend the first hour hyper focused. Then when you start to lose focus you should be done and can review questions you got wrong. Reviewing does not require the same level of focus. So you can still be productive despite lack of focus.

Some days I only do 5-15 questions and I do not feel like I wasted the day. Each question I look at in detail and see why I chose wrong, or right.

If you are worried about not having the attention span needed for the actual test.. again I would not worry. I went from 2-3mins per problem with 40% correct, to 1:30 per problem with 70% correct. You will get faster and the questions will be less strenuous. When this happens, it will require less energy to focus.

A personal example I can give you is when I first started playing tournament chess. The games are G90, 1 hour and 30mins per person. So roughly a 2-3hour chess game. My first tournament I left with the worst migraine of my life. I felt like my brain was removed and kicked around all day. I was hyper focusing on every single detail of the game. Next tournament It was cut in half. One after that I had no issues. I began to slowly realize I was overworking myself thinking about things that did not matter. Calculating lines 14 moves deep when I was currently in check etc. I believe the same will happen as you continue to study. It will require less of you and you will be able to do more.

Good luck!

jwu1210

What I found helpful is searching up videos on YouTube where people are studying with a timer. You would study with them but without socializing and getting distracted. Usually it's in a setting where they're studying individually or in a library. Or if you find it distracting then just set up a timer yourself. Some of them focus for 25-35 mins and then take a 5-10 minute break, and I found that I can study way more with that increment than just sitting at my desk for two hours straight. I think having mini breaks can help with focusing which leads to more effective studying. Also put anything distracting out of reach. For example, I would put my phone far from me where I would need to get out of my seat to grab it. Good luck!

faith19801

I was in the same boat not too long ago. My mind would start wandering and I felt like I couldn't stop it. Here's a couple things I did to help me focus:
1. Anytime I would start to think of something else, I would force my brain to focus on studying. Take a minute or two to literally force the thoughts out. I would imagine shoving the topics to the side and putting a barrier between there and my area of focus. It felt a little silly at first, but it helped.
2. Caffeine before studying. I also work full time and it would make me super tired to actively be forcing my brain to focus while trying to learn and take in new information after working all day, so I started drinking coffee or energy drinks towards the end of work. Don't jeopardize your sleep though. A good night's sleep is so so so important.
3. I took more breaks. I would either set a timer for 20-30 minutes and then take a 3-5 minute break or I would set a goal of a certain number of drills and then take a break. When I was really struggling, I would even do a 5 question LR or 1 passage RC, take a break, and go back and review it. The small segments made it more manageable and I was able to work back up to a longer time period quickly.
4. It sounds counter productive, but take a break from studying altogether. It doesn't have to be a week, but take a long weekend. You could be having trouble because you're burnt out and don't realize this is how your brain is showing it.
5. Remove distractions. I don't just mean leave your phone in the other room. I mean if you catch yourself frequently thinking about a show or movie you're watching while you're trying to study, don't let yourself watch it. I would only let myself watch my show for one hour at night after I was done studying for the day. The only things I could watch the rest of the day while drinking my coffee or on my lunch break are rewatches or reality TV that I know I'm not going to keep thinking about.
Good luck!

rich.samuela

Ensure that your surroundings are as devoid of stimulus as possible. No sounds, nothing visually interesting, etc. The actual conditions of the testing center are about as good as it gets to be honest so mimicking that environment will help you avoid distractions.