EFFICIENT studying: How to ace MANY SUBJECTS in LESS time

Summary

In this video, Amy Wang shares her personal experience and strategies for managing a challenging academic load, including taking multiple weighted classes. She emphasizes the importance of a balanced lifestyle, incorporating breaks and leisure activities to maintain productivity. Amy advocates for 'smart laziness,' using online resources like Quizlet for efficient studying and a tracker system in her planner to ensure all assignments are completed. She also discusses the significance of prioritizing tasks by weight and difficulty, and the non-negotiable aspects of health and well-being in achieving academic success.

Takeaways

• 😀 **Maintain a Balanced Schedule**: Amy emphasizes the importance of not studying all day and planning enjoyable activities to maintain productivity and happiness.
• 🏋️‍♀️ **Work Smart, Not Just Hard**: The concept of 'laziness' is redefined as finding efficient ways to work, saving time and energy without compromising results.
• 🔍 **Utilize Online Resources**: Amy shares her experience of using online resources like Quizlet to find answers and explanations, streamlining the study process.
• 📚 **Avoid Overloading**: She advises against studying all memorization subjects in one session to prevent cognitive overload and ensure better retention.
• 📅 **Use a Tracker for Organization**: A personalized grid system in a planner helps keep track of assignments and tasks across multiple subjects.
• 💪 **Prioritize and Adapt**: Prioritizing tasks by weight and difficulty, and focusing on areas of struggle, is crucial for effective study management.
• 🌱 **Health is Non-negotiable**: Amy stresses that maintaining physical health through exercise, proper nutrition, and sleep is essential for optimal performance.
• 🧠 **Sharpen the Saw**: Continuous self-improvement and maintaining a sharp mental state are compared to sharpening a saw for more efficient work.
• 📈 **Apply Basic Study Techniques**: The video suggests that applying fundamental study techniques effectively can help manage multiple subjects.
• 🌟 **Holistic Approach**: Amy concludes that good habits and a holistic approach to problem-solving can address multiple challenges in life, not just academic ones.

Q & A

What was Amy's strategy for handling a challenging course load in high school?

Amy managed her challenging course load by convincing her English teacher to allow her to take multiple weighted classes, maintaining an 8-hour sleep schedule, and participating in Varsity Sports.

Why did Amy's English teacher initially refuse to sign off on her class selection?

Amy's English teacher was scared for her because she was taking on an excessive number of difficult classes, all of which were weighted 5.0 GPA out of four.

What did Amy's teacher write on the sticky note when she returned Amy's class proposal?

Amy's teacher wrote 'you're crazy Amy' on the sticky note.

How does Amy define 'lazy' in the context of studying?

Amy defines 'lazy' as working smarter before working harder, seeking shortcuts, and not reinventing the wheel when a more efficient method is available.

What did Amy find on Google that helped her with her AP Government homework?

Amy found Quizlets with the exact questions and answers from her homework packets, which made studying more efficient.

Why is it important to not overload your brain when studying multiple subjects?

Overloading your brain can lead to diminishing returns, where the brain cannot effectively encode new information, making studying less productive.

What tool did Amy use to ensure she didn't miss any assignments for her classes?

Amy used a tracker in her planner, creating a grid system for each week to check off completed tasks for each class.

What is the 'Snowball Effect' mentioned by Patrick Deng in the context of productivity?

The 'Snowball Effect' refers to the idea that making progress becomes easier over time once you start taking small steps, making tasks less stressful and more manageable.

Why is it important to prioritize subjects and concepts when studying for many classes?

Prioritizing helps allocate time and effort effectively by focusing on items that carry the most weight in assignments and tests, as well as addressing the most challenging concepts first.

What does Amy emphasize as a non-negotiable aspect of maintaining her performance in school?

Amy emphasizes being healthy, including working out, taking supplements, and eating a balanced diet, as a non-negotiable aspect of maintaining her performance.

What is Amy's perspective on the importance of basic studying tips?

Amy believes that basic studying tips, despite being 'boring,' are effective and should not be overlooked. She encourages following these basic tips for consistent progress.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Balancing a Challenging Course Load

The speaker, Amy, shares her experience of convincing her English teacher to allow her to take on a demanding course schedule in high school, which included multiple weighted classes. Despite the teacher's initial skepticism, Amy managed to excel in all her classes while maintaining an average of 8 hours of sleep per night and participating in Varsity Sports. She emphasizes the importance of a balanced lifestyle, suggesting that incorporating enjoyable activities into the study routine can enhance productivity and motivation. Amy debunks the myth that studying for extended hours is necessary for success, advocating for a 'work smarter, not harder' approach.

05:00

🧠 Efficient Study Techniques for Multiple Subjects

Amy discusses strategies for effectively studying multiple subjects, highlighting the importance of not overloading the brain with memorization tasks in a single session. She shares her personal method of using a tracker in her planner to ensure that she covers all her classes and assignments, preventing any from being overlooked. The speaker also recommends a Skillshare class on productivity and time management, suggesting that it can help viewers organize their tasks and create a 'Snowball Effect' for easier progress. Amy stresses the importance of prioritizing tasks based on weight and difficulty, and advises against spending equal effort on all subjects or concepts.

10:00

🏋️‍♀️ The Importance of Health in Managing Academic Load

In this paragraph, Amy emphasizes that maintaining health is not optional when managing a heavy academic load. She shares her personal habits of working out, taking supplements, and eating a balanced diet as essential for staying physically and mentally fit. Amy compares the need for a healthy lifestyle to sharpening a saw, explaining that a well-maintained body can tackle academic challenges more effectively. She also touches on the importance of sleep, stating that her efficiency in studying is partly due to getting enough rest. The speaker encourages viewers to follow basic but effective advice, such as active recall and seeking help, which she argues are often overlooked in favor of seeking 'magical' new tips.

15:04

🌟 Holistic Approach to Academic Excellence

Amy concludes by stressing the importance of a holistic approach to studying, suggesting that the same good habits can solve multiple problems. She points out that her advice, developed from taking challenging classes and studying chemical engineering at a prestigious institution, is applicable to various tough and stressful situations. The speaker encourages viewers to use her videos on efficient studying techniques, quick note-taking, and time management, as these skills can collectively make it easier to handle many subjects. Amy also addresses the emotional challenges of applying to competitive programs, sharing her personal journey and the pressure she feels to perform well, while reminding herself and viewers to trust in their abilities and give their best effort.

Keywords

💡Studying

Studying is the act of learning or memorizing information, often in preparation for a test or to gain knowledge. In the video, the main theme revolves around effective studying strategies for managing multiple subjects, as evidenced by the speaker's experience of acing every class while maintaining a balanced lifestyle.

💡GPA

GPA stands for Grade Point Average, a measure of academic performance calculated by averaging the numerical values assigned to letter grades. The speaker mentions aiming to 'max out the difficulty of my course schedule' by taking weighted 5.0 GPA classes, indicating a high level of academic challenge.

💡Varsity Sports

Varsity Sports refers to competitive sports teams at a high school or college level. The speaker balances studying with participation in Varsity Sports, highlighting the importance of time management and maintaining a well-rounded schedule.

💡Time Management

Time Management is the process of planning and controlling how time is spent. The video emphasizes the importance of time management for studying multiple subjects effectively, as the speaker shares personal strategies for organizing and prioritizing tasks.

💡Productivity

Productivity refers to the efficiency of producing desired results. The video discusses productivity in the context of studying, suggesting that working smarter, not harder, is key to achieving academic success without overexertion.

💡Shortcuts

Shortcuts are methods or techniques that simplify complex tasks or save time. The speaker advocates for finding shortcuts to studying, such as using online resources like Quizlet, to streamline the learning process and maintain efficiency.

💡Overloading

Overloading refers to taking on too many tasks or responsibilities. The video warns against overloading the brain with too much information at once, suggesting that it can lead to diminishing returns in terms of learning and retention.

💡Tracker

A Tracker is a tool or system used to monitor progress or completion of tasks. The speaker uses a tracker in their planner to ensure that assignments for all classes are accounted for and completed, demonstrating a method for managing multiple subjects.

💡Prioritization

Prioritization is the act of arranging tasks or objectives in order of importance. The video stresses the importance of prioritizing subjects and concepts based on their weight and difficulty, as a strategy for effectively handling multiple classes.

💡Health

Health refers to a state of physical, mental, and social well-being. The speaker emphasizes that being healthy is not optional and is crucial for maintaining the stamina and focus needed to study effectively for multiple subjects.

💡Basics

Basics are the fundamental principles or techniques. The video concludes by emphasizing the importance of following basic studying advice, such as active recall and seeking help, which are often overlooked in favor of seeking 'magical' new tips.

Highlights

Amy convinced her English teacher to allow her to take multiple challenging classes by demonstrating confidence in her ability to handle them.

Amy managed to excel in all her classes while maintaining an average of 8 hours of sleep per night and participating in Varsity Sports.

Studying for many subjects doesn't require endless hours; Amy suggests incorporating enjoyable activities to maintain productivity.

Amy debunks the myth that studying for extended periods is the only way to achieve good grades, advocating for a balanced approach.

The concept of 'lazy' is redefined by Amy as finding efficient ways to achieve the same results, drawing a parallel to the invention of the dishwasher.

Amy shares a personal example of using online resources like Quizlet to streamline studying for AP Government, avoiding unnecessary work.

Overloading on memorization subjects in one study session can lead to diminishing returns; Amy advises spreading them out.

Amy emphasizes the importance of using a tracker in her planner to ensure no assignments are missed, regardless of the number of classes.

Skillshare is recommended for courses on productivity and time management, which can aid in handling multiple subjects.

Prioritization is key when managing many classes; Amy suggests focusing on high-weight and difficult concepts first.

Amy stresses that being healthy is not optional and is crucial for maintaining the physical and mental state needed for studying.

Sleep is highlighted as a fundamental aspect of Amy's study routine, contributing to her efficiency and success.

Basic study tips are often overlooked but are essential for success; Amy encourages following these foundational strategies.

Amy's advice is applicable to handling many subjects because it focuses on efficient, effective, and sustainable study habits.

The video concludes with a call to action, encouraging viewers to apply the advice and trust in their ability to excel.

Amy shares personal reflections on her application process to Harvard Business School, discussing the pressures and her coping strategies.

Transcripts

Amy can you please give me tips on how

to study many subjects a video on how to

study for many subject tips to study

subject please make a video about how to

AUD on multiple subjects in high school

my English teacher refused to sign off

on my class selection for the next year

that's because not only was I asking to

take so many classes but every single

one of them was a weighted 5.0 GPA out

of four I was literally maxing out the

difficulty of my course schedule and she

was scared for me

however I was so confident that I could

handle it that I convinced her she

handed my class proposal back to me with

a sticky note saying you're crazy Amy

and guess what I didn't regret my

decision instead I aced every single

class while maintaining my sleep

schedule of an average of 8 hours per

night while still playing Varsity Sports

so how did I study so many subjects at

once that's what you'll find out

today woo didn't know I could aberrate

huh well did you also know that I'm an

Olympic level ping pong star no I'm not

nearly as cool as that Amy Wang but I do

have the best team The A Team which you

are a part of if you watch my channel

that's because my videos teach you how

to get A's the cool way with holistic

mindsets and habits that serve you

beyond school if you're committed to

excelling in all of your many classes

while stressing less then turn this

video on full screen mode and prepare to

lock in if you listen to the last tip

you've got what it takes let's go you're

going to love this first one I assume

you don't want to study for entire days

on end I certainly did not want to study

for a full day guess what you shouldn't

I rarely had days where I spent the

whole chunk of my waking hours studying

that's because I wanted to watch a K

drama with my sister or in college I

wanted to visit Hollywood with my

friends when I had something to look

forward to every weekend or after school

I was even more efficient and motivated

to work that's because I wasn't hating

life when you're happier you're more

productive even if you feel like you

need to study for a whole day to handle

all of your many classes plan a nice

walk or dinner for quality time with

your loved ones and I promise the hour

you squeeze out will be worth it people

brag online like oh how I study 12 hours

in a row and here's how you can do it

too as if there's an award for running

yourself into the ground or

something they make it feel like you're

doing something wrong if you're not

studying all day but if I was studying

happily and sustainably while getting

top grades I had to be doing something

right breaking up my days with fun in

between the coolest way to get A's isn't

to study 24/7 because ironically that

wouldn't be very smart but you know who

is smart lazy people the laziest people

are the smartest people think about the

dishwasher if someone wasn't lazy enough

to be like ew I don't want to wash the

dishes by hand then we probably wouldn't

have this amazing invention today so I

think of lazy as the following when

faced with a difficult situation try to

work smarter before working harder so

find shortcuts AP Government sophomore

year was so tedious and really hard we

had to fill out gigantic packets of

information for homework every single

week these packets were literally 20

Pages thick as thick as my eyeball and

if you're doing so many classes is one

tedious timeconsuming class can drag

everything else down so I took that

packet I went to lovely Google and typed

out one of the questions in the exact

wording oh my gosh guess what happened I

found quizlets with the exact questions

from the packets with the answers in

full complete explanations now no this

is not cheating because I still would

have had to dig through the text to end

up getting the exact same answers it's

not like I was getting greater

understanding from searching the answers

myself rather than just using Quizlet if

a shortcut gives you the same result and

the same learning you gain from it then

don't reinvent the wheel cut your losses

maybe you like making presentations

pretty but if it's going to be timec

consuming it's not worth it because it's

no longer going to be fun when it's

sucking time away from your other

classes so think how can I be the

laziest possible while still getting the

same results when you go to the gym do

you think you're going to be able to do

100 sets of bicep curls 50 sets of

squats no because at one point when you

try to overload yourself you get

diminishing returns the same thing with

studying so don't overload your brain

this means don't do all of your

memorization subjects in one day when I

tried to memorize history facts and

biology terms in the same study session

eventually my brain felt like it was

going to explode and it couldn't retain

a single new piece of information I

tried to shove in there your brain

physically cannot encode that much at

once however please note that problem

solving classes are okay to do in a day

or study session in high school and at

Caltech my class schedule was filled

with 80 to 90% science and math classes

and I found that actually by studying

them together I can make connections

between math and physics for example and

still learn effectively when you have

too many classes it's really easy to let

one assignment slip through the cracks

and that can make a big difference to

your grade that is why I use a

Tracker in addition to the usual days of

the week in my planner I would draw my

own grid system for each week I would

have a blue and green section for blue

and green days cuz my school was on a

block schedule for each of my blue and

green days I had four

classes so one 2 3 4 1 2 3

4 not kidding

my makeshift grid on my planner was

actually as messy and freestyle like

this next I have Monday Tuesday

Wednesday Thursday Friday seven days a

week at the top as I'm going about each

day I would check off whether each

class's to-dos were done for example if

I am on Monday and I've already done

everything I need for class one on Blue

days and I didn't have anything for

Class 2 I finished my class three things

blah blah blah then I would check them

all off this way even if I didn't write

an assignment down in the regular

planner section I would ensure that

every single class is captured so I next

on Tuesday as I'm doing my work okay I

did blue two then I did green one okay

didn't have any work for green two blah

blah blah until for every single day I

make sure that the entire column has

full check marks systems like these

trackers are the core of time management

that's why I also recommend this

specific class on skillshare called

productivity and time management

strategies for goal setting and

eliminating distractions that title

literally sounds like it was made for us

right thanks so much skillshare for

sponsoring this portion of the video if

you don't know they're an online

learning community where experts from

various Industries teach you art

entrepreneurship productivity and more

common question students have when

handling so many things is where do I

start how do I even do this daunting

task Patrick Deng shares how to create

the Snowball Effect so progress becomes

EAS easier and easier once you take your

tasks Bird by bird making it less

stressful and having many classes makes

prioritization even more important dang

Patrick D also teaches you how to

prioritize and set smart goals with his

worksheet I especially like how he calls

all of this together a productivity

machine because being productive should

feel easier and almost automatic if

you're using the right mindsets and

habits you can never learn learn too

much about how to organize your ideal

life so I've been going through

Patrick's sections and I really enjoy

learning in a more structured way than

perhaps random videos on YouTube and

lucky you because you can actually

listen to his class for free because the

first 500 people can get a free one

month of skillshare Premium with a link

in my description as a private tutor

I've seen how students make the mistake

of putting an equal amount of effort on

all subjects and all Concepts instead

you should adapt by weight and

difficulty like I share in this video

about how to cram effectively you should

spend the most time firstly on items

that will give you the most points on

assignments and tests you can find out

which Concepts have the highest weight

by looking in your syllabus or

explicitly asking your teacher never be

afraid to talk to your teacher next you

prioritize by difficulty review the

classes or concepts that you struggle

the most with resist the temptation to

always look back at what you already

understand I know it feels great and you

get a dopamine hit when you review that

page again that you already know because

wow you feel so smart but it's better to

feel dumb now and review what you don't

know than feel dumb on the test imagine

tackling one class as sawing down a tree

well it would be very helpful if your

saw was sharp right then if you spend

time sharpening the saw you can saw down

your trees even faster so what happens

when you have many classes well you're

going to have to saw down a whole heck

of a lot of trees so it's even more

important that you sharpen the saw how

do you do this being healthy is not

optional I repeat being healthy is not

optional that's why even when I had a

lot of classes or extracurriculars

working out taking supplements eating

veggies and protein at every meal these

are all non-negotiables

your body your physical and mental state

are all parts of the saw you need in

order to tackle each of your classes

it's well worth the time and effort to

sharpen your saw because that's going to

save you time and effort when you're

actually sawing down the trees why do I

always say I sleep an average of 8 hours

a night I don't sleep enough just

because I'm efficient at studying I'm

efficient at studying because I sleep

enough mic drop the golden mindset here

we go go back to the basics oh ew that's

boring what what do you even mean see

that's the thing the basics that

everyone has heard hundreds of times

before are boring but the boring tips

are what work that's why every single

person says the same thing Basics are do

active recall ask for help take care of

your body and many more that I just

don't have the time for to list all of

them in this video stop looking for for

that magical new tip with the time

you're spending watching new videos you

could have made a lot more progress by

following basic boring advice this is

cool okay listen to this when you watch

any one of my videos even if it doesn't

say explicitly this is how you handle

many subjects all of my advice will help

you handle many different subjects

that's because this is the core of all

of my advice to handle things

efficiently effectively and sustainably

since I took the hardest classes each

year of high school and studied chemical

engineering at one of the hardest

schools in the world naturally all of my

advice helps you excel in tough

stressful situations that's why I tell

you my background in the intros I've

made videos on how to study efficiently

how to take notes quickly and time

management yet people still specifically

want a video titled how to handle many

subjects but have you you used every

single efficient studying technique for

an individual class because if you cut

down the study time for each class it's

automatically going to be easier to

study for more classes you will be

amazed that if you follow my note taking

advice of annotating it will

automatically be easier to study for

many different tests on the same day if

you use my digital planner you will

automatically be making a cheat sheet

study guide for each of your classes

we have to be thoughtful and

holistically make connections between

different problems in our lives the same

good habits are solutions to multiple

problems you're having each little habit

makes a difference you may not think

that efficient note taking is relevant

to handling many subjects because well I

didn't explicitly say that but of course

it will help you the magic behind basic

advice isn't how magical the tips

actually are but it's in how much you

actually convert them you determine how

magical the advice is if you're here

congrats you got through my big

preaching session didn't have one of

those in a while you have also got what

it takes so comment I like the swoosh

because you're already so smart and you

know what you have to do so just do it

by commenting this we confuse the people

who just half-butted this video and went

down to the comments then they will feel

like they missed out on some team

bonding but let's be real you do miss

out if you skip some part to my video

because why would I leave them in if I

didn't think they were helpful in some

way good job remember you can hone your

time management skills in a structured

way with skillshare as well as learn

about many different things like art

design entrepreneurship the first 500

people who use my link can try for free

I also want to say thank you so much to

you for giving me opportunities to work

with helpful resources like skillshare

Partnerships like these truly truly make

it possible for me to continue putting

in so much ever and make these videos

for you so thank you very much great job

I'll see you next time 18

peace sorry

flowers balance surprise face ooh look

at that look at that okay just kidding

un

M un M the longer I do this the figer it

looks feel

sleeping I feel the com

recently I've been journaling a lot

think what I really realized is I am an

extroverted person and I love knowing

that people are grinding alongside me

which is probably why even though work

was so hard and difficult at Caltech

that I didn't feel this uneasiness that

I do right now another source of my

milrom of emotions in side is I recently

visited the Harvard Business School

campus and it's so beautiful oh my gosh

I might have just set myself up for

major disappointment I can totally see

myself going there I took a photo with a

sign that might have been another

mistake but I'm just trying to manifest

here yeah it makes me worried because

I'm getting my hopes up and the higher

your hopes the farther you fall but I'm

also thinking I want to try even hard

harder but how do I do that and it's

like life has not been dealing me such

easy cards recently mentally I'm not as

strong as I used to be feel like I

should be able to handle all of this and

I'm trying really hard so I just have to

trust myself that at the end of the day

I'm still going to submit a product that

I feel like is 10% up to my standards if

my written application is good and I

pass on to the next stage of actually

getting an interview when I think about

that I have PTSD from my mock interview

with Sandy the only HBS version

interview I had that was a few user few

years ago and I actually had a migraine

right before that started oh my gosh it

went so bad so there my embarrassment

lives on the internet forever applying

to something is so stressful by also

don't want it to be stressful because I

know that the actual result has many

things outside of my control even so now

I'm just going to share you know some

stats for HPS the acceptance rate is

around 12% the average GPA is a

3.73 a median GMAT score of 740 I have a

4.0 and chemical engineering from

Caltech and I got a GMAT score of 760

another fun fact during that virtual

GMAT test taking I actually had three

technical difficulties it was so

stressful and disrupted my flow of

taking a test but you know we still made

it through miraculously so theoretically

I should be in pretty good shape when it

comes to

Stats that also puts even more pressure

on myself like I have to be so perfect

to not botch my application HBS along

with Stanford GSB are the two hardest

MBA programs to apply to HBS especially

because they look really closely at your

short answer questions just as closely

as the essay and they're going to grill

you I mean ask you very deep questions

on the interview even though I have all

these emotions the only thing I can do

is to continue going and adjust my State

of Mind by going to the gym meditating

doing what I can do because you

know it's just a push I'm going to have

to do and when it's over I'm going to be

so grateful the only thing I would

regret after the deadline is if I didn't

give my

all I feel like I end all of these mini

Vlogs like

this let's

go confidence sugar and

spice I