7 Mistakes Students Make Every Year

Summary

In this insightful video, Ali, a former doctor turned entrepreneur and author of 'Feelgood Productivity,' shares seven common mistakes students make and offers advice on how to avoid them. He emphasizes the importance of learning effective study techniques like active recall and spaced repetition, rather than inefficient methods such as rereading. Ali also encourages students to view studying as a collaborative effort, suggesting that forming study groups can enhance focus and enjoyment. He warns against cramming, highlighting the benefits of consistent daily study habits for long-term knowledge retention. Additionally, Ali advises against limiting career choices to those directly related to one's degree, advocating for a life-first approach to career planning. He stresses the value of utilizing free time wisely, learning marketable skills and focusing on health to build a strong foundation for the future. Lastly, he encourages an experimental mindset, exploring various interests and opportunities to gain a clearer understanding of one's passions and goals.

Takeaways

• 📚 Learn how to learn effectively: Utilize evidence-based study techniques like active recall, spaced repetition, and interleaving to improve memory and understanding.
• 🤝 Studying is not a single-player game: Collaborate with friends and form study groups to make the learning process more enjoyable and productive.
• 🚫 Avoid cramming: Consistent daily studying is more efficient and leads to better long-term retention and understanding.
• 🚀 Don't let your degree define your career choices: Instead, envision the life you want and reverse engineer a career that aligns with that vision.
• ⏳ Value your free time in school: Use it to learn new skills that can benefit your future career and personal development.
• 💼 Start building healthy habits early: Prioritize your health and well-being during your student years to establish a strong foundation for later life.
• 🧐 Adopt an experimental mindset: Explore different interests and experiences without being overly concerned about their immediate impact on your CV.
• 🌟 Focus on intrinsic motivation: Engage in activities and studies because of personal interest and fulfillment rather than solely for external validation.
• 🔄 Be open to diverse career paths: A degree can open doors to various careers both within and outside your field of study.
• 📈 Leverage your free time to upskill: Use the flexibility of your student schedule to learn valuable skills that can enhance your career prospects.
• 🛠️ Develop a proactive approach to health: Invest time in understanding and maintaining your physical health to prevent future health issues.

Q & A

What is the main focus of Ali's book 'Feelgood Productivity'?

The book 'Feelgood Productivity' focuses on how to do more of what matters to you in a way that is enjoyable, meaningful, and sustainable.

Why does Ali emphasize the importance of learning how to learn?

Ali emphasizes learning how to learn because it is a skill not commonly taught in schools and can significantly improve study efficiency, save time, and reduce stress during exams.

What are some ineffective study methods mentioned by Ali?

Some ineffective study methods mentioned by Ali include rereading, highlighting, underlining, and making notes with the textbook open.

What are some effective study strategies that Ali recommends?

Ali recommends effective study strategies such as active recall, spaced repetition, interleaving, and categorizing.

Why does Ali suggest treating studying as a multiplayer game?

Ali suggests treating studying as a multiplayer game because it can make the experience more fun, energizing, and productive, as opposed to studying alone which can be boring and de-energizing.

What does Ali mean by 'relational energy'?

Relational energy refers to the concept that we gain energy from the people around us, which can be harnessed to improve focus and productivity during group study sessions.

Why is cramming before an exam considered a mistake?

Cramming is considered a mistake because it is less effective for long-term memory and understanding, and it does not contribute to a comprehensive knowledge of the subject matter.

What is the 'ultimate studying bundle' that Ali mentions?

The 'ultimate studying bundle' is a free resource that Ali offers, which includes evidence-based spaced repetition strategies and other helpful resources for studying effectively.

How does Ali suggest students approach their career choices after graduation?

Ali suggests that students should first envision the life they want and then reverse engineer a career that aligns with that life, rather than limiting their choices based on their degree or subjects studied.

Why is it important for students to manage their free time wisely?

Managing free time wisely is important because it allows students to learn new skills, pursue hobbies, and develop habits that can benefit them in the future, beyond their academic life.

What is the role of an experimental mindset in a student's life?

An experimental mindset encourages students to try new things, follow their curiosity, and gain valuable life experiences that can inform their career choices and personal growth.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Learning How to Learn

Ali, a former doctor turned entrepreneur, discusses the importance of learning effective study techniques. He emphasizes that traditional methods like rereading, highlighting, and underlining are not optimal. Instead, he recommends strategies such as active recall, spaced repetition, interleaving, and categorizing. Ali also shares his experience with setting up a study group at university, which improved productivity and enjoyment of the study process.

05:01

🤝 Collaborative Studying Over Solo

Ali highlights the downsides of studying alone and the benefits of a collaborative approach. He dispels the myth that the ideal way to study is in isolation. By studying with friends, using techniques like the Pomodoro Technique, students can make the process more enjoyable and less draining. Ali also touches on the concept of 'relational energy' and how it can enhance focus and productivity.

10:02

🚫 Avoiding the Pitfall of Cramming

The video script addresses the common mistake of cramming before exams, which Ali argues is detrimental to true learning and long-term memory retention. He suggests that consistent, daily studying is more effective and less stressful. Ali also mentions his free 'ultimate studying bundle' as a resource for improving study habits.

15:03

🚀 Career Choices Beyond Your Degree

Ali advises students against limiting their career options based on their degree. He recommends envisioning the life they want and then choosing a career that aligns with that vision. He uses the example of a medical degree and how it can open doors to various careers within and outside of medicine. Ali encourages students to consider a broader range of possibilities rather than following a linear path.

⏰ Capitalizing on Free Time

The script emphasizes the abundance of free time students have and the importance of using it wisely. Ali suggests learning valuable skills during this period, which can benefit future careers. He shares his personal experience of learning web design and development, which later helped him build a business and a YouTube channel. Ali also warns against wasting time on unproductive activities.

💪 Prioritizing Health as a Student

Ali stresses the importance of health and forming good habits during student life. He regrets not taking better care of his health and encourages students to develop a routine that includes time for physical activity and healthy eating. He also shares insights from successful entrepreneurs who wish they had prioritized health in their youth.

🧪 Embracing an Experimental Mindset

The final paragraph discusses the dangers of having a fixed approach to life and career. Ali encourages an experimental mindset, trying new things, and following curiosity rather than focusing solely on academic achievements. He believes that trying different activities provides valuable data for making informed career choices and finding personal fulfillment.

🎓 Conclusion and Additional Resources

Ali concludes by reiterating the importance of an experimental approach to life and career. He promotes his book 'Feel Good Productivity' and a free three-hour masterclass on YouTube for students on effective exam studying. He thanks the viewers and expresses his hope that the advice will help them make the most of their time as students.

Keywords

💡Feelgood productivity

Feelgood productivity is a book authored by Ali, the speaker, which focuses on how to accomplish more of what matters to an individual in an enjoyable, meaningful, and sustainable manner. It is central to the video's theme as it represents the philosophy that Ali promotes for a fulfilling and productive life, including one's approach to studying and career choices.

💡Learning how to learn

This concept refers to the idea that there are optimal, science-backed methods for studying and revising material. In the video, Ali emphasizes the importance of understanding these methods, such as active recall and spaced repetition, to improve efficiency and reduce stress. It is a key message, as it directly impacts how students approach their studies and manage their time.

💡Studying as a multiplayer game

Ali uses this metaphor to encourage students to study with friends rather than in isolation. He suggests that studying collaboratively can make the process more enjoyable and energizing, which is a significant departure from the common belief that studying should be a solitary activity. This concept is tied to the video's theme of enhancing productivity and enjoyment in one's educational journey.

💡Cramming

Cramming is described as a suboptimal study strategy where students attempt to learn a large amount of material shortly before an exam. Ali argues against it, stating that consistent, daily studying leads to better memory retention and understanding. The concept is integral to the video's message on effective study habits and long-term knowledge retention.

💡Career choices

The video discusses the common mistake of limiting career options based on one's degree. Ali suggests that individuals should envision their ideal life and then choose a career that aligns with that vision. This keyword is significant as it shifts the focus from traditional career paths to a more personalized and fulfilling approach to life and work.

💡Free time

Ali highlights the abundance of free time that students often have and cautions against wasting it. He advocates for using this time to learn new skills that can be beneficial in the future, whether or not they are directly related to one's studies. This concept is important as it encourages a proactive approach to personal development during one's educational years.

💡Health

The importance of maintaining good health during one's student years is stressed, as it lays the foundation for lifelong healthy habits. Ali reflects on his own experiences and advises students to take their health seriously, even when engaged in activities like gaming or studying. This keyword is crucial as it underscores the holistic approach to well-being that should be considered alongside academic success.

💡Experimental mindset

Ali encourages students to adopt an experimental mindset towards their life and career. This involves trying new things, following curiosity, and gaining valuable life experiences without being overly concerned about immediate outcomes or traditional achievements. The concept is key to the video's theme of exploring diverse possibilities and finding personal fulfillment.

💡Skillshare

Skillshare is mentioned as a resource for learning new skills. Ali has personally taught classes on the platform and recommends it for subjects ranging from video editing to productivity. The mention of Skillshare in the video serves to illustrate the vast array of skills that students can develop during their free time to enhance their future prospects.

💡Active recall

Active recall is a learning technique where students actively attempt to remember information without looking at the material. Ali promotes this method as a more effective way to study compared to passive techniques like rereading. It is a specific example of the 'learning how to learn' concept discussed in the video.

💡Spaced repetition

Spaced repetition is another evidence-based learning strategy mentioned by Ali. It involves reviewing material at increasing intervals over time to enhance memory retention. This keyword is part of the broader discussion on effective study methods that can lead to better academic performance and a more enjoyable study experience.

Highlights

Ali, a doctor turned entrepreneur, shares seven common mistakes students make and how to avoid them.

Emphasizes the importance of learning how to learn effectively using science-backed methods like active recall and spaced repetition.

Advises against studying in isolation, suggesting that group study can enhance focus, enjoyment, and productivity.

Warns against the inefficiency and limited long-term benefits of cramming before exams.

Encourages students to consider their career choices based on their desired lifestyle, rather than being limited by their degree.

Advises students to make the most of their free time by learning valuable skills that can benefit their future career.

Mentions the importance of health and forming good habits during student years for long-term well-being.

Suggests an experimental mindset for trying new things and gaining valuable life experiences, rather than a strictly linear approach to life and career.

Ali shares his personal experience with learning web design and how it contributed to his entrepreneurial success.

Provides a free resource, the Ultimate Studying Bundle, with evidence-based strategies to improve study techniques.

Recommends Skillshare as a platform for learning a wide array of skills beyond academic subjects.

Discusses the concept of 'relational energy' and how studying with others can provide motivation and make the process more enjoyable.

Ali's book 'Feelgood Productivity' is mentioned as a resource for improving one's approach to productivity and well-being.

The Pomodoro Technique is introduced as a method for effective group study sessions.

Ali emphasizes that understanding and knowledge should be the goal of education, not just grades.

Students are encouraged to think about their ideal life and work backward to determine the career that would align with it.

Ali discusses the value of learning skills like public speaking, video editing, and coding, which can be universally beneficial.

The importance of starting healthy habits early is highlighted, as they form the foundation for lifelong well-being.

Transcripts

hey friends welcome back to the channel

if you're new here my name is Ali I'm a

doctor turned entrepreneur and the

author of Feelgood productivity which is

a book about how to do more of what

matters to you in a way that's enjoyable

and meaningful and sustainable now it's

been a few years since I've graduated

from medical school but I still get tons

of emails and Instagram DMS from

students all the time asking for advice

and so in this video I thought I would

talk through seven of the top mistakes

that I see students making absolutely

every year and my goal for this video is

that if even one student watching this

video manages to avoid any one of these

seven mistakes then this video will have

been worth making let's start with

mistake number one not learning how to

learn and this is the thing that I've

been trying to hammer home literally on

this YouTube channel for the last 6

years that there are very well

documented science-backed evidence-based

ways of studying or learning or

understanding or revising for your exams

and if you haven't yet taken the time to

learn how to learn you are profoundly

shooting yourself in the foot I wish

this was something that they taught us

in school and college at University but

generally they tend not to We tend not

to have a class on how to study or how

to learn it's the sort of thing you

either have to learn yourself or more

likely you just do what you see other

people doing and you think that that's

the only way of doing it so things like

rereading and highlighting and

underlining and even making notes with

the textbook open a lot of these things

are actually suboptimal ways of studying

for exams and the things that actually

work are things like active recall and

spaced repetition and interleaving and

categorizing and I've made a bunch of

videos about these over the years that I

will link down below I promise that if

you just learn a few of the strategies

you will save absolutely gallons and

gallons of time and instead of then

being stressed by your exams or thinking

like oh my God I don't have any time in

the evenings you'll be thinking whoa

I've got too much time I don't know what

to do with my time I'm twiddling my

thumbs and then whatever your experience

of school or college or university is

it's going to be better because now you

have way more time to give to other

important things in your life other than

just your studies all right mistake

number two is thinking of studying as a

single player game now I've had so many

emails from students over the years who

feel absolutely miserable when they are

studying they either hate their subject

or they like the subject but they don't

like studying or they like the subject

but they do like studying and they can't

focus or any combination of all these

things and generally if I dig in a

little bit more or if I I chat to

students when I do talks and things like

that generally what I find is that the

people who absolutely hate studying are

the ones who are doing it on their own

for some reason there is this myth that

the ideal way to focus is to lock

yourself in your in your bedroom or in a

library by yourself and just like focus

on the thing now there are some people

in the world for whom that is really fun

and really enjoyable and really

energizing and they don't struggle with

focus and they don't struggle with

discipline and they don't procrastinate

if you are that sort of person you can

ignore this advice but if you have ever

found studying on your own to be boring

or draining or de-energizing or just a

freaking nightmare then you are falling

into the Trap of thinking of studying as

a single player game and what I wish

more students knew is that basically

everything becomes more fun when you do

it with friends you can profoundly

transform your experience of school or

college or university by treating

studying as a multiplayer game where you

and your friends are working together to

tackle the final boss which is the exam

or whatever the thing might be your

friends don't even have to be doing the

same subject as you back when I was at

University I set up a group where you

know me and like eight of my friends we

would all go to different libraries

together and each day maybe like 5 to

seven people would show up and we would

use the Pomodoro Technique together so

someone would set a timer for 25 minutes

and then we'd all study for 25 minutes

and then there would be a 5-minute break

and initially before organizing this

group I was making the mistake of doing

a lot of studying on my own and finding

it quite draining and thinking like ah

there must be a better way and then

because I'm a weirdo I read a bunch of

studies that showed around this thing

called relational energy and how

actually we get energy from the people

around us and so I thought you know what

let me just try this and literally on

day one we were all like oh my God we've

all been studying on our own for the

last like year but why don't we just do

it together and as is the thesis of my

book Feelgood productivity when stuff

feels good we become more productive

that's why it's called Feelgood

productivity if there's anything you can

learn from my own experience and from

the studies that have been done on this

if you are struggling with learning or

studying or revising or whatever the

thing is and you are treating it like a

single player game consider organizing a

study group getting some people together

and you'll almost certainly find that

it's way more fun and way more

energizing if you just study with

friends rather than on your own all

right mistake number three the students

make all the time is cramming cramming

is absolutely shafting yourself across

all of the different domains of life and

often students have this weird thing be

like oh you know I didn't do any work

and I just like studied like a day

before the exam and then I got good

grades it's like

bro if if you think that the goal of

kind of schooling is to get the grades

you're kind of missing the point the

goal is to understand to learn to have

knowledge about the world to like I

don't know expand your horizons and all

that crap and you don't get that from

cramming for an exam as if it's a box

that you have to take it's like what's

the point if you're just going to take a

box like okay maybe you have to go to

school and stuff but having that kind of

have to attitude is just I don't know

it's not a very uh again it's it's it's

not a very enjoyable or energizing way

of thinking about it we tend not to

enjoy the things that we feel we have to

do and if you feel like you have to cram

for an exam just because you're going to

take a box or get some grade that's

basing your entire student career on

this idea of extrinsic motivation you're

not doing the thing because you actually

want to do the thing you're doing the

thing because someone else is telling

you to do the thing and even if that is

the case even if you're studying a

subject that you don't enjoy even if

your parents or your counselor or your

boss or whatever the thing is is telling

you to do something the way that you

approach it makes an enormous difference

to your own happiness and fulfillment

and also to your productivity ity and

efficiency when it comes to studying so

if there's one thing I would go back and

tell my past self it's that a little bit

of studying every day is way more

efficient and way more effective than

trying to cram before the exam a because

it helps memory and understanding and

therefore I'm more likely to get better

grades in the exam but B that stuff is

more likely to stick in my memory over

the long term and that benefits my

entire life rather than it just being a

thing that I do for the exam having said

that it is of course never too late to

start uh you know the best time to plant

a tree was 10 years ago the second best

time is now and so if you have an exam

coming up imminently cramming is still

better than nothing but for next time

it's generally way less stressful to

actually do a little bit of revision

every day so that you can have a more

chill and more relaxed and more pleasant

experience of student life rather than

it being this kind of sort of chasing

your tail all the time that you get with

cramming and if you're looking to level

up how you study and prepare for your

exams then you might like to check out

my completely free ultimate studying

bundle this has revision Tim taes it's

got a bunch of evidence-based space

repetition strategies and a bunch of

other resources that I found super

helpful in my student life and that I

have then shared with students and they

have found super helpful as well it's

completely free there's a link down

below that's the ultimate studying

bundle that you can just download all

right so mistake number four that

students make is to often narrow their

choices of career based on what their

degree is or what subjects that they've

studied now I actually got this from

Professor Cal newport's blog that I used

to read when I was in medical school and

reading that really changed the way that

I think about this because what he says

is that often when students are thinking

about what job they want to do in the

future they'll sort of narrow their

options based on their degree so if for

example you do a degree in I don't know

economics you'll think okay I've got a

degree in economics therefore I need to

either be a banker or a h fund person or

a private Equity person or a consultant

or I don't know accountant or something

like that but actually what calup argues

and what I fully believe now that I've

been a few years since graduation is

that instead of thinking what job can I

do with my degree you instead think

what's the sort of life that I want to

have and then you reverse engineer what

kind of career you want to have based on

the life that you think you want so ask

yourself what does your dream life look

like what does your ideal week look like

what does your ideal Tuesday look like

what what would you like to be doing on

a normal Tuesday it's probably a work

day you're probably not able to retire

Tire just yet like what sort of work

would you like to be doing when would

you like to come home where would you

like to live how long how long do you

want your commute to be what sort of

people would you like to work with and

then based on that you can start making

more intelligent choices about okay cool

what are the careers that match that

kind of Life aspiration I have rather

than limiting yourself based on your

degree and a medical degree is a perfect

example of this because you do a medical

degree and you think great obviously I

need to become a doctor but actually

there are zillions of careers within

medicine and outside of medicine that a

medical degree can really help with so

action point if you take nothing else

from this video other than learning how

to study for your exams it is worth

considering however young you are or

however old you are what is the life

that I think I want and then once you've

done that you can figure out what are

the career choices that might Vibe with

that life that you think you want and

you're probably going to change your

mind but that's okay either way it's

much easier to steer a moving ship than

a stationary ship all right mistake

number five is squandering the

absolutely insane amount of free time

that you have right now whether you're

at school or at college or university

you probably think that you're pretty

busy but just you wait until you get a

real job and you suddenly have to spend

40 50 60 70 80 hours a week forced to

turn up to a place lest you'll get fired

and then all the extra time on top of

that commuting to the place and

preparing for the stuff all of the time

suck that like a day job is and you'll

look back on your time at school college

and university and you will say oh my

freaking God I cannot believe I wasted

so much time and if you currently think

that you don't have much time this is

why learning about time management and

in fact learning about productivity is

super helpful because when you learn

simple strategies when it comes to

managing your time and prioritizing and

beinga procrastination and being a bit

more disciplined a bit more motivated

when you learn those fairly simple

things and start applying them to your

life it's the same thing I talked about

in mistake number one like when you

learn how to study more effectively

you're getting more bang for your buck

out of every hour that you put in and

therefore you have way more spare time

and an absolutely amazing thing you can

do in that spare time is yes you can

enjoy yourself but B you can learn

skills you can learn skills and you can

level up your own abilities in a way

that will gel with anything that you

want to do in the future so for example

when I was in school I taught myself web

design and web development and those

skills came in super handy even in my

medical career which you wouldn't think

they would but those skills were

ultimately what allowed me to create a

business while I was a university that

business funded my entire medical degree

and then those skills morphed into this

YouTube channel which then allowed me to

quit my job several years later and even

then I still wasted absolutely tons of

time when I was in school I was watching

like tons of TV shows I was addicted to

World of Warcraft that I would play for

3 hours a day and I don't regret that

time but I do think if I had just known

a little bit more about productivity

back when I was younger I would not have

squandered so much free time and so if

you care about building a life that you

truly love and you care about

potentially having the autonomy and

freedom to do your own thing someday and

maybe not just have a traditional job a

lot of that stems from the skills that

you have learned and you tend not to

learn those skills in school or

university you tend to learn them on

your own and so if you can learn those

sorts of skills in your spare time

things like I don't know public speaking

or video editing or web design or

graphic design or data analysis or

coding like there's a lot of skills that

can interface nicely with almost any

career that you can think of these days

if it were me I would learn a lot about

AI I'd learn about no code automation

tools I'd probably still learn how to

code because if if I was doing those

things then almost any job that I do I

can apply those skills to but I won't be

able to do any of that if I spent all of

my free time as a student I don't know

watching TV or playing video games not

that there's anything wrong with that I

used to play a lot of World World of

Warcraft I play a lot of balers gate

these days but it's good to have a

little bit of a balance and to be

leveling up your own skills as you're

going along and if you're looking for a

great resource for learning new skills

then you might like to check out

skillshare who are very kindly

sponsoring this video if you haven't

heard by now skillshare is a fantastic

online platform with classes on all

sorts of subjects from video editing and

graphic design to interior design and

cooking and I've actually been

personally teaching on skillshare since

2019 so I've got about a dozen classes

that you can take to your heart's

content if you're interested in maybe

learning how to videoed I've got an

amazing class on how to use Final Cut

Pro and if you're interested in just

generally leveling up your productivity

then you should firstly check out my

book uh and you should also check out my

free classes that are on skillshare as

well and if you're interested in the AI

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fantastic skillshare original by smites

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with loads of classes around marketing

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heart's content so thank you so much

skillshare for sponsoring this video all

right so mistake number six is that when

you're a student you often don't realize

how valuable your health is and the

thing is when you're a student is when

you start laying the foundation for the

healthy habits that are going to take

you forward for the rest of your life

and in my kind of time as an

entrepreneur and as a YouTuber I've

spoken to a bunch of stupidly successful

and like ridiculously Rich entrepreneurs

some of them are like 100 millionaires

some of them are billionaires and I

often like to ask them for Life advice

and one of the things they all say is I

wish I had taken my health more

seriously when I was younger cuz to be

honest you can have all the money in the

world but if you have all the money in

the world and your health is absolutely

crap you cannot actually enjoy the money

that you've got and so one thing that I

wish I had done more of when I was a

student is to just take a little bit

better care of my health like to not be

a slouchy kind of World of Warcraft

playing basement dweller and if I was

going to do that I don't know do a bit

of stretches do a bit like understand a

bit about posture and about stretching

and stuff kind of wish I'd eaten

healthier when I was University I did a

Dexter scan recently and realized I've

got a ton of visceral adapost tissue

which is probably built up over time a

because of my Asian genetics and B

because I used to live off of french

fries and Don kebabs when I was at

University which is pretty bad in

hindsight and generally I also wish that

I'd embodied the identity when I was a

student of someone who takes my health

Ser seriously instead for some reason

the identity I had I was like oh I'm a

bit of a slob LOL I just I just live off

takeaways LOL I just sit on the computer

I don't know why I chose to have and

embody that identity for myself it was

just dumb and if I if I had my time

again as a student I would say you know

what devoting half an hour a day to your

health is going to be a habit that pays

off forever so start doing that when

you're young rather than having to then

build that habit when you have a

full-time job where it's way harder then

mistake number seven that I see students

make quite a lot is generally having too

fixed an approach when it comes to their

life and their career and if if you're

the sort of student who's watching this

channel you're probably quite

conscientious and you're probably I

don't know pretty good at studying or

whatever usually there's this you know

you a lot of students will have this

very kind of linear thinking I just need

to focus on my GCS and then I just need

to focus on my a levels or whatever your

exam is and then I just need to focus on

getting into University and and it's

almost like you're sort of thinking of

life as this kind of one step after the

other but what you realize fairly

quickly especially after graduating

University is that oh my God there's

actually this whole world of

possibilities out there and actually

there was this whole world of

possibilities even when I was in school

and University and I just didn't take

advantage of those because I just

followed one specific linear path and

the cure to this I think is to have a

bit of an experimental mindset when it

comes to your career and your life like

instead of taking things so seriously

and thinking oh my God if I don't do

well in this exam I'm not going to be

able to do or you know just the the

seriousness and the over importance with

which we approach our student lives just

taking a step back and approaching it

with a bit more lightness and ease and a

bit more of an experimental attitude so

instead of thinking for example that I

will only do this thing this experience

if it gives me more CB points instead

thinking you know what let me just try

this out because I'm intrigued by it I'm

going to follow my curiosity maybe it's

not going to give me any CB points maybe

it won't look good on my resume but

either way this is going to be a

valuable life experience it's going to

teach me something and every experiment

that you run on yourself gives you data

about where you really want to go like

it's so common for students and actually

for adults to not really know what they

want to do with their lives it's like a

thing that I hear all the time in emails

and DMS and stuff and if you don't yet

know what you want to do with your

career it's probably because you haven't

sampled enough things it's probably

because you've just got this like

limited range of things that you've

tried you haven't maybe enjoyed any of

them and now you're like well want to do

with my career like often the answer

there is to expand your scope of the

things that you're actually getting up

to and I think having an experimental

mindset and thinking of trying new

things as an experiment rather than as

like the serious thing that if you fail

it's going to look bad on your CV and

this can often be a hard thing to do

depending on what your parents are like

because parents and teachers are often

way more risk averse than they need to

be like my mom would often say like

what's the point of learning to design

websites is that going to look good on

your CV and I was like well I think it

will because it makes me more more

well-rounded but it's also not the point

the point of learning how to make

websites is not so that it looks on my

CV it's an experiment to see if I enjoy

the thing and is a good skill to have

generally for life and I would attribute

a lot of My Success later in life to the

fact that I learned how to design

websites when I was in school so broadly

consider taking an experimental approach

to your career in your life and this is

something I talk more about in my book

feel good productivity which you can

check out if you're interested in

learning how to make the most of your

time as a student and if you're a

student and you haven't yet checked it

out I have a three-hour long master

class on how to study for exams which

will be linked right over there it's

completely for free here on YouTube and

you can check that out and then that

will teach you how to study for your

exams in a more effective way so thank

you so much for watching have a lovely

day and I'll see you in the next video

bye-bye