High-Level Thinker, Low-Level Student

[kmay]

honestly? it works for my cousin and I and we are senior chem majors...


we get a bottle of a wine and just get a nice buzz. it makes the work not seem too bad.... i bust shit out when it happens, but if i'm not drinking my motivation and drive is so below the worst levels of low.


i have that mentality that if i don't need to do the homework to understand the material why should i have to do it... then i wind up losing 10-15 points on my final grade and voila! a shitty grade. =/


its especially hard in the class i have to take towards my bio minor since all biology classes are super boring and easy and don't even need a teacher any more since powerpoint took over. i'm finishing that minor up this semester with microbio.... it shouldn't be this awful but it is. i haven't even done anything for that class but its just a repetition of general biology still and we've been at it for 3 weeks. so yea i'm not worried.

[Jtehanonymous]

Originally Posted by kmay

we get a bottle of a wine and just get a nice buzz. it makes the work not seem too bad.... i bust shit out when it happens, but if i'm not drinking my motivation and drive is so below the worst levels of low.

When I drink while studying, I have a hard time finding the line between buzzed and too buzzed and hence sleepy. lol.

Usually I am good for about 30 minutes but then I keep drinking because oops and then I just give up studying altogether.

[kmay]

Guess you're not smart enough

[Trumpet63]

Pfff, not even gonna read past the OP -- dude, I feel you. I get a lot of A's in college, I have a 3.85 right now, but I always do the least work possible to get that A, and more than once a professor has had to make an exception for me to give me time to find motivation.

I think the scary thing is, there's no way anything is getting done unless YOU do it. And this kind of thing always happens to smart people. We think that we are entitled to an easier path in life because we have more skill, more talent, more potential... the truth is, all of that won't do a thing for you unless you can act like a regular adult and deal with the responsibilities that YOU have set upon YOURSELF.

It's all about discipline, and part of me wishes I was born into a culture where that was important, and taught from a young age, but that was not the case. Most of the time I don't even brush my teeth every day.

If I had to suggest a cause to this behavior, which I'm sure is more common than you think, I'd say it's lack of self identity. In which case, a good job helps with that, along with a group of supportive friends, and people who accept you for who you are, and are more than willing to call you on your bullshit when the time comes around. No one has to get through life alone after all... in fact, any successful person will tell you that they had a mentor at critical point in their life, so there's no shame in it. You just gotta believe it will get better, stay diligent, and take it one step at a time.

[Dynam0]

High-Level Thinker, Low-Level Student = Lazy

/thread

[OnixRose]

I have read that high intellect can actually be negatively correlated with success or productivity, on average. Granted I am too lazy to find sources right now (and I welcome antithetical sources), but it makes sense for a variety of reasons: high intellect can alienate people leading to social anxiety, inability to concentrate with a hyperactive brain, or just basic human disinterest.

I think upbringing and environment play huge roles on success, at least at a young age wherein school performance would be weighed most heavily by the individual. It takes a variety of factors to constitute success, intellectual acuity is only one factor.

I also wonder about the difference between skill, perception, and intellect. I wonder if those aspects are mutually exclusive and if an individual holds one aspect or another if they will be biased to hold themselves or others at differing standards or if they will have a tendency to ascribe their skill to an unrelated quality. And are intellectual measurements able to be objectified or are our measurements simply held against a generalized concept of normalcy? Essentially, I ask can we really know anything, even then, does it matter? Your performance in school may result in better peer evaluation or higher income, but do those aspects have objective value or is their value only prescribed because of ingrained social conditioning?

[DossarLX ODI]

What's unfortunate about academics is the concept of a grade itself. I remember having this kind of discussion with my Probability and Statistics professor last year when I failed an exam but bounced back and continued to frequently meet him during his office hours. He was honest with me in that he hated giving out grades -- he understood the pressure of what it was like to be a student at MIT, and he did what he could to answer any questions I had to clear up confusion. I wound up getting an A on the final, and when I took that final I wasn't even worried in the slightest; I was surprisingly calm when I took it. It was the agony of that bad grade throughout the semester that bothered me. The grade itself is immaterial -- what is important is that if I can immerse myself into the material of a course, enjoy it, and frequently be in contact with the professor about any potential issues and even give positive feedback about the material, the grade starts to become less of an issue and the concept of the course itself shines.

The professors that students dislike are the ones that don't help and have some sort of distorted sense of "exploration". These professors do not take into account that students could be drowning in loans, taking 5 other courses and working part-time. In other words, these kinds of professors think students are only taking this one course. That is when students start worrying about their grades and the class itself, detracting from the course which could potentially be a fascinating topic in itself.

From being at university and my co-op, I'd have to say success is achieved through hard work and diligence, along with remembering the people around you that have helped you get to where you are. Other people aren't as lucky and have had to motivate themselves to make the best out of a terrible situation. There isn't any easy way out of this. What makes me want to wake up at 7 AM or earlier every day? What makes me want to immerse myself into hours of work even if the assignments aren't due until a week after? What about all the other students with their own personal lives around me with these similar feelings -- waking up early, constantly having to keep up with courses despite being exhausted, and worrying about their performance.

There are people on this site who have incredible motivation despite what difficulties they encounter. You may not have many choices, but try to think about how you can make the best out of a situation. It's easy to just want to go to sleep from being exhausted and overwhelmed, but the willpower to continue through difficulty is an ultimate ability to have for any person regardless of perceived talents. I'm not a genius but I put in effort and give credit where it's due -- I definitely did not get to this point in my life without the help of many amazing friends and people, and I think about them if I'm down.

[justin_ator]

I definitely struggle with this same thing. Motivation to do well is escaping me lately, and I can't really determine what it is that is causing it (lack of motivation to be in school for a degree, lack of interest in the subjects, too much focus on other things in my life).

My biggest demotivating factor is most likely the fact that I have to take so many classes that, while yes they do educate me and make me a more scholarly person, have no direct application to my degree. I am attending a solid university with a good program, but having to take two semesters of Chemistry, two semesters of Physics, and a conglomeration of like 20 other credits in the "Perspectives on the Human Condition" for a Computer Science degree it makes me wonder if sinking my money into this is really worth it. Which in turn, I will admit, really cuts into my desire to do it.

[Garquillex]

My solution to this struggle took years, but is dishearteningly simple. It's a matter of habit.

You need habit or discipline to get excellence. If you don't have discipline, you need to develop your habits.

Developing something into a habit takes time, but it makes you automatically do things without consideration, which is an important thing to have when you lack discipline.

I probably attempted starting to exercise regularly about 10 times over the last 8 years. It wasn't until my last attempt that it stuck because I decided that, even if I didn't feel like it, or even if I was injured, I was gonna go sit on that exercise machine for just a short while, or I was just gonna do 3 pushups. Easy things that won't fail. Even the smallest steps bring you forward, and they will add up.

I do this for everything now. HTML, C++, tech skill in SSB, aim in FPS, and so on. Baby steps will make it easier for bigger steps. And as time goes on, more and more of those baby steps become bigger and bigger.

all the motivation in the world won't make up for not having habit or discipline. You may never have discipline, but you can still have habit.

[dandandamdandan1111]

I feel as though motivation is dependent on a person's understanding of what defines success, and that the general idea of success is inflated to an image of an overindulgent lifestyle. People can feel important and successful without making tons of money if perspective on what truly makes ones self happy is gained. Some view the acceptance of ones position in life as a weakness or simple-mindedness, and push themselves into a self-loathing territory. Some come to terms with their flaws and talents and use both as positive influences over their goals and standards.

It took a while to get myself out of the first and closer to the second category, and seeing people struggle while chasing unrealistic pipe dreams and shallow victories only strengthens my belief in certain views of "success" being over-rated. Know what makes you feel accomplished and the journey to your life's climax should be much smoother.

With the distraction issue, I suggest some good ol' self inflicted tough love. Remember, it is possible to complete a task without drastic distractions, you just need discipline. Good luck c:

[FF_rules]

Originally Posted by OnixRose

I also wonder about the difference between skill, perception, and intellect.

I have the worst memory in the world; I can forget someone's name 50 times and be told their name 50 times (I spent a good 2 months forgetting someone's name at work but thankfully we have name tags). I just can't remember some times; (today I ran across a friend I socialize with almost ever week, we haven't seen each other in about 3 months and I completely forgot who he was. I have to make educated guesses and play my words carefully until he gives me enough hints that I either remember or I apologize for the shitty memory I have)

That said when it comes to things that don't require memory, say mental computation, I can basically do it on a dime after a little bit of practice. This also leads to problems in conversations because I tend to read between the line too much; more so I speak in tangents without realizing. I've been told I haven't been trying to remember someone's name enough; and they're probably right in this regard, I could write someone's name down on a photo of them and say their name and look at that photo every few hours while I'm at home (but that's creepy and way too much work). Or maybe it's purely a mental issue; maybe I've just disconnected myself mentally and I don't remember names for some kind of contrived convenience. (My memory is also horrible for just remembering a lot of facts; one of the reasons I decided to drop from being a medical major -way too much stress in my life)

[reuben_tate]

Originally Posted by LordCarlos

Idk as long as you get above a 3.0 you're fine. don't need to be an overachiever!!

Well, unless you're pursuing a higher level of education at a competitive educational institution (i.e. a high school student applying a college, or an undergrad apply to grad/med/law/etc school). Although GPA isn't the only thing they look at, it still holds some weight.

I did this a few times when it came to fiction writing last semester. The hardest part is starting...it's hard to get that creative spark going. Having a apple/strawberry ale/cider or two and getting a little bit buzzed helped me to think outside the box and come up with ideas. Some of those ideas may have been silly, not thought out, or just plain stupid, but formulating ideas and transferring them to paper is the first step.

Originally Posted by FF_rules

I have the worst memory in the world; I can forget someone's name 50 times and be told their name 50 times (I spent a good 2 months forgetting someone's name at work but thankfully we have name tags). I just can't remember some times; (today I ran across a friend I socialize with almost ever week, we haven't seen each other in about 3 months and I completely forgot who he was. I have to make educated guesses and play my words carefully until he gives me enough hints that I either remember or I apologize for the shitty memory I have)

That said when it comes to things that don't require memory, say mental computation, I can basically do it on a dime after a little bit of practice. This also leads to problems in conversations because I tend to read between the line too much; more so I speak in tangents without realizing. I've been told I haven't been trying to remember someone's name enough; and they're probably right in this regard, I could write someone's name down on a photo of them and say their name and look at that photo every few hours while I'm at home (but that's creepy and way too much work). Or maybe it's purely a mental issue; maybe I've just disconnected myself mentally and I don't remember names for some kind of contrived convenience. (My memory is also horrible for just remembering a lot of facts; one of the reasons I decided to drop from being a medical major -way too much stress in my life)

Yeah, I can relate. I have memory issues myself...especially when it comes to names for some reason.

A few days, at a game board night at my uni, I embarrassed myself when I had to count my total number of game pieces on the board (that satisfied an adjacency condition) because the board was so cluttered that I forgot which things I already counted, so I had to start over my counting like three times.

[LordCarlos]

Originally Posted by reuben_tate

Well, unless you're pursuing a higher level of education at a competitive educational institution (i.e. a high school student applying a college, or an undergrad apply to grad/med/law/etc school). Although GPA isn't the only thing they look at, it still holds some weight.

Even a bare 3.0 is acceptable to most institutions and employers if you have other nice credentials such as lots of sports, extracurriculars, classes on the side, maybe an cool internship or something impressive that you did.

The only thing that's really bad is under 3.0 because that's a huge cutoff line for a lot of employers and schools, and they auto-fail your application. The difference between 2.9 and 3.0 is a big deal.

[MarcusHawkins]

Originally Posted by LordCarlos

Even a bare 3.0 is acceptable to most institutions and employers if you have other nice credentials such as lots of sports, extracurriculars, classes on the side, maybe an cool internship or something impressive that you did.

The only thing that's really bad is under 3.0 because that's a huge cutoff line for a lot of employers and schools, and they auto-fail your application. The difference between 2.9 and 3.0 is a big deal.

I think 3.5 would be a more reasonable GPA to look at.
That's the mark for the Honor Roll at my school district, at least!

[reuben_tate]

Originally Posted by LordCarlos

The only thing that's really bad is under 3.0 because that's a huge cutoff line for a lot of employers and schools, and they auto-fail your application. The difference between 2.9 and 3.0 is a big deal.

Yeah, you have a good point here. This is more so along the lines of the idea that when humans see numbers, we put more focus on the significant digits and disregard less-significant digits, sometimes at the expense of not properly rounding in our mind (that's why you have the notion of psychological pricing so everything is $X.99 pretty much).

[FoJaR]

get over yourself and work.

once you get a job, it doesnt matter how smart you are, at least 50% of it will be mind numbing shit that someone has to do and that someone will be you. better get used to it now.

believe it or not, the ability to do mind numbing work efficiently is probably the most valuable skill you can learn, period.

[rayword45]

This is my exact problem right now. Liyerally, right this second, I should be finishing an ELA paper that would take 15 min tops, but instead I'm dancing to The Smiths and dancing in a futile attempt to cure these Valentines blues.

My affluent life sucks.

[FoJaR]

Originally Posted by FoJaR

get over yourself and work.

once you get a job, it doesnt matter how smart you are, at least 50% of it will be mind numbing shit that someone has to do and that someone will be you. better get used to it now.

believe it or not, the ability to do mind numbing work efficiently is probably the most valuable skill you can learn, period.

applicable repost

[FoJaR]

honestly for every minute i spend doing the interesting difficult things that look good when asking for raises, that look good on resumes etc, i spend probably three minutes doing stuff that just takes time, or stuff that just needs to be done and isn't particularly interesting.

the faster i get that stuff done, the more time i have to spend on things that maybe arent essential, but are interesting and reflect well on me. also, being able to crank out the necessary stuff looks good all on its own. depending on what you go into, you can make a good career just by being fast and efficient at what you do.

it doesnt matter how smart you think you are. you can have a 20 int, doesnt matter at all if your wis is in the gutter. any hard worker can be successful. take this +4 to wis post at face value and do some goddamn hard work.

[FoJaR]

Originally Posted by Arch0wl

places like a critical thinking section of a video game forum are going to self-select for people with ADHD tendencies, since it's very likely that posting here in itself is an act of distraction for you

places like a critical thinking section of a video game that breaks up levels into bite-sized, ADHD-friendly events is doubly going to do this

if you indeed have ADHD tendencies you need to understand what those tendencies actually are -- they're chronic understimulation; distraction is a side effect of understimulation.

instead of asking "what will motivate me?" ask "what stimulates me?" and "what don't I find stimulating?" -- try to be as specific as possible.

this is maybe the best post.