10 Practical Ways to Become a Successful Student.

The dream of every student at school is to excel and have excellent grades though grades aren’t everything. It sometimes seems as if successful students are born smart and they are bound to get excellent grades no matter what happens to them, though others are born as natural intellects, they are just a few. Many students develop the habit of becoming successful. In this article, myshsrank brings you some practical ways and habits to become a successful student.

1. Get organized and make a plan. Making a plan for what you're going to do and when you're going to do it will make sure you're always ahead of the curve - literally.

 Planning is very essential if you want to become a smart student, this involves knowing what to do and outlining the steps to achieve them, just as Benjamin Franklin said “if you fail to plan, you are planning to fail."

Write down your rough weekly schedule based on your recurring commitments, e.g. school, extracurricular activities, family and social events, religious activities. Then block out regular time each day for homework, assignments, and studying.

2. Cultivate the belief that intelligence isn’t a fixed trait. Research has proven that students who believe that they can become smarter actually do become smarter. Belief is that powerful. In other words, intelligence is a trait that you can develop over time. Don’t ever label yourself as “dumb” or “not academically inclined”, because with the right mindset you can become more intelligent.

3. Study. This one might be obvious, but did you know that there's a right and a wrong way to study? Don’t wait till exams time before you try to absorb every material and “pour” it on the exams day. This might seem simple but can fail you, since you may be forced to learn everything in a day this can be overwhelming and a daunting task.

Review your material and start preparing several days ahead of time, in small chunks, and in different manners (for example, break every big task (subjects) down into smaller tasks). In other words, don't cram. You can also use memory techniques (acronyms, visualizations, abbreviations, etc.) to facilitate your learning.  Join effective study groups and contribute to group discussions.   

4. Take notes. Taking notes will not only keep you more engaged during class but will also help you narrow down what you need to study when exam time rolls around. It's much easier to reread your notes than to reread your entire textbook!

5. Challenge yourself. Taking it one step further, don’t just do the assigned homework. Challenge yourself and do extra questions that require deep thinking. Look for online resources. Learn information that’s outside the syllabus.