coming from a straight-A student

We all want to be successful. We want to be successful in Finance, School and Life. I will help you become the version of yourself you have always dreamed of.

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Grades are essential in our modern-day society, and us students are compared by them. At the end of the day, we all want to be the person with good grades who are universally perceived as intelligent. That is why I will give you a 5-step guide to good grades. These are the steps that I follow every time I prepare for an exam or a test. I am now in my last year of school and a straight A-Student without “trying too much”. I swear by this routine, for it has only ever brought me good grades and way less stress than I have observed my classmates experience. Nevertheless, I want to say that studying is very personal and specific. The things that work for me might not work for you, but then again, it might bring you the same results that it has obtained me. Now, let’s get to the 5 steps!

• 1. Pay Attention in Class.

This might be a given for some of you, but it is a crucial step in getting good grades. I know from personal experience that sometimes you would rather be a passenger on the sinking Titanic than listen to one more boring word from your teacher, but think of it this way: Your teacher tells you everything you need to know for the exam. Every answer to every question will be hidden somewhere in their monologue. The key is to pay attention and understand what the teacher says and make notes. Make as many notes as possible.

• 2. Start Early.

Do yourself a favour and don’t start only a day before the exam. Give yourself some time to study, to understand what you’re learning and for your brain to absorb the information. I would recommend you start at least a week before the exam. If it’s not a standard exam, but something more substantial, consider starting 2 weeks, or even a month in advance . The earlier you start, the less you have to do in one day.

• 3. Create a “Study Sheet”.

This is the heart of my method, the most crucial step. You should write down everything you need to know for the exam on paper or digitally. You should already have a list of the topics that will be covered in the exam. Use this list to structure your study sheet and write down everything you’ve discussed in class about these topics. Your notes will be handy for this step! Sometimes, it might seem like you’re doing nothing more than copying your notes, and that’s perfectly okay. Copying your notes will make it easier to remember them in the exam. Feel free to check the internet for extra information about your topics and add those to your notes. Try not to write coherent texts, but rather bullet points.This is the most complex and time-consuming step, and when you’re done with it, you should have multiple sheets of paper with everything you need to know for the exam.

• 4. Study With Your “Study Sheets”.

The hard part is done; now comes the easier part. You should read through your study sheets over and over again until, at one point, you’ll find yourself knowing parts of the sheets or even the whole sheet by heart. Do this every day until the day of the exam.

• 5. Relax.

If you started early enough, you can allow yourself many breaks. Especially on the day before the exam, take breaks and don’t. study. at. night. Getting enough sleep is crucial. You’ll have to be well-rested to access your full knowledge about the topics.

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Don’t forget that at the end of the day, it’s just one exam. In 5 years, you probably won’t even remember writing that exam, let alone the grade you received, so try not to stress about it too much. I’m sure you’re going to do fine!
And also, I have started to create study sheets for every exam in grade 8, and I kept them all. Now that I am in my last year of school, I can still use them since many topics are repeated in the higher grades. So I would suggest you not throw them away.

Good luck with your next exam! I believe in you.