You’re in the library. It feels like hours have passed, but you’ve only been sitting down for twenty minutes. You’ve successfully sneaked in a cup of coffee — not a small feat, albeit one that will hopefully set the tone for the rest of the study day. You open your laptop and start looking at the reading you were meant to do two weeks ago when, all of a sudden, you hear a cacophony of whispered conversations. But what can you do? You can’t be a Karen and tell them to shut up. You can’t move somewhere else — if people are talking in the Ussher, they’re most certainly talking in the Lecky, and the Boland is simply too depressing to be in on a warm, sunny day. Suddenly, you can’t hear anything but the whispered conversations around you. The chair is uncomfortable. You’re restless. Oh my god, why can’t you just study? We’ve all been there — somehow making it to the library, yet feeling like the world is conspiring to distract us. So, I tried out five TikTok study hacks to see if they actually work.
- Playing Rain Sounds/Brown Noise
I hate to admit it, but this one might actually work! If you need complete silence to study and find library noises distracting, playing background sounds like rain or brown noise can help drown out external distractions and improve focus. I found that it works well for a couple of hours, but after a while, it can become overstimulating.
- Putting Your Phone Far Away
We all know this has a 90% effectiveness rate, but we also hate doing it. After all, a 20-minute TikTok break after 10 minutes of successful studying feels so rewarding, right? However, I found that “far away” doesn’t necessarily mean placing my phone 15 feet away — it just needs to be somewhere not easily accessible. Putting it in my bag instead of keeping it next to me usually does the trick because, most of the time, I’m too lazy to reach for it every 10 minutes. That said, if I’m truly committed to procrastination, I’ll find ways to do it on my laptop.
- Watching Videos of People Studying
This one feels weird to do in the library since I’m already surrounded by people studying, but it has varying success rates at home. If you’re someone who thrives in a library setting but needs to work from home, study-with-me videos can somewhat replicate that environment. However, if you’re easily distracted by your phone, this hack might be a little too risky.
- The “Look Good, Feel Good” Approach
No one enjoys feeling like a slob, not even when knee-deep in finals prep. Taking a little time in the morning to look somewhat presentable not only boosts self-esteem but also provides a break from thinking about studying — which is great because breaks are productive! However, dressing up too much to sit in the library can be uncomfortable and might tempt you to leave for something more fun. I found the perfect balance is a cute sweatsuit or comfy pants with a colorful jumper. Dressing in all black, on the other hand, does nothing to help the existential dread brought on by endless evenings in the library.
- Using ChatGPT to Study
This might be the TikTok study hack with the highest success rate. The method is simple: upload your study notes into ChatGPT and have it generate questions to test your knowledge. I started with multiple-choice questions, then moved on to short-answer and essay questions. After using this technique for my finals, I can safely say that in my three years of college, I’ve never walked into an exam feeling so prepared. Known as the active recall method, this technique was traditionally done with flashcards or Anki, but ChatGPT makes it much less time-consuming while delivering the same benefits.
“While their effectiveness varies, ultimately, everyone has to find what works best for them”
Final Thoughts
There you have it — some of TikTok’s most popular study hacks, tried and tested! While their effectiveness varies, ultimately, everyone has to find what works best for them. And even if you’re unproductive, perhaps daydreaming about your next holiday or night out is what gets you through studying — and that’s okay. Each to their own!
