Helpful Tips on how to Study Alone

When I graduated with honors, almost all of my relatives were surprised. It is not that I’m not smart. Actually, I’m above average when it comes to IQ. But what surprised people and even my parents the most is that they didn’t even saw me studying during my whole college life.

Actually, I don’t know if there are people like me, but I like the quiet solitude of studying alone. In fact, I can’t study when I’m with other people. That’s why I hate group study. So this article will list all the tips I can give if you also want to try to study secretly.

Here are tips on how do you study secretly:

  1. Lock Up Your Room
  2. Go to a Library
  3. Study Early in the Morning
  4. Study at Night
  5. Remove Any Distractions
  6. Go to School Early
  7. Find a Place in School With Few People
  8. Dine in Places With Few People
  9. Rent or Book a Place

Actually, I don’t know if there are people like me who don’t really like letting others know that I study a lot. It seems like it’s more fun to show that I passed exams without even studying. When I graduated with honors, it’s actually fun seeing all my relatives surprised. It is also very fun to see my classmates wonder why I’m not studying and I get good grades. In fact, they are always surprised that I’m not studying anything before exams.

Little did they know that what is really happening is that I’m just studying alone. I don’t like studying with others because it just feels like I’m not as concentrated as when I am studying alone. It’s not a matter of I just want to be alone, it’s a matter of being effective and productive when studying. But to be honest, studying alone is very easy. Here’s how.

You can study alone by looking for two things. These two things are the need to look for a perfect time or a perfect place to study alone. This means that you can study when others are not around such as when they are sleeping, or studying in a locked room.

That is the summary of how you can study alone. The next tips are actual examples of the things I did to study alone for 4 years when I was in college. Feel free to find some inspiration from these examples and find the one that suits you the best.

1. Lock Up Your Room

Locking up your room is one of the perfect strategies to study alone. This works by isolating your place from everybody else which means that they won’t be there to bother your study session. This method is very effective if you want some quiet time to focus on studying.

I am one of the lucky students who had the luxury to study in a room alone.

Thus, I have the capacity to lock my room up. This is perfect for me since I was able to study without anyone disturbing me.

Furthermore, you can study anytime using this method since you will just be alone.

Take note that if you choose this method, you can still be distracted by other things such as notifications from your phone. Thus, you need to take note of this.

If this doesn’t bother you, then you can just use this method.

Once you’re already alone, you can easily focus on your studies and check for yourself the incredible increase in your efficiency in studying.

In fact, if you’re up for a challenge, then I recommend you to try studying alone for a long period alone. Make sure to bring some snacks to get ready. The results will just be phenomenal. But before that, I want you to check out this article where I explained the risk and benefits of studying for 7 to 8 hours every day to get you prepared: Is it ok to study 7-8 hours a day?

2. Go to a Library

Going to the library is an effective method if you want to study alone. The reason is that libraries are usually quiet and people there are also focused on studying. This means that they won’t even care about bothering you. However, this method has some drawbacks.

The library is my emergency studying place when I was in college. For example, I’m still not ready for an exam, I will go to the library to study.

The reason for this is that the people in the library are also studying. This means that most will be focused on studying so they won’t care if you are also there.

It is also usually quiet in the library since that’s one of the main rules. So, it would be easy to concentrate on studying.

However, I said that it is my emergency studying place. The reason for that is that it has a major drawback.

One of the drawbacks is when you meet somebody you know. They might start chatting with you losing your concentration on studying.

Another is that there might be times where there is someone noisy in the library. Thus, the focus I have when I’m studying in the library is not the same as studying with my doors locked.

However. this is a good start if you want to get the feel of studying alone.

I know you have another question which is what if you don’t have a place to be alone like some have. Then it will be solved in the next section.

3. Study Early in the Morning

Studying early in the morning is one of the techniques you can do to study alone. This method works by studying when others are still not awake. This gives you some time to study alone and in focus making you efficient in your studies.

This is one of my best techniques when it comes to studying alone.

Studying early means that everyone is still asleep thus, you have a few hours to enjoy studying in absolute focus.

Plus, notifications such as chatting apps or social media is usually inactive at this hour.

Thus, studying alone at this time is perfect if you want to. In fact, my routine before is to wake up at 4 AM, go to school at 5:30 AM, and study until my first class which is 7 AM.

There are two choices when it comes to studying early in the morning.

If you want to study normally and to study like most students who wake up early would, then I recommend you to start studying at 4 AM. I have a guide giving guidelines on what to take note of when you choose this route here: Is studying at 4 AM good?

However, if you are up for a challenge, then there are some who prefers starting to study at 3 AM, this gives additional hour in their study session. Of course, with the increase in study session time, there are things to look out for. Thus, I’ve prepared this article: Is studying at 3 AM good?

This method is perfect if you are a morning person and if you don’t have the luxury of having a space for yourself. But this method will be hard for night owls.

Thus, I also have a tip for night owls.

4. Study at Night

Studying at night is a perfect method to study alone especially if you are a night owl. At this time, most people are most likely already asleep thus, it would be easier to study alone and to be focused on your studies. This will result in a very productive study session.

Studying early in the morning is perfectly good for morning people like me. However, I know that there are many people who are night owls.

When a night owl does the 4 AM study routine, it could be very hard for them because they are not designed to be morning larks.

For a night owl, it is also good to try doing a nighttime study.

An easy test to know if you are a night owl is to check your attention and focus in the day or night. If you think that you are more focused on studying during the night compared to daytime, then you might be a night owl.

But take note that this is not the best way to know if you are a night owl. It is just a simple quick test. Furthermore, this method of testing can be affected by a lot of things such as a messed up body clock.

But, if you think you can focus well on the night compared to the day, then study at night when others are asleep. Basically, if it works, then it’s good.

However, I don’t recommend studying all night because it is very counterproductive when we’re talking about the results of your study session. I have an article discussing how detrimental an all-nighter can be to your scores. Here is the link if you are interested: Is It Okay to Study all Night?

5. Remove Any Distractions

Removing any form of distraction is a good way to study alone. The reason for this is because, with our technology, it is really hard to study alone anymore. The chatting apps and ringing notifications make it hard for us to study effectively since we can easily socialize with others.

This might’ve been one of the hardest things for me to do when I was studying.

Distractions are now everywhere. It is hard to study alone without anyone talking to us.

For example, even if you are locking your room, anyone can disturb you when studying by sending you a message or a simple emoticon or gif.

Thus, being alone right now is relatively harder than before.

Studying alone doesn’t only mean that you are just alone physically, it also means that there are no social apps available to you.

That’s why studying early in the morning or late at night really works. The reason is that most people are asleep so they won’t bother you while studying.

In fact, in one of my article where I explained how to be effective in your studies, I said that one of the productivity destroyers when it comes to studying are distractions. The reason is that it fragments our attention a lot.

If you’re interested in knowing how to be a hardworking and effective student, then I recommend you check out this article: How to Be a Hardworking Student

6. Go to School Early

Going to school early is one of the tips you can follow when we are talking about studying alone and effectively. The simple reason for this is that going to school early means that others are still not around. This can make time for you to study alone.

When I was studying, my routine was to wake up at 4 AM, reach school at 5:30 AM. After that, I will study until my first class at 7 AM.

It was very effective since my other classmates are still not around.

Plus, at 5:30 AM most students are still in their dormitory or home which is a perfect time to study for people like me who prefers studying alone.

Another bonus I would like to add is that since I am an introvert, it can be a very quiet time to enjoy the peaceful environment before going to class.

7. Find a Place in School With Few People

Finding a place in school with few people is a method I’ve used when I need to study alone. This works very well if you don’t have privacy in your room since there are places in your school where there are only a few to no people around. That is also perfect for studying in secret.

Let me now repeat my routine since there is a missing puzzle in that.

My study routine was to wake up at 4 AM, reach school at 5:30 AM, then go to the school garden to study.

The reason why I go to the school garden is that it is peacefully quiet with no people. Plus, that place has some tables and chairs I can use to sit and study.

Because of that, I was able to study really effectively when I was in college with no one seeing me study.

In your school, you can usually find places like this if you’re looking for them.

So, you can find a place in school with few to no people. It is especially helpful if you find happiness in quiet places. It was a way for me to recharge before classes.

8. Dine in Places With Few People

Dining in quiet places with few people is one of the things people who like to secretly study do. This method works because there are places where you can buy a few drinks or a meal then you can enjoy the quiet ambiance while studying in secret.

Some people prefer having coffee in a coffee shop to study there in secret.

This also works well as you can have a seat reserved for you in an air-conditioned area when studying.

In fact, there are coffee or tea shops specifically made for students where you can just buy a drink then study in your sit quietly.

However, there is a downside to this. This works well if you have spare cash.

These drinks are usually expensive since you’re also buying the ambiance of the area. Plus, they know that you’ll stay for long so they charge more than other coffee or tea shops.

However, this is one of the methods that others do. If you have no choice, then you can use this method and so you can enjoy a cup of beverage while studying alone.

9. Rent or Book a Place

You can also rent or book a place for studying alone. There are places where you can rent a room with wifi, a projector, and many more tools for you to study alone or in groups. This is your last choice because this method can get very expensive.

One such example although not related to studying is J.K. Rowling. The author of Harry Potter.

When she is working on her books, she books a hotel so she can be alone and focus on her work. What happened is that she made one of the most famous book series of all time. Harry Potter.

When I was a student, there are some room rentals you can get in 1 day. It comes with a whiteboard, markers, wifi, and many more tools to help you study.

I never booked one alone since I think it’s very expensive for a student like me. But others did.

I also tried that when I was trying to group study with my friends.

But it didn’t work since I can’t focus on a group study session.

What I saw is amazing. The rooms are airconditioned, it is quiet, clean, and has almost all the tools you need to study.

Thus, if you really prefer studying alone, then this might be your last choice since you can rent these rooms for a whole day or few hours

As you can see, studying in secret is a very hard thing to do. But it is very rewarding since there is an absolute increase in your efficiency when studying. The tips I gave were the things I know worked for me and for others.

Only the things I love.

ongjason.com is reader-supported. When you buy through links on the site, I earn an affiliate commission.

If you’re following me, you’ll know that I believe it is essential to have some tools, whether it’s for personal development or lifestyle in general.

So, here are the things I love.

YouTube

If you want to learn things for free, I recommend watching my YouTube Channel. Click the Button Below to go straight into my Channel. 🙂

Okay, let me first explain my Channel.

I believe that I really can’t explain everything too well on my blog. That’s why I created a YouTube Channel so I can easily explain a lot of things. Plus, I believe that Video Sharing is the future.

Recommended Books

The next thing is books. Books are, for me, one of the cheapest ways to get invaluable information. We can learn personal development, finance, career, relationships, and many more from books.

Here, I will be listing my favorite books in different categories.

  1. For Beginners7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey – Personal development has a lot of concepts and ideas to learn. Thus it can be really hard for beginners to know where to start. Thus, I recommend this book since all the basic concepts of personal development are here(except finance, check what I recommended for that)
  2. ProductivityThe One Thing by Gary Keller – This book teaches us the power of focusing on one thing which is the ultimate source of productivity. The concepts taught are what I am using to constantly publish YouTube videos while maintaining this website.
  3. Busy?Make Time by Jack Knapp – This book teaches us how to make time for the things we love. The concept is really simple but I think that makes it a book worth reading.
  4. HealthLifespan by Dr.Sinclair – This Book teaches about the latest scientific research on lifespan. In his book, he has shared numerous things he is doing to slow down his aging process. This can be as easy as eating less which he recommends.
  5. FinanceThe Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason – Perhaps one of the first books I’ve read about Finance, this book for me is the best if we are talking about learning basic finance such as basic saving and investing. The concepts are very simple but effective.

Audiobooks

Take this advice as a grain of salt.

I don’t recommend buying Audiobooks one by one. I mean, audiobooks can be quickly finished by listening while working out or doing some mindless tasks.

So here is to save you some money. Just go for a monthly subscription to Audible. I believe that you will save a lot of money with that plus, they usually give freebies to anyone starting.

My Audiobook Recommendation will always be the same as my book recommendations, but I personally like The 5 Second Rule by Mel Robbins. I like how she is so casual while reading her book.

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