Long post... Sorry 'bout that! I am an incredibly unmotivated student. I don't find much meaning for studying, and i'll be heading for my final year of high school after this summer. Basically everything in school feels like it's completely useless and unnecessary: Why should i need these mathematical equations and why should I know the velocity that x object is falling at... Really? My unmotivation has finally started to really inflict some damage on my marks now though... Before, I could still manage %80s, and high %70s without the need to study or any work, but when it came to this 2nd semester, filled with classes that just manage to bore me even more than the others... and I simply just hate these ones (i.e. physics qX) I'm not even bothering, but this time my marks are hitting hard, and i'm on the verge of failure... My unmotivation to do anything and my failure to be able to see the meaning for getting outstanding marks is just not there... I don't see why I should bother, even if it means failing. Another thing that this may have caused is the inferiority that most people implicate into me. I am often talked down upon, even by my friends... I guess it could have possibly been because no matter the insult i take, I simply smile or laugh- (In reality, it sticks in my head). Even if it is just a joke. They start telling me how it would be impossible for me to even attain anything above %70 and such... And I am often given the predicted insult involving the "You are a dumb (x), and you can't do anything right." Kind of lowers me down a notch... Any advice or answers to motivating me into studies... and perhaps even the inferiority issue.
The way I look at it, even though these things aren't going to be of any use to you in real life (I busted my ass through two years of chemistry and haven't used a lick of it), you get two things out of it. The first of which is learning how to learn, and learning some sort of work ethic. How do you learn best? How do you learn things you aren't really that interested in? That is a valuable skill, because there's a lot of things you need to know that are going to be boring as hell to learn. The second of which is... it's just a hoop to jump through. You just gotta do it, gotta get used to a certain amount of bureaucratic kowtowing, unless you're happy working a deadbeat minimum wage job (and hell, some people may just have their priorities in other places, and are happy that way, which is fine!). Yes, it's boring. Unless you're extraordinarily lucky, you're going to have a job that either is boring or has boring parts you see as pointless. But that high school degree is like a basic life requirement - it'll be hard to find a decent paying job anywhere without one. Learning to just grit your teeth and do it, even though you don't want to? That's a life skill. I sincerely doubt anyone wants to do all of the stupid things you've gotta do to live in a structured society. Who enjoys doing taxes? Cleaning the gutters? Doing laundry? Agh, nobody! And nobody really enjoys schoolwork, either. They just do it because it Has To Be Done. Something that works for me is having a kind of carrot on a stick I'll dangle over my head, that I let myself do after I finish my work. Do you have a hobby? Try using that as a reward for finishing your work, and don't do it before! Sometimes I'll promise myself something like a new CD or a smoothie after I finish a huge project - nothing big, but enough to keep me focused on my work. It's worked okay for me so far. =) Good luck! It can be really hard to overcome, but you can do it! EDIT: As to the inferiority thing... Prove them wrong! SHOW them they're wrong. If they have low expectations of you, it won't be hard to surpass them. You can certainly tell them to stop making those comments, but if you show them they're wrong? That'll shut them up more effectively than laughing with them, or firing back at them.
GhostDog basically covered the points I wanted to bring up. The subjects are rarely more important than the process of thinking, of analyzing, of understanding problems and developing solutions or well-structured arguments. Also you learn how to work with peers, deal with direction and criticism from superiors, and persevere through challenge and hardship. Even in university, with classes likely to be targeted to your specific interest/major, you are still mostly learning how to think and process and produce a result. All these things will be very useful to you as you enter the career world.
Hi there! I think GhostDog has summed up most of the points. What I would add is maybe try also doing something different. Recently, to get/increase my motivation to work on things that I need to do, I started to do something I like doing beforehand. For example, I like photography. So before I sit down and study or do academic work, I go for a walk and take my camera with me. That has actually given me some motivation to do things because I did something I like which gives me energy to work on other things. Another thing I would suggest is maybe divide the amount of work that you need to get done. That in itself can help you to get some motivation to keep working on things even if the subject does not interest you that much. If you have an assignment, try to divide up so that it doesn't feel like that this is the only thing you are working on. When you complete one small part of an assignment take a break and then maybe start working on something else that you might like a bit more. While working on the subject that you don't like as much, part of you will look forward to the subject that you do like working on. As you accomplish things and get things done, even if it is just one part of a larger assignment can give you some energy and motivation to keep working on it. In addition, start setting some goals for yourself that you would like to achieve. Set some realistic goals that you can achieve. Maybe think about what is that you do want to get out of school? Do you want to go on to college or university? You have mentioned that you are going to be entering your final year, what is it that you want to get out of that year? A goal could be as simple as wanting to finish school successfully, perhaps with an average of B+. Having that goal, can help you in gaining some motivation because you are telling yourself, this is what I want to achieve. But in order to get this, I need to do the following.... Another goal could be proving your class mates/friends wrong. Remind yourself that 'I have done this before. I was able to get high marks. So I should be able to do it again.' That said, it will require more effort but having a goal in front of you for you to pursue could help you in one, getting motivation, and two achieving the marks that you once had and feel proud of? What might help, write the things down that you need to do and try to organize it so that you can work on a couple of things and have enough breaks in between for rest and relaxation. Also, think about and write out your goals. Hang up the list above your desk so that you see them everyday, and are reminded of your goals, even if it means having to take down a poster of a cute guy! It will take work and patience but if you start with a small goal and try 'experimenting' with different studying strategies to see what works best for you, you should be able to overcome some of your motivation problems. Try not to think too much about what others have said to you. You know that it is not so and you know what you can accomplish. Keep reminding yourself of that. I hope this helps a bit!
you sound exactly like me...like seriously, exactly like me. i never tried and always did well in school all the way through high school and never really cared about it. grades dont have to do with intelligence, its all about work ethic, sounds like your friends are brainwashed by the system. anyway, the actual material that your learning doesnt matter honestly. the point of school at that level is more to activate your brain and keep it working more than to actually get ahead. i mean, i took calculus and chemistry in high school knowing i would never use them. but its proven that the more active your brain is while your younger the more adaptable your brain becomes later in life, learning to work in high school sets up habits for university level learning and studying where the subject material actually does matter because it is stuff you will actually use in your life, and keeping your brain active when your young significantly decreases your chances of altzheimers disease. i still havent figured out how to work harder in all honesty, and thats starting to make life more stressful now that i'm in college and its more cutthroat then it used to be, but maybe knowing some of that will help you end up better off than me
Could just be too much stress and pressure and stuff, and i really can't find any point in As physics, which is why i'm not doing it at A level!!and don't let your friends put u down, i think you have proved you are not dumb just by taking physics and lasting this long and only now feeling unmotivated.and don't worry too much about school, in the end there is more to life than grades, and if u ever wanna talk then thats cool!
