[hopealwayz]

I am enrolled in a Pharmacy Tech program which ends in May and upon completion, I'd be eligible to do an externship in a retail pharmacy and also receive a voucher that pays for me to take the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board exam.

I'm so far behind that I would have to study all day and evening everyday this week to get back on track.

But, I can't get motivated.

[David_Gatiss]

Waiting for motivation to come by is a trap you will do well to avoid. You can take charge of your motivation using these few tactics. Let me know how they work for you:

1) Strategic self dialoguing: What you do is you look at students who are less bright than you are who are doing better than you, or those who you feel like you must outrank (surely there are some people in your program you don't like ) and you tell yourself: "See, even this guy/girl is doing it, when I am times better than they are", or "If they can do it, I am going to feel like crap if I don't do it too, so let me get started and overtake them for good."
You get the idea.

2) You set daily goals for the amount of work you are going to get done every day. For the first few days, don't aim too high. When you have the first few successes in your grab, it is going to feel quite good just showing up and getting work done. You are creating steady results and it is a matter of taking small steps that add up to create big results rather than trying to get it all done at once. It is more motivating and much simpler than trying to aim for exhausting targets and failing at them.

3) Make a list of fellow students who are quite ahead of you in terms of their studies, their grades and overall performance in this program. The kind of people you feel intimidated in the company of knowing how ahead they are of you in terms of the distance they have covered and how much you are lacking and have been left behind.
What you are going to do is, you are going to meet them or talk to them at least once every day. Just keep in contact with them. Just being in their company will want to make you try harder and join their ranks, because you don't wish to feel like you have been left behind and feel "separated".

You will have to overcome the inital discomfort that you may feel, but it will offer some incredible motivation to get things done. I say, do it!

That will help. Get in touch with me if you need anything. I am happy to help.

[hopealwayz]

Thank you SO much!!!

[David_Gatiss]

Keep me updated how it works out, will you?

[(JD)]

Boy I hear ya! I love my language studies but I missed the first class (well I was there but my computer wouldn't let them hear me) and then was sick and missed the next 2 classes...now they're on holiday break... and STILL I'm having issues studying to catch up.

I try to tell myself I'll have that mindset soon and not stress over it... and I try to ALWAYS sit down on a particular day and look over the material, or tell myself I'll "Just" do page interpretation and not work the page... and usually once I'm into it, I enjoy it and all but finish!

I love the language I'm learning...

[Eclecticist]

I, too, have had problems studying all my life. I'm one of those people who can't be bothered unless there's some sort of terrifying stimulus involved (test is tomorrow, grades dropping, parents would disown me, etc.). Studying has always been unenjoyable, stressful, and even depressing to me, no matter how early I do so, or how much. And I can't take more than maybe an hour or so a day before literally pulling my hair out and scratching my face. Yet, in the end, somehow, it's worked ok for me. Of course, I don't recommend waiting till the last minute if you can avoid it.

I’ve always had problems doing things I feel like I’m being forced or pressured to do. Studying being one of those things. There doesn’t necessarily have to be someone hovering over my shoulder actually telling me to do things to make me feel resentful and depressed. Though that would probably make me want to turn to violence if that ever happened. If just the mere circumstance makes me feel like I have to study, I don’t want to do it. Because if it’s something I have to do, then I’m not acting of my own free will. It’s forced, and insincere. And I’m not necessarily doing it because I want to.

Though, arguably, we never do things of our own free will. We are slaves to our own bodily and mental needs. But I would like to at least keep the illusion that I actually have a choice. I often had to trick myself into thinking that I wasn’t studying just for fear of getting a bad grade or my peers looking down on me or something. I had to trick myself into thinking that I could actually live just fine even without going to college, and that I was doing this because I actually wanted to. But it hardly ever worked because deep down I knew I would be unhappy no matter what the circumstance.

Anyway. Sorry about the rant. I guess I don’t really have much advice. But you have my sympathy. Studying can be absolute hell.

[alicetailor]

You can take professional help. Tutoring can help you understand better.

[NYGiant]

Just focus on getting started, dont focus on try to catch up. Start with studying one page instead of a chapter. I think if you can just get started you will build your momentum and motivation.