E

Ne?
(
yM
 ContentS
Foreword
viii
Acknowledgements

Introduction

1
Simple
Chapter 1 Making Studying
10
Chapter 2 Time Constraints

Understanding 18
Chapter 3 It is All About

Success?
29
Chapter 4 Diligence
=

Maximum Yield
40
Chapter 5 Getting
48
Chapter 6 Handling the Specifics

Mindset 60
Chapter 7 The Right

Approaches 79
Chapter 8 The Appropriate

Relaxation 94
Chapter 9 Rest &

Time Management
104
Chapter 10
116
Final Thoughts

120
References
 Why Study Smart?
To this special group of people: Adam Khoo, Stuart
Tan, Conrad Alvin Lim, Gary Lee, Merry & Alva, Rita
Emmett, Khoo Siew Chiow, Elim Chew, Cayden Chang.
Sean Seah and Johnson Lee. Continue to influence and
inspire!
To my students, past and present. Continue to
strive for greater success. Carpe diem.
Last but not least, to all those who have touched my life in
one way or another.
You are somewhere in my subconscious mind and
definitely notforgotten in my heart.

ix
 Introduction

teenager does in
Going toschool is something every many
countries. While most teenagers enjoy the companu .
and
interaction in school as well as the sharin f knowledg
and information, the main gripe among them would be the
amount of homework and tests they haveto
do and
prepare for.

Yes, life is not a bed of roses. It is perfectly

logical
and reasonable for
teenagers to complain about life and
about school, especially those who are overwhelmed by
school work. However,
why is it that some teenagers are
able to cope so well
with their school work and
come up
top in their studies? Are
they geniuses that we mere
mortals are unable
do they put in tounderstand and reach their level? Or
hundreds of hours in their
expense of their social lives? studies at the
Actually, the answer to all
simple. These students are these questions is very
they have a system in able to perform so well e
students do not leave the way they study.
becau
it to study. Successi
Successful
have. Instead,
they are aware
chance to achieve what hey
of their own u
strengths
strengths and
an

X
 Why Study Smart?

TAG
Life is not a bed of roses.
weaknesses, and work on them to fully maximise their
potential and strengths and minimise their inabilities andd
weakne_ses. In other words, they do not always need to
study hardbut they definitely know how to study smart.
That is where this book in.
comes Using the
acronym Study Smart, we will examine whythere is a need
to study smart and
notjust study hard. We will also explore
the different mindsets and
methods of teenagers who
succeed academically. Such
teenagers may not be the
brightest but they adopt strategies that make
successful in them
their studies. The
us to look at acronym Study will allow
the reasons and
study smart is so
rationale for why the need to
in. We will
important in this fast-paced world we live
then look at the
where tips and Smart method of
advice will be studying
in a smart
manner.
provided to allow us to study
xi
 Introduction

this journey of
Before we
e m b a r k on
uncovern
art, here
of studying smart, herotis
une

the need to
and thesecret a story
towhetyourappetite.

There was once

an intelligent ant which di4
did thing .

way. Whifle
the rest of the ants wete
ans

unconventional
in an
he
ulders,
carrying
their load on their shoul
creative ways to make his work less tiring. For example
was
thinking d
when the ants were
tasked to carry round pebbles tobuie
saw that because of the shapeofto
something, the ant
instead of being carried. So
pebbles, they could be pushed
and puffing from the
while the rest of the ants were huffing
the pebbles, the clever ant wa
tiring work of carrying
almost effortlessly He
taking it easy, pushing the pebble
times!
could even let his feet do the work at

The intelligent ant.

industrious

As we all know, ants are extremely rais

n
insects that are always fora
working and re
preparing

day. Although they are hardworking, they do not

g, they
and think about whether the way they areworking
hit
h a r d

most efficient. In other words, they are working

e
wor
are they working smart?

xii
 Why Study Smart?
So let's be the intelligent ant and come up with ways

to make our lives and studies

more purposeful.
Let's work and study smart!
 Chapter 1

"When life gets complicated, itis

the simple things that stand out."

STUDY SMART
Making Studying Simple

Meaning of Simple: Not

complicat
or elaborate. 9
 Why Study Smart?
Making Studying Simple
"Why make studying simple?"
A simple and straightforward answer to this
question would be "Whynot?"
Every day, we are swamped with many things. For
some working adults, their lives will be an endless journey
ofaddressing work concerns and problems. For teenagers,
life will be filled with challenges such as
friendship issues
and relationship matters. Of course, school and
studies are
part and parcel of a teenager's life which he or shespends a
huge amount of time on. Therefore, it is only logical that
some things should be made
simpler so that the teenager
can better
manage them. One of such things that is within
control (most of the time at
least) is studies.

DEMANDS A demanding life. TAC

If
teenagers are aware of what constitutes studying
and are
able to cope with the demands of
studies, tests and
exams, then they will find that the
and not
is
process manageable
as'painful' as they had thought.
2
 Making Studying Simple
Life Can be Complicated

Lifeislike abox filled with agreatvariety

choices in our
fchocolates.
of chocolato
lives
jes and it
provided with many
and
are
entirely up to us to decide what we want to do withhou

lives.
Some people will
choose to lead a
simple life, being
contented with what
they have. Others will TAC
choose to live life to the fullest Chocolates, anyone?
by taking part in whatever activities that come their way
To the second group of
people, life can be busy but the
are able to take charge of it and make it
enjoyable.
The secret of this the
group of busy people
manner in which they
approach life. the wayinin which
whic the
simplify a complicated life. In a similar
vein, teenag
swamped with work on a daily basis. For some
this flood of work tee
owevera
simply overwhelms them. on
special group of teenagers is theirwork
able to manage
effectively and thus enjoy their
lives.
So while life a k e
it
can be
easier and complicated, we ca
meaningiul at the same time.
cated, we can

Is Studying Difficult?
Now this is not an is
m

easy question to answer a there

ready or fixed answer. For some
er
and
D g i
like
s

agers, studyin
teenagers,
a trek in a dense jungle where everything i s unclea

3
 Why Study Smart?
o them and they become lost amongst the trees and
bushes. For others, studying is a breeze and a stroll in the
ark. There is yet another group of teenagers who is
aught in between. For them, studying is a
manageable
ask. However, no matter how hard they try, their results
willbe average at best. The challenge for this group is not
o lose heart and to keep on
trying. But it can be
demoralising when the effort put in does not always
guarantee results.
Therefore, whatshould do is to work in a
we
way
hat can make studying simpler, yet effective and
burposeful. And one way is to look at and model how
tudents study. top

mAY
B o o

Lost.
THC
4
 Making Studying Simple

Mean 'Easy'
Does Not
'Simple'
think that
when someth thing ora
most people,
Some, if not This is a
m i s c o n c e p t i o n an
as
is easy.
process is simple, it example, frying
an eon
'easy.'For
not
mean
'simple'does over a hot frying pan
crack an egg
seems simple. You just to try an egg
be? But it is not easy
that
How difficult can bottom if you
end burned at the
will up
perfectly. The egg the egg is
fire well. And flipping
the oil and
cannot control
people think that simplifying
not as easy as it seems. Many
is simple process. They simply chuck out things
things a
that are not
do not need or take out processes
they
that!
important. But the truth is far from

EASY

SIM
Simple' =/ 'Easy' TAG
When we simplify things, we need
to weigh the pros
and cons of each step, and this
takes up time and
Just imagine the hours energy.
put to
in pore through
summarise what is everything to
important. The easier way is just too
leave everything as it is and
be effective? study everything but will that
So, we must
develop a system to help us with
studies. This system should our
be
something that is relatively
5
simple so as to cut down on unnecessary (and
unproductive) steps and procedures.

Simplifying as a Way of Life

In one of my books, Why Simplify?, the idea of simplifying
our lives is introduced and
encouraged. In this often hectic wdten and ist tas by
Teo Aik Cher
and fast-paced world we live in, it
is wise to consider making our lives
simple by taking note of how we do
things. We can then come up with
a plan or system to make things WHY
more manageable, and thus not be SIMPLIFY?
Guide0 aLfe
overwhelimed by all the tasks we A Teenagers

Sirrple and
Purposetul

need to complete each day.

So Who Should Simplify the Studying Method?

Ihe easy answer to this is EVERYONE!
Just think about it. A simplified studying method
wil free up more time for us to be involved in other
pursuits
in life.

As a guide, here are three questions to consider as

towhetheryou should simplify the way you study.
.Do you feel so overwhelmed by the content ofeach
subject that you do notknow where to start?
2. Do you spend endless hours studying, yet are still

clueless about the subject?

6
 Making Studying Simple
more notes tha than what Wa
3. Do you end up making
lesson?
given to you for the

If your answers to the above

questions are all 'yes,' you
should definitely simplify
the way you study. Even
if you answered 'yes' to
only one of the questions,
it is wise to seriously
consider simplifying your
approach to studying.
Question 1 shows that
we are often swamped
by the amount of
material for each subject.
And it does not help that TA
we have Lift me up!
more than one
subject to study when we are in school. So this rn is
notnew and it is conce
something that most teens face.
Question 2 reveals that the hours
translate into spent studying do "not
something meaningful if a studying
technique is not used. This is
that is awaste of time. basically doing someth
As for
Question 3, it is a
common situation w en
students end up making more notes than
teen is able to necessary.
understand and learn from
making more
notes, then it is not a
fruitless task, but surely there must
7
be a simpler way to learn than to make more notes than
what was already provided. When we have an effective
and simplified system of studying, we should be making
less notes, not more!

A Complicated Approach
Roger was a conscientious student who did his work
diligently. He was always ready to embrace new study
methods to improve his grades. Within a short period of
time, he was experimenting with various techniques, such
as mind mapping, mnemonics and other problem-solving
instruments.

WHICH METHoD

A complicated approach
TAC
8
 Making Studying Simple
He would blindly apply what he learned and
ver
often, this complicated his process of studying. Whis
Roger should be applauded for his attempts to improve his
studying methods, the way he went about applying whe
he learned was questionable.
Now, this is definitely not
what the different methods aim to
achieve. However, in
our eagerness to embrace
methods to help us, we could
end up complicating things.

To Sum UUp
Simplifying the way we study is the first
smart. step to studying

KEEP IT SMPLE
SIMPLE !

9
TAC
 Chapter 2

"We are all surrounded by time. Why

is it that some people have more time
than others?"
- Anonymous

STUDY SMART
ime Constraints

"Meaning of Time Constraints: The amount of

"
time available to complete a task.
 Time Constraints
No Time to Study?
I just don't have the time!"
"I was just too busy with other things."
"No time! No time! No time!"

?
. .

These are all familiar TAC

we cannot reasons or wher

complete certain tasksexcuses that we use thal

while we all have 24 e. Why
on time. Why isis it
have lots of time hours a
day, there are thosese who ca
and there
struggling to find more time? are those who arer e constantlntly
co
This is the
paradox of time.
The Riddle
A wise old man
once asked this
disciples. question to h
11
 "In this world,
what is the thing
that is the longest yet
the shortest; the
fastest yet the slowest;
the one thing that
everybody takes for
granted yet will only
cherish when they
don't have it; and
without it, nothing
can be done?"

His students
TAC paused and
Time is... thought for
awhile. Finally one of his brightest students replied.
It is time. It is the longest thing in the world because
t is vast and endless. It is also the shortest thing because

many of the projects undertaken by man can never be

completed on time. For the man who is waiting, time is the
siowest; but for the man who is having fun, time is the

astest.When we don't need time, we take it for granted but

wnen we are running short of it, we will cherish every bit of
. And we need time to complete whatever we set out t

accomplish."
naeed, time presents to us a paradox: time is never
enough for some people whereas others will always have
time on
ne on their hands. Have you ever seen people rushing

12
 Time Constraints
for time? They seem to be always at the mercy of tin
busying themselves silly. On the other hand, there
time
are
those who seem to be able to control time and they are
unfazed by what is happening. Everything seems neat and
organised, and it seems like there is time for everything for
this group of people.
So are youa 'time chaser' or a 'time manager?

Too Much on the Plate

Have you ever been to a
buffet? Are you amazed at how
some people can just pile their
plates high with food and
consume everything? Well, I
am amazed by it all the time!
While eating at a
buffet is enjoyable
(provided we do not stuff
ourselves silly), sometimes
our lives are just filled with
too many activities and
events (just like how the
buffet plate can be filled).
So in order not to have
'indigestion' of any sort, we

need to take stock of whatis Buffet time! TAC

in our lives. If we do
going on

overwhelmed.
not, we will be
13
86,400
The number 86,400 is quite big. Do you have any idea
uhat 86,400 represents? (No, it has nothing to do with the
to do with time.)
lottery. Hint: It has

Well, it actually is the number of seconds ina day. So there

are 86,400 seconds in a day,
1,440 minutes in
hours in a day. To some
a day and 24
4D?
people, 24 hours is a long
time. To others, a day C
flies past before they
even realise it. g6400
If we do not find
Some means to
manage our time, it will
just become like sand
slipping through our fingers.. TAC
What is 86400?
And time that is lost can neverbe
regained. We can try to make up for lost time but try as we
might, the actual time that was lost will never return. We
can do two things: try to do more and cherish whatever

existing time that is presented to us.

Time and Tide Waits for No One

According to Isaac Newton, the famous scientist who
iscovered the law of gravity, time is like a flowing river
moving at a constant speed, never deviating and never

14
 Time Constraints

Newton, time is like

changing. So to
in one
an arrow, always going
direction.
great
However, another
said that
scientist, Albert Einstein,
to
time is not constant. According
him, time can speed up or slow
down around stars and

galaxies.
Regardless of what
these scientists tell us, one
thing is for sure. And that is
time and tide wait for no
one, and that it moves in
only one way-towards
the future. Hence, it is
entirely up to us to use it
well. When we are able to Isaac Newton TAC
manage our time, we will be able to
manage our future.
Is thereenough time for everything we want to do:

The Wish
A man was so
swamped by all his work that he was
desperate to find a
way to solve this
that some genie or fairy problem. He wishedd
would
wish. One day, he was visited come and grant him his
by a fairy who granted hima
wish.
Delighted, he told the fairy his wish.
 Why Study Smart?
o o P S .

A wish came true. TAC

"I wish that I can cope with all the work that is
overwhelming me."
The fairy thought for awhile and with a swish of
her
wand, she granted the man his wish. The man
finally
thought that his troubles were gone but instead, he was
shocked to find that he had been
transformed into an
OCTOPUS!
Why have I become an OCTOPUS?" screamed
the man.

Well, you wanted to be able to cope with all the

OTk that you have right? Soldecided that you need more
limbs toto helpyou
umbs help yo with the work... and an octopus has eight
limbs! I'm sure you can handle
your work now!" replied the
16
 Time Constraints
To Sum Up
We need to study smart because we only have that m
time in a day. muc

TAC

17
 Chapter 3

If you see something, you may not

understand it. If you understan something,
you will see it very clearly."
- Anonymous

STUDY SMART
wwww

It is All About Understanding

****
****

6Meaning of Understanding: A mental process

of comprehending issues. 7 7