How to study after working all day…

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  • #190984
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    How do you guys find motivation to study after working all day? My brain feels completely fried after working and I can’t seem to focus on anything. I am usually exhausted and have a hard time staying up late or waking up early. Help!

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 38 total)
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  • #637093
    Skynet
    Participant

    Two words : Expresso Shots

    AUD - 90
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    World Domination Plan

    Phase I : Pass CPA Exams - Complete
    Phase II : Megan Fox - In Progress
    Phase III : Megan Fox & Scarlett Johansson Lingerie Pillow Fight
    Phase IV : Form the new Charlie's Angels with Megan Fox, Scarlett Johansson, & Gal Gadot
    Phase V : TBD

    BEC : 78
    REG : 87
    FAR : 84
    AUD : 90

    World Domination Plan

    Phase I : Pass CPA Exams - Complete
    Phase II : Megan Fox - Initiated
    Phase III : Bring back 8-Tracks
    Phase IV : Megan Fox & Scarlett Johansson Lingerie Pillow Fight
    Phase V : TBA

    #637094
    Mamabear
    Member

    I won't lie. I got my best studying done on the weekends, but I could manage a couple of nights a week after work. You just have to tell yourself to do it, like a second job. It's only a short time so at least you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. If you have trouble after work then utilize your lunch break. That's 5 hours a week right there. Get the Audio and add your drives to and from work to get more time. My issues if I didn't study during the week was that I felt like I was starting over every weekend and not getting any where. Break your material up in to small parts so you feel like you are accomplishing something each night and aren't having to stay up late to get through one section.

    CPA Exam - Finally DONE (November 2014)
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    AUD (08/24/13) 65 (11/13/13) 85
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    REG (07/19/14) 69 (11/29/14) 87!!

    #637095
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Welcome to the club. I second @mamabear. The weekend if wear you gain your ground on chapters. What I like to do when my brain is fried after work is do review of chapters and not take on new material. Every little itsy bit helps.

    #637096
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I don't think there's any deep secret behind it. It basically boils down to needing to find the motivation and just doing it. There are some things that can help. For example, it might be best to go to the library after work so there are less distractions. But it's still going to come down to motivation and just pushing through.

    Personally, I don't go straight home and jump right in. I go home, have dinner, decompress for an hour or two and then start in. If I put in two hours or so on a work night, I'm pretty happy with it. Like Mamabear, I do my best studying on the weekends so I save my new lectures for then. That way I can block out large chunks of time for new material and spend the rest of the week working on those concepts.

    #637097
    marti1nd
    Member

    I always studied 1.5 hours before work and 1.5 hours after work. That way, after a long day of work, I didn't have 3 hours of studying to do. Two 1.5 hours are very manageable IMO.

    It sucks getting used to waking up early but your body will eventually get used to it after a couple of weeks.

    Also, if you can manage to get in 15 hours M-F, then you get to live a little on the weekends.

    BEC: 10/2013 71
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    REG: 05/2014 86
    FAR: 11/2014 81

    #637098
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Most days I leave the house after work, after the kids go to bed at 9pm and then I drive to Starbucks. I stay there until 11pm then get up at 5am and do it all over again.

    #637099
    Mamabear
    Member

    I have to get up at 5:30 just to do all of my normal morning stuff and get to work by 8:00 so studying before work was never an option. The lunches and at night were all I had. You can do it. You just have to push yourself to get it done. Caffeine, caffeine, caffeine. 🙂

    CPA Exam - Finally DONE (November 2014)
    BEC (08/10/13) 80
    AUD (08/24/13) 65 (11/13/13) 85
    FAR (04/12/14) 81
    REG (07/19/14) 69 (11/29/14) 87!!

    #637100
    Zuly
    Participant

    Not sure if you work in a cubicle or an office but have you tried staying at work to study? I typically wake up at 4am to study for 1-2 hours since I start at 7am, study during lunch and then typically stay after work and study at my desk or in a conference room for another 1.5 to 2 hours. If I study at my desk I put on some white noise on my iPhone and crank that up so I'm not interrupted by all the constant chatter since I get out at 3:30pm and everyone is still working. I tried studying at night but it was so hard especially since I have a two year old son and I like to spend that time with him. If the energy is still there right before bed I'll do flashcards or something like that.

    Like mamabear said, take advantage of some on the go study tools like NINJA audio, flash cards, notes…those are other ways to get in more study time. Wish NINJA had an MCQ app for our phones…Jeff, if you are reading…any chance of this happening in the near future? Pleeease, as my two year would say. 🙂

    FAR - (11/01/14) 71 (02/07/15) 79
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    #637101
    y_u_no_pass
    Participant

    I don't usually get much done after work except for Wednesdays. But as my test approaches, I end up studying most nights because I am motivated to get it done. If you are a procrastinator, I suggest to play to your strengths. Make it feel like you urgently need to study.

    Florida CPA!
    Took final exam 2/25/15.
    Sent in Application 3/12/15.
    Issued License 3/20/15.
    Used CPA Excel solely for all exams.

    #637102
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I studied on my hour lunch break at work and at night. I work 9-5 but did all my prep meals in the morning so I'd have enough to eat all day and spend time with my dog (I hated neglected my pup to study). I started studying between 6-7 when I got home after eating a good dinner and would study 2-3 hrs at night. So with my hour at lunch and 2-3 hrs after work I got in about 3-4 hrs a night. Mind you I have no kids – just a needy boyfriend and dog 🙂 It was my last chance to pass or else I would lose credit for BEC. Once you're in a routine no one can break you.

    #637103
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Oh and I drank lots of coffee and even took my ‘preworkout' to study. If anyone is a gym person here, they will know what preworkout is 🙂

    #637104
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    For REG this worked for me.

    Get up and do it before work. I guess it doesn't matter when you do it as long as you put in the time, but it seems there are way to many things to do that are much more interesting than reading about when title and risk of loss pass at 5pm than there is at 5am. Only thing to do in the morning is crush some moons over my hammy.

    Work week, up at 4:30

    Start at 5am til work starts

    1. MCQ's from prior days reading in study mode. Flag ones I got wrong and read all explanations (even the ones I got correct).

    2. Watch lecture and reread if there were any large holes in MCQ.

    3. MCQ's in exam mode.

    4. If I failed, went to gym or Denny's (continually hammering the same concept with failure seemed to get me stuck)

    5. 30 minutes of MCQ at lunch if I passed. If I failed, reread (it'll be a fresh start)

    6. 30 minutes of reading after work for tomorrows lesson.

    from prior days readings.

    7. Do whatever I wanted to when I got home guilt free

    8. Bed by 8

    Weekends

    2-4 hours on Saturday working MCQ's from all lessons in week. If successful, I got a head start on next week.

    Sunday – Do what I want (except the two weeks before exam)

    This may not work for you. The benefit in my eyes was that I could have dinner with my wife in the evening guilt free. Just a little sleep sacrifice sometimes, but all worth it when you get your exam score.

    #637105
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Hah! Nice. Preworkout before a study session. Not sure I could sit still.

    #637106
    OnMyWay732
    Participant

    Think about when people ask what you do, you say “I'm a CPA”…then you do what you need to in order to get to that point. Sacrifice what you must. Besides family…and health.

    AUD - July 2014 - 76
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    FAR - November 2014 - 78
    BEC - January 2015 - 81

    DONE!!!!

    Used Becker online. Who needs a text when you can burn your eyes out staring at the screen for months on end?

    "Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't how hard you're hit; it's about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"

    #637107
    ijustwant76
    Member

    On weekends, I get up at 6AM – my normal get-up time for work. (Actually, it's an hour later, so it's almost like sleeping in, right?) I'm able to get AT LEAST three hours in this morning session. Since everyone else is sleeping in, I feel like I get something done and still get some quality time in with family. It also serves as a good break. Then, I'll get another session in the afternoon and maybe if I'm lucky, one in the evening.

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