Being a student is probably one of the most stressful periods in a person’s life. Students simply have to juggle many things at once. Excelling in their studies is the number one priority, which requires discipline, dedication and proper time management skills. Then they also need to nurture their social life, some have to work in addition to being students, while others struggle with time management. But, there’s also peer pressure. But in general, most students have the fear of failure because there’s a lot at stake. If you’re a student who wants to overcome your limiting beliefs and overcome your struggles, let’s see which areas you should focus on to overcome this fear.
Failure is a part of life
Many people internalise failure and believe that if they’ve failed, it must mean they are worthless. However, that is simply not true because failure is a part of life. It doesn’t define your worth, it’s simply part of the process. It’s the perspective on failure that makes it something bad and something people fear. Instead of fearing failure, start by changing how you view failure.
It’s a lesson
Another way to overcome the fear of failure is to view it as a lesson. So, you failed an exam. It happens. First, let’s take responsibility for the results. Did you study hard enough or were you too lazy? Did you do all the work before the exam? Have you written all the papers, and taken all the tests before the final exam? All of these questions will help you define what went wrong during the studying process. You should take responsibility for the results and identify areas of improvement. So, a failed exam is always a lesson because you can work on your learning process and time invested to change the outcome to your advantage.
Lack of preparation can be the cause of fear
Let’s be honest, we’ve all been there. We’ve all underestimated the time we need to prepare for an exam. When we feel that we haven’t spent enough time on preparation, we increase the fear of failure, simply because we know we’re not ready for that exam.
So, the key here is to change your behaviour and do the required work. You can also ask for help if you need to pass an exam like GAMSAT. You can take the stress out of the equation by signing up for GAMSAT preparation. When you have to pass a tough exam, like this or any other one, you can only benefit from proper guidance and assistance. Don’t let fear overcome you, just because you lack the right preparation. Instead, find the right help and prepare to pass the exam.
Work on your time management skills
The fear of failure can strike up suddenly when you realise you’re out of time to get ready for an exam. In reality, we all have the same amount of time at our disposal. The only difference between a striving and a struggling student is a different approach to time management. Time management is a skill, especially today when it’s so easy to be lazy and unmotivated. Also, procrastination is a problem as well, as we tend to fill up our time with meaningless tasks, just to fill it up.
The key to better time management skills is to first separate the time needed for lectures, work and free time. If you have to work to support yourself, you’ll have to be the master of time management. Next, write down how you spend your free time. Do you study and do all the necessary work or do you scroll mindlessly? Monitor your free time to determine how much of it is screen time, procrastination and laziness. Set up daily study goals and block access to time-draining apps. Just remember that social media is designed to induce FOMO and that you’re not actually missing out on anything.
Improve your goal setting
Goal setting can help you reduce the fear of failure to simply being nervous when you have an important paper due or an upcoming exam. The secret to goal setting is to set up realistic goals which won’t lead to disappointment. If you set up unrealistic goals for yourself, you increase your chances of feeling bad if the goals are simply unattainable at this very moment. You should first set up a string of small achievable goals which will bring you closer to a larger goal. This way you’ll know how to dedicate your resources to accomplish a goal and stay true to your larger goals. Even if you stumble a bit, you’ll go easier on yourself because failure is a part of life.
Track your deadlines
In addition to proper time management skills, and goal setting, you also need to track your deadlines. Missing a deadline can amplify the fear of failure, so ensure you have a visual representation of your schedule and academic deadlines. You’ll have several papers due at the same time. If you put yall these deadlines in your schedule, you won’t lose track of it. Also, you can have a list of important dates next to a calendar, so you’ll look at it every day when you study. When you keep track of your academic deadlines, you’ll know each one of them requires your immediate attention, which one is urgent and difficult, and which one is not as urgent and not as difficult.
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Strike a balance
Even though there are a limited number of hours in a day and too many academic responsibilities, a student has to strike a balance. Personal life matters too, so you should dedicate time to activities that are fun to avoid burnout.
In conclusion – Learn the power of discipline
The last thing that will reduce the fear of failure is the power of discipline. If a person is disciplined, they know what it takes to accomplish a goal. And this is also something that can help students overcome the fear of failure. The power of discipline is what makes it easier to stay true to your goals and to excel in one’s academic years.
© 2022, Mike Parsons. All rights reserved.
