A Few Study Tips From My High School Self

It has been more than 16 years since I graduated high school. Many memories of my old days as a public school student in San Diego are fading, not the least because I have practically never lived in the city since graduation. But a recent request to summarize some tips on how I managed to get from a no-name high school to Yale has triggered a need for me to do a relatively rare self-reflection on my four years. It is not an easy one since so many other things that happened in my life since 2006 have been much more memorable and noteworthy than anything I've done back then.

Of course, this is not to downplay the importance of high school about everything else that has happened in my life. In fact, high school is the foundation, the basis, and the stepping stone that availed future opportunities for both personal and professional growth. Without the knowledge and the learning skills I acquired during those high schools, I would have never gone to Yale and subsequently, graduate schools and various jobs around the world. As such, it is worth noting some tips for studying that I utilized in high school that can transcend time and place.

The first piece of advice is to always try to finish tasks as soon as possible and not wait until the last minute. High school is a time of exploration, as people try new activities both in and outside the classroom. That means even if one seems to have ample time in finishing an assignment before the deadline, something else can always come up that requires more urgent attention. So, rather than stretching out the work to fit the number of days until the deadline, leaving some wiggle in case new work comes in is essential.

The second is to stick to instructions. One great thing about high school is that you can excel just by adhering to what the teachers tell you to do. As long as you finish your required readings and complete your homework assignments every day on time without fail, the chances are that you will do great in your classes. Sure, many students may be bored by simply being told what to do all the time, but to be creative and take initiative outside regular schoolwork, the premise should be to get the regular schoolwork done first. One simply cannot be innovative without first being good at doing what was told.

The third is to rest up. High school classes can be fairly early. I remember getting up at 7am every weekday to prepare for school. But at the same time, high school students need more sleep than adults to feel energized. I appreciated the fact that my parents made me go to sleep at 10pm every night (unless I was unable to finish my homework on time) so that I am fully awake by the time I am in class and need to concentrate on new learning materials. Even as adults, we should not underestimate the power of a good night's sleep to boost productivity.

The fourth is always to be curious about new things and new opportunities even if they seem to have little relation to what one does on a day-to-day basis. We encourage students to take different courses at school not merely because they are good for college applications, but because they encourage students to be curious and open to the idea of switching directions in life from time to time. My broad academic interest during high school allowed me to major in both social and hard science in university, which then led to jobs in data analysis as well as research and management.

The fifth is just to be appreciative of the opportunities you already have and try hard because of your gratitude. Many students, like me, probably have parents who are always droning on about how their children should be thankful for the great learning environments that they never had as children. As irritating as those comments may sound, they are actually correct. I've seen too many bright young people in Africa and Southeast Asia with raw talent and a dearth of schooling. They did not get to Harvard not because they lacked intelligence. They were just unlucky to be born in the wrong places to the wrong families. 

In sum, these pieces of advice are not meant to put more pressure on current high school students or set high expectations that are difficult to achieve. Instead, they are simply about providing some essential life skills that will be useful for many decades beyond high school. Many years of working have taught me that mental sanity, both in the form of not being overwhelmed with what one does not want to do, but also being constantly stimulated with new work and people, means just as much as how much money one makes. High schools are often designed with that wholesome goal in mind. Keeping up with it will have many more benefits than getting good grades.