Video summary

BEST Study Routine that made me a TOP ACHIEVER (in HALF the time)

Main summary

Key takeaways

Educational

Main ideas, concepts, and lessons

  • Personal turnaround & motivation

    • The speaker describes being in a “flop era,” failing exams, and losing self-esteem.
    • They develop a “foolproof” study routine that helps them:
      • Thrive for 5 years in medical school
      • Get a doctor job in London
      • Do it while spending as little time as possible studying
    • Key mindset: not naturally intelligent, but determined and focused on reaching goals.

  • Core claim

    • An evidence-based routine (notably active recall and spaced repetition) can cut study time by half compared with typical studying—especially because they don’t take notes.

  • Routine structure

    • The method covers what to do:
      • Before classes
      • During classes
      • After classes (immediately)
      • During the run-up to exams
      • After exams (reflection)

Detailed methodology / instructions (step-by-step)

Part 1 — Before your classes (3 steps)

  1. Download lecture slides/lesson material if available.
  2. Briefly review the material; if it’s not available, do a tiny bit of research on what will be covered.
  3. Go through practice questions on the topic (even before learning it fully).

Mindset to adopt

  • Avoid ego: if you’re getting things wrong, you’re learning.
  • The routine is designed to make errors productive rather than discouraging.

Why pre-class preparation matters (learning model)

  • Learning is compared to:
    • Knowledge that sticks immediately (like wet tissue that adheres well)
    • vs. knowledge that falls off (that needs repetition/explanation)
  • Goal of pre-class prep: walk in able to identify what will be hard and where you need help—rather than feeling like you already “know everything.”

Part 2 — During your classes (active learning + Anki setup)

Overarching principle

  • Lectures are described as passive learning and easy to zone out during.
  • Instead of being passive, the speaker uses flashcards in real time to stay engaged.

Tools/organization

  • Use Notion / OneNote / XTiles to track:
    • Which classes have been attended
    • Which topics have been covered
  • Use Anki for flashcards with:
    • Active recall
    • spaced repetition

Active recall & space repetition (what they mean)

  • Active recall: actively retrieving info (flashcards, practice questions, explaining to a friend).
  • Space repetition: reviewing again after increasing time gaps, e.g.:
    • day 1 → day 2 → day 7 → day 30, etc.
  • Benefit: strengthens neural connections and solidifies memory.

“Flashcards during the lecture” method

  • Open the lecture material and create flashcards while the class is happening.
  • Reasons for doing it yourself (not using AI-made cards):
    1. AI wasn’t as accessible when they started.
    2. Retention is higher when you generate the flashcards.
    3. It prevents passive distraction (they reference wanting to avoid zoning into things like Netflix screens during lectures).

Pitfalls and solutions

  • Pitfall 1: Falling behind

    • Solution: mark the slide/topic you fell behind on so you can revisit later and re-sync.

  • Pitfall 2: Not knowing what to make flashcards on

    • Making ~200 flashcards per lecture became unmanageable, so they developed two filters:

(1) Traffic light system

- **Green**: easy-to-remember info already known (skip/less detail).
- **Yellow**: partially known info that needs a reminder (make brief cards).
- **Red**: completely new info (make more detailed cards).

(2) Exam-likelihood filter

- Not everything taught is testable.
- Use **practice questions before the lecture** to identify **high-yield topics** (what examiners commonly ask).
- During the lecture, when unsure what to create cards for, prioritize **high-yield** content.

Additional positioning

  • The speaker argues you can learn more by staying engaged, and that some people may dislike the method—but it worked for them.

Part 3 — After class (same evening steps)

Immediate goal

  • Stop the feeling that information “drains out” right after leaving.
  1. Return to slides and flashcard what you missed (especially if you fell behind during class).
  2. Review that day’s Anki cards.
    • Anki schedules review based on difficulty:
      • Hard cards: sooner
      • Easy cards: later

Learning-loss rationale

  • They cite forgetting curves (attributed to Ebbinghaus/Hermann Ebbinghaus):
    • Lose a large portion of new info in a day and most within a week.
  • Key recommendation: doing reviews earlier improves retention, though cramming is acknowledged as an alternative that isn’t ideal.

Part 4 — Run-up to exams (how to scale study hours)

General approach

  • Consistency is valued, but they argue you should not study maximum hours all year.
  • If you follow the routine already, your baseline knowledge improves with minimal extra effort.
  • Then increase intensity as exams approach, with careful timing.

Suggested schedule (realistic phases)

  • Baseline period (Monday–Friday):
    • About 1 hour of study (practice questions + daily Anki)
    • Maybe a few extra hours on the weekend
  • ~2 months before exams:
    • Increase to 2–4 hours/day
  • ~1 month before exams:
    • Increase to 6–8 hours/day
  • Final two days before exam:
    • Reduce slightly to rest your brain

Caveats (when to adjust)

  • If you’re not making enough progress or it’s too late → study more.
  • If you feel drained/tired or make silly mistakes → reduce hours.
  • Rest isn’t just sleep/Netflix; also consider other recovery.

Sleep timing rule

  • Leave about 2 hours before bed to stop studying (“study-free” wind down).
  • Late-night cramming increased “wired” stress and likely reduced effectiveness due to sleep’s role in memory.

Exam-season timetable (example structure)

  • Use half-hour alternating blocks between:
    • Practice questions
    • Anki
  • Practice questions are emphasized not just for testing, but for learning from mistakes:
    • After each practice set, spend time understanding:
      • what went wrong
      • why
      • the correct reasoning

Error-based Anki

  • Create a separate Anki deck containing facts learned specifically from practice-question mistakes.

Troubleshooting sessions

  • Include about 1 hour in the morning and 1 hour in the afternoon for troubleshooting:
    • review consistently wrong topics
    • master weak areas using:
      • extra study time
      • friend help
      • online revision videos

Final shift

  • As cards become mastered, allocate more time to:
    • timed mock exams (to train application + time management)

Part 5 — After exams (reflection checklist: 4 items)

The speaker argues reflection is the easiest/most neglected way to improve next time.

  1. Reflect on breakdown / marks

    • Identify question areas you did worse on.
    • Use an objective “blueprint” for where to allocate time next time.

  2. Reflect on study time vs performance

    • Compare hours spent with results.
    • Example: more hours didn’t improve performance due to:
      • fatigue
      • poorer concentration
      • more silly mistakes

  3. Reflect on whether performance matches your goals

    • Clarify whether you aim to:
      • pass/get by
      • top the class
      • hit a specific cutoff (their example: London job required a 91 cutoff)
    • Let goals determine what level of sacrifice you’re willing to make.

  4. Reflect on who you can learn from (and collaborate)

    • It’s not mainly about competition.
    • Seek insight from peers who did well in areas you struggled with.
    • Offer help in return:
      • go through mocks together
      • share resources
      • study collaboratively

Speakers / sources featured (identified)

  • Primary speaker (unnamed in subtitles): the YouTube creator presenting the routine (a former medical student/doctor aiming for London).
  • Hermann Ebbinghaus: referenced for the forgetting curve concept (original 19th-century work).
  • Zach Highy: mentioned as the author of an Anki study class (“Mastering Anki creating a flash card system for Straight A’s…”).
  • Skillshare: sponsor of the video; includes class recommendations by Zach and others (speaker also says Skillshare is “kindly sponsoring”).

Original video