This is Too Hard and EVERYBODY Feels That Way!
Occasionally a student will have a meltdown and complain to me, "This course is too hard and EVERYBODY feels that way!"
Don't Copy Someone Else's Poor Study Habits and/or Attitude!
The best use of your "off-study" time is NOT sitting around cyberspace with a group of "study buddies" complaining about how hard the course is.
The best use of your "study" time is following the step-by-step instructions as carefully as you can. The best use of your time is listening and actually "hearing" what your instructors are saying to you. If it seems too difficult, break it down into pieces and attach each piece.
The best use of your "off-study" time is running as fast as your cyberlegs can take you away from negative "study buddies" who want to bring you (and your grades) down to their level, claiming that everyone feels that way and you should too.
Find some friends on the boards here that encourage you. That doesn't mean a Pollyanna attitude about "If you all think happy thoughts, you'll succeed." It means find people who ARE doing well. You'll find that these are the students who ARE listening to the instructors, not the "study buddies" who are having trouble keeping up with their studies and want to take you down to failure with them. Make sense? Of course it does!
By the way, I want each and every one of you to be in the successful learning section. I would like to destroy the "study buddy" mentality. Your study buddies are not going to be there when you test for jobs and when you start your first job. You'll be working independently. This is a good time to start learning how to do it. Enjoy your friends on the boards. Do your work on your own.
I love what Eleanor Roosevelt said on this subject:
“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. . Do the thing you think you cannot do.” -- Eleanor Roosevelt