Last Updated on July 27, 2024 by Alexandra Markin
In a world where academic pressure can often feel overwhelming, finding ways to make studying more enjoyable is the key to success.
Learning how to romanticize studying can help you transform low grades and morale into academic achievement.
If you’re a college student seeking motivation or simply looking for ways to enhance your productivity, this blog post details all the techniques and strategies to make studying a more fun and rewarding experience.
What “Romanticize Studying” Means
What does “romanticize studying” even mean? The phrase refers to the practice of making studying appear more appealing, enjoyable, and aesthetically pleasing than it might otherwise seem.
Romanticize (verb): to think about or describe something as being better or more attractive or interesting than it really is : to show, describe, or think about something in a romantic way
– Britannica Dictionary
It’s about transforming a task that needs to be done from feeling mundane or stressful into something more fun and exciting.
The rise of the studygram has done just that, and with a powerful effect I might add. On Instagram, #studygram has 19 million posts with more students joining in on the trend every day.
Romanticizing study has lead to higher grades, better study habits and a close-knit community of not only current students, but lifelong learners.
From higher education to self-study, I think it’s a trend that is here to stay. Read on to learn how you can improve your studies by embracing the act of romanticizing study.
How to Romanticize Studying
The best way to romanticize studying is by incorporate the following methods that resonate with you into a daily study routine that is both inspiring and enjoyable.
Pairing these with a morning routine and evening routine will bookend your day to help you achieve your full academic potential.
If this list feels overwhelming, try adding one thing at a time until it feels like second nature.
Create an Aesthetic Study Space
As a student you spend hours sitting at your desk, so you can’t begin to romanticize study without the basics – setting up your space.
Creating an environment that is both functional and visually pleasing involves incorporating elements that make you feel inspired every time you sit down to study.
Lighting
Try and place your desk as close to natural light as possible. Not only will this give you better lighting for studying, but it will also make any photos you take look more aesthetic – which is the entire theme of this post!
Add soft lighting in the form of desk lamps to give your space a soft glow, and so you aren’t straining your eyes during late night study sessions.
Add Scent, Fire and Mist
There’s something about having candles on your desk that really elevates the romantic experience. Day or night, burning candles makes me feel relaxed.
Add an essential oil diffuser to your desk setup, using scents that are beneficial for studying. Lavender helps combat stress and anxiety, while eucalyptus helps boost concentration and focus.
Use Comfortable Furniture
A proper desk chair that’s both ergonomic and attractive is necessary for function and fantasy. Adding a fluffy blanket and breakfast pillow will complete your setup and come in handy for staying cozy on cool days.
Include Greenery
Plants and flowers make a space more inviting, which positively influences your mood and motivation to study.
Because I can’t maintain real plants, I love anything that looks realistically plastic!
Keep Your Space Clean
Aesthetic and messy don’t go together, so make a point of keeping your study space clean and tidy.
Get in the habit of doing a “closing shift” when you’re done for the day: put away books, notes and supplies and wipe down your desk so you start the next day fresh and ready to go.
Switch up Your Study Environment
Curating your own study study space is important, but it’s equally important to switch things up to keep motivation flowing.
This is could be a cute café, an academically inspiring library or a college campus with stunning architecture.
Even us online students can pack up our backpacks and study on campus for the day. Libraries and common areas of any college are essentially community study hubs – you don’t have to be a student there to be able to use the space. Just go during their open hours and you should be able to wander quite freely.
Use Pretty Stationary
There’s nothing like a set of new pens or coloured highlighters to inspire you to get to work.
The crisp sound of turning blank pages in a beautiful new notebook holds the ambition to fill it with your goals.
Amazon has endless options for stationary, and it can all be delivered to your door in two business days.
Sign up today and get a FREE Prime Student 6-month trial. Then, enjoy Prime Student at half price after your trial ends.
I’ve had an Amazon Prime Student membership for years and love it. I couldn’t imagine waiting more than two days for my essentials to arrive! Not to mention watching all my favourite movies and TV shows on Prime Video that motivate me to study.
Watch Inspirational Movies and TV
Get inspired by watching your favourite movies and TV shows that leave you feeling super motivated to turn off the TV and open your books.
Even though you know you’re watching fiction, seeing your goals being played out on screen helps you to envision what your real life could look like, and helps you get into that main character energy. Anything is possible, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
With a Prime Student membership, you’ll have access to Prime video with hundreds of inspirational study shows to help romanticize studying, like Gilmore Girls, Grey’s Anatomy, Suits, and my favourite, Legally Blonde.
Romanticize Studying with YouTube
Fictional TV is great, but there are thousands of students out there making real-life study vlogs on YouTube, and you can participate in one of their “study with me” videos!
The concept is very simple: a “study with me” vlog is just a video of someone studying. If you’re lacking motivation, try playing one of these videos while you study for your own class.
One of my favourite study vloggers is Merve, a MSc student based in Scotland.
You can also put on an aesthetic YouTube background with music by searching keywords like “coffee shop jazz.”
Or, if a specific location inspires you, try searching “London study view” or “Paris study view.”
Try a Live College Webcam
Many colleges around the United States have installed webcams where you can view live feed of many different areas on campus.
Watching these webcams can make your study experience a little more enjoyable.
Try some of my favourite live feeds:
As a distance learning student, l love the allusion of “being on campus” and being able to “glance out my window” from time to time when I want my home study experience to feel a little less lonely.
Make a Study Playlist
A study playlist can be a great tool to help you check off your study to do list. From instrumental, classical, smooth jazz and lo-fi, there are hundreds of genres to choose from to create your perfect study mix.
However, not everyone can study with music playing and I’m one of them. Music distracts me, so I prefer to study in silence at home, or the din of a library or cafe when I’m away from my desk. I do like to put on music when I’m cleaning, so I save my playlist for my Sunday reset.
Take Study Breaks
Not only are taking study breaks important to boost concentration and focus and avoid mental fatigue, they allow you to incorporate small activities you enjoy throughout the day.
Knowing you have something to look forward to during your next study break, like sipping your favourite cup of tea or taking a short nature walk making studying more enjoyable.
If you know you’re terrible at taking study breaks, using the pomodoro technique is a perfect way to make sure you’re giving your brain a proper rest.
Here’s how to do it: set a timer for 25 minutes (a “pomodoro”), take a 5 minute break, and repeat for 3 more sessions. After 4 sessions, take a longer break of 15-30 minutes.
Try Different Study Methods
With so many different study methods out there, finally finding one that works for you will make you want to study more, therefore glorifying the entire academic experience.
If you feel like you need to improve how you study, I highly recommend trying out the following study methods:
- Flashcards
- Mind Mapping
- Active Recall
- Pomodoro Technique
- Spaced Repetition
- The Protégé Effect
Use Aesthetic Study Tools
Aesthetic websites and apps can really help you romanticize school. From browser dashboards to productivity apps, the right tools can make studying fun.
A few of my favourites are:
- Flocus – an aesthetic productivity-based browser dashboard
- Momentum Dash – a beautiful browser extension with daily mantras to inspire motivation
- Forest App – this app helps you focus by growing a forest on your lock screen
- Pomodoro Timer – you can use any timer for your Pomodoro sessions, but one of my favourite online timers is study with me.io by Gridfiti.
Take Aesthetic Notes
Since graduating high school, my printing has gotten progressively worse. Before I started taking aesthetic notes, I can’t even remember the last time I used any form of handwriting.
Making an effort to create clear (aka legible), aesthetically pleasing notes really helps romanticize learning new concepts, especially tough ones. Looking back at a notebook or binder full of beautiful notes encourages you to study more.
This also includes creating pretty flashcards or notebook cover pages.
Use Quotes in Full Force
Quotes from successful individuals or your personal heroes can inspire you to strive for excellence.
Incorporating these quotes that resonate with you help cultivate a positive and motivating environment that romanticizes the act of studying.
“A lot of hard work is hidden behind nice things.”
– Ralph Lauren
Hanging a quote above your desk, pinning it to your Pinterest board and saving it as your phone’s wallpaper will keep inspiration high throughout the day.
Take a look at some of my favourite quotes for students in the below blog posts:
- 51 Best Inspirational Exam Quotes For Student Success
- 50 Study Motivation Quotes for Student Success
Join a Study Group
Seeing others work hard can inspire you to do the same. The shared goals and collective effort of studying with a group can boost your motivation and commitment.
Just because you’re an online student doesn’t mean you are destined to study alone. Both distance learning students and on-campus students can take advantage of both online and in-person study groups.
Online
The most common ways to study in a group online include joining Discord servers or live studygram feeds on Instagram or YouTube.
In-Person
If you’re an on-campus student, you can easily connect with others in your classes and arrange a study session.
If you’re an online student and want to study with others in person, you’ll have to do a bit of research to find peers in close proximity to your area. Try looking in discussion forms within your course, unofficial Facebook groups for your college or joining studygram accounts on Instagram.
Even meeting bi-monthly with a study group might be just what you need to help boost your study progress.
Document Your Studies
If you’re not familiar with the studygram community on Instagram, I highly recommend you check it out.
A studygram is a community of students that share their study routines, tips, motivation and student life with millions of others. You’ll see them post photos of their desks, study notes and favourite products, while sharing the highs and lows that come with higher education.
Anyone can start a study page. Posting about your studies can help keep you on track, motivate you to create your prefect study space, and can lead to making lifelong friends.
Follow me at @online.student.life to join my studygram community!
You can also opt to create a blog to document your study progress.
Remember Your Why
Sometimes you can get so bogged down in academics it’s easy to forget why you started.
Create a visual reminder you’ll see every time you sit down at your desk. Use artwork or mugs to help transport yourself to your end goal.
If you have any certificates, diplomas or awards, frame them and hang them! Seeing your past accomplishments will motivate you to achieve more.
If you like pictures, create a vision board to help you visualize success.
Prioritize Self-Care
Self-care is so important, but it goes beyond candlelit bubble baths.
Prioritizing self-care as a student includes eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, getting enough sleeping and making time for hobbies.
See the post How to Stay Healthy as an Online Student for practical tips to include self-care on a daily basis.
Find Extracurricular Activities That Align With Your Path
Making time for extracurriculars that relate to your studies romanticize the process of getting your degree and encourage you to study harder.
For example, if you’re a business student, you could:
- Participate in your student government association
- Join business clubs, such as the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA)
- Get an internship
- Start your own business
- Compete in business case competitions
- Volunteer for businesses you’re interested in
Journal
Journaling is great for self-reflection, expressing gratitude and documenting progress.
Try documenting your study progress with bullet journaling using these essential bullet spreads. Not only will tracking your progress on paper make you feel accomplished, you can make your journal pages as aesthetic and decorated as you want!
Dress up Daily
No matter if you’re studying at home or heading out the door, looking your best every day goes a long way towards
If I look my best, I’ll do my best.
– Alexandra Markin, founder of Online Student Life
It’s easy to get into a hygiene rut when you work and study from home (believe me, I’ve been down that road!) The best thing I did for myself was to get dressed, do my hair and put on a bit of makeup, every single day.
Does the higher version of yourself you want to become roll out of bed, throw on sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt and head out for the day, or do they take the time to get dressed in a nice but comfortable outfit, with care taken to do their hair?
Although this won’t be feasible every single day of you life, the goal is this post is how to romanticize studying, and looking and feeling your best is a big factor!
Perfectly Plate Your Study Snacks
Plating your study snacks can romanticize the studying process by turning a necessity into an aesthetic experience. Also, I think it makes the food taste better.
Feel like you did an especially good job? Take a picture and post it to Instagram!
Drink Fun Study Drinks
There’s a reason why studygrammers post their fancy coffees on Instagram – it really does enhances the study experience!
Put your kombucha in a wine glass, buy the cute glass iced coffee tumblers on Amazon, and buy all the supplies to make that matcha latte at home.
If you love coffee, a Nespresso machine will brew the perfect creama that not only looks good but tastes good.
How to Romanticize Studying – Conclusion
Embracing these practices not only helps enhance your academic performance, but also fosters a positive mindset and a deeper appreciation for the learning process.
So light a candle, brew your favourite coffee drink and immerse yourself in the art of romanticizing studying.
But remember – you can make everything as picture perfect as you like – as long as you actually put in the hours to study!
If you found this post helpful, sign up for my email list below and follow me on Instagram and Pinterest to join our online student community – you don’t have to go through your study journey alone!
How do you romanticize studying? Let us know in the comments!
Great inspiring article with lots of ideas to make studying more attractive! Thanks I need all the help I can get.
You’re welcome Stacy, I’m glad you found them helpful!
Thanks for sharing some great tips for those who are studying.
You’re welcome Chloe, thanks for reading!