• 15 Nov, 2025 *

If I got ten euros for every video I’ve watched about study techniques, system-building, habit-forming, and whatnot, I could pay off all my debt and maybe even have enough left over to cover rent. The amount of information I have on the topic is enormous, and how little of it has actually mattered… well, that’s exactly my point.

Still, no matter how much I complain or how little I care, the fact remains: I have to study. Period. End of story. This time, however, I’ve decided to try something different. I’m not switching study systems; I’m not reinventing anything. Starting today, I’m committing to documenting my studying. I need to become aware of my excuses, and what better way than, well, publicly humiliating myself over them. Or something along those lines.

Because, something I see constantly in these YouTube videos is that creators upload their content after they’ve already “made it,” academically speaking. Understandable, but that’s not always what we’re looking for. Sometimes, whether for entertainment or out of sheer self-solidarity, we want the hero’s journey. We want to see those spikes of motivation and the inevitable slump, the frustration, the despair, and then watch everything fall back into place. We want to understand where the results came from and what the final click was that made everything make sense. It’s inspiring. And very relatable.

Alright, now that I’ve set the scene, what system am I going to follow? I did something very simple: I opened Gemini and asked it to map out the path for me. Terrifying, I know. I didn’t just do it for convenience; I also wanted to prove a point. Maybe it’s not so much about the techniques themselves, but about how often and how consistently we engage with what we are studying. And I should add that Gemini did not give me an innovative answer. It didn’t tell me anything I hadn’t heard before; it was more like… painfully standard.

Below I’ll leave the prompt I used, in case anyone wants to borrow ideas. But first, I want to mention another tool I’ll be using: Discord. A few weeks ago, I found a wonderful community that is always active and helpful with everything study-related. It’s dynamic, easy to use, and very rewarding thanks to its game-like system. It’s called Golden Scholars Island. Give it a try.

The prompt:

I want you to act as an expert in university learning planning and design the best possible study routine for me to achieve the highest grades in my exams within a month and a half. I am pursuing a double degree in History and Art History and I am in my second year. My subjects are:

• History of Rome
• Late Medieval History
• Modern Art History
• Sources and Artistic Ideas of Modern Art
• Prehistory

I want the plan to be:

• Very detailed, realistic, and comprehensive.
• Adapted to the university level and the typical workload of a double degree in History and Art History.
• Based on learning principles: spaced repetition, active recall, elaboration, interleaving, and self-testing.

Specify which tasks to do for each subject, including:

• Mandatory and complementary readings
• Creating outlines, summaries, and concept maps
• Historical text commentary
• Artwork analysis
• Study flashcards
• Guided reviews
• Integrate recommended complementary readings with realistic time allocation.
• Organize a complete study calendar for a month and a half, including:
• Weekly distribution
• Workload adjustments according to difficulty or density of each subject
• Weekly objectives
• Include a detailed daily schedule with study blocks, breaks, recommended techniques (Pomodoro or others), and tips to avoid burnout.
• Create a continuous review system combining my notes, complementary readings, and practical activities.

Prepare a self-assessment plan, including:

• Weekly tests
• Mock exams
• Question banks
• Intensive pre-exam reviews
• Provide recommendations to maximize retention, comprehension, and study quality.

At the end, I want:

• A weekly summary table of the complete plan
• A printable version of the plan
• A short version of the plan in 10 points

End of the prompt

With that said, I hope you’ll join me on this journey and, if it sparks your interest, take a look at the path I’ll be following. Don’t forget to check out my Tumblr page, where I’m running another challenge focused on opera and also I’ll be sharing art and quotes from the books I’m reading for class. In other words, some cultural content for anyone with a curious mind. That’s all for now, see you soon!