is "burning out" if you work too hard on the holidays a myth?

[Russ]

and I don't actually know where this is gone but... I think to a certain extent, ppl who say "do nothing" on the holidays might just be being lazy/ don't need a craaazy atar for their course. or any atar at all perhaps.

I'm lazy but this is otherwise not true at all. I spent my summer holiday in Europe and it was the best thing I ever did before year 12.

[Ravit]

I believe TT's comment regarding going ahead in a subject because you enjoy it is an appropiate way to sum up this discussion. In all honesty if individuals wish to go ahead and complete all their course content and achieve a really really BIG headstart, by all means go ahead. But, consequentially, this decision all comes down to one's dedication and interest in a subject. For example if John Smith, chose, physics, maths methods, chemistry, english and studio arts as his subjects, and during the summer holidays he went ahead covering what ever content he wanted too, this decision would only be influenced by his desire to achieve personal success in VCE, this is believe is the reason why people consider working ahead in the first place. It's obivious, why people want to study ahead- because we all have our personal goals which we want to achieve and by studying ahead in a manner that is effective and healthy can help consilidate a good foundation of knowledge, and then when we return to school this knowledge is further cemented.

Moreso, this idea of people burning out and twiggling their thumbs in classes, due to their perception of 'knowing everything' is purely egotistical and is dependent how well one wants score and secondly whats the point of going to school if your not going to pay attention to whats being taught, you may as well stay at home Lastly, i do believe good students who want to succeed do not do this, rather would utilise class time engraining what they know
and practicing so they can do their best in exams and SACS

This was in response to all comments calling people who study ahead as crazy. :DDDD

[Twenty11]

Guy's don't forget that school is about learning. When studying remember that you are doing it for the sake of learning. So if you do plan to go ahead do it with the intent that you want to learn something new that day. That should be your goal, not that you should do it or if you dont you wont get 99.95 or 50. Dont set targets like you want to study x amount of hours. Set targets like you want to learn this topic well by today.

Look some people are saying do 0 hours in the holidays. This works for them because they are probably extremely smart people, it may not work for you. If you are not doing anything one day of the holidays then yes i say go ahead an pick up a book and learn something new. Why not? Don't not make plans for the sake of studying though, It's summer .

[lisavincent95]

I think it needs to be made clear that those who do not study tons during the holidays do not necessarily not care about their ATAR. I think everyone does to a certain extent, otherwise you wouldn't be doing year 12 and especially wouldn't be on this site. This view comes across as arogant and offensive. And it is just simply false.

[Panicmode]

I believe TT's comment regarding going ahead in a subject because you enjoy it is an appropiate way to sum up this discussion. In all honesty if individuals wish to go ahead and complete all their course content and achieve a really really BIG headstart, by all means go ahead. But, consequentially, this decision all comes down to one's dedication and interest in a subject. For example if John Smith, chose, physics, maths methods, chemistry, english and studio arts as his subjects, and during the summer holidays he went ahead covering what ever content he wanted too, this decision would only be influenced by his desire to achieve personal success in VCE, this is believe is the reason why people consider working ahead in the first place. It's obivious, why people want to study ahead- because we all have our personal goals which we want to achieve and by studying ahead in a manner that is effective and healthy can help consilidate a good foundation of knowledge, and then when we return to school this knowledge is further cemented.

Moreso, this idea of people burning out and twiggling their thumbs in classes, due to their perception of 'knowing everything' is purely egotistical and is dependent how well one wants score and secondly whats the point of going to school if your not going to pay attention to whats being taught, you may as well stay at home Lastly, i do believe good students who want to succeed do not do this, rather would utilise class time engraining what they know
and practicing so they can do their best in exams and SACS

This was in response to all comments calling people who study ahead as crazy. :DDDD

My comment was not calling people who study ahead crazy, my comment was directed at people who study THE ENTIRE COURSE before any class time, crazy.  I'm sorry, but I can tell you from experience, if you're significantly ahead in a subject, it can get crazy boring to essentially get taught something you already know. I have no problem with getting a few weeks ahead (I remained 3 weeks ahead in all my subjects throughout the entire year) but it is ridiculous to sacrifice your holidays to achieve this. Honestly, anything above 2 hours a day during the Summer break is overkill. It is important to maintain a balance.


If you consistently do 4-5 hours every day, come term 3 when it really is crucial that you study, you will find yourself slipping up. You won't recognise it as burning out, but you'll find yourself wanting to sleep in the afternoons /play more video games / go out instead of studying. You'll concede of course because you can justify that you've worked hard all year and that a small break won't kill you, even one night. However, that one night can quickly evolve into an apathetic week, and then an overall loss of motivation. I have seen this happen to some of friends - many who are incredibly and extremely self motivated and did upwards of 4 hours a night throughout the entire year. Don't let this happen to you. 

[pi]

If you consistently do 4-5 hours every day, come term 3 when it really is crucial that you study, you will find yourself slipping up. You won't recognise it as burning out, but you'll find yourself wanting to sleep in the afternoons /play more video games / go out instead of studying. You'll concede of course because you can justify that you've worked hard all year and that a small break won't kill you, even one night. However, that one night can quickly evolve into an apathetic week, and then an overall loss of motivation. I have seen this happen to some of friends - many who are incredibly and extremely self motivated and did upwards of 4 hours a night throughout the entire year. Don't let this happen to you. 

I agree a lot of what you say, but I think this para I've quoted is a bit of a generalisation. Of course it is a possibility, but it didn't happen to me (I hope!) and definitely not to many others I know (both mhs and non-mhs).

As I said earlier, the only people I know who burned out were 6+ hrs/day kids, That's way too much for summer break imo.

[paulsterio]

Well, this is why I always encourage people to do subjects they enjoy, they will feel less pressure and enjoy working more, so burnout won't happen

Those who do subjects for scaling or for other reasons rather than enjoyment will probably feel some sort of burnout after much hard work

[thushan]

If you consistently do 4-5 hours every day, come term 3 when it really is crucial that you study, you will find yourself slipping up. You won't recognise it as burning out, but you'll find yourself wanting to sleep in the afternoons /play more video games / go out instead of studying. You'll concede of course because you can justify that you've worked hard all year and that a small break won't kill you, even one night. However, that one night can quickly evolve into an apathetic week, and then an overall loss of motivation. I have seen this happen to some of friends - many who are incredibly and extremely self motivated and did upwards of 4 hours a night throughout the entire year. Don't let this happen to you. 

I agree a lot of what you say, but I think this para I've quoted is a bit of a generalisation. Of course it is a possibility, but it didn't happen to me (I hope!) and definitely not to many others I know (both mhs and non-mhs).

As I said earlier, the only people I know who burned out were 6+ hrs/day kids, That's way too much for summer break imo.

Yeah, and if you're forced to do that kinda work, this site is applicable for you -
http://www.mylifeisdesi.com/

[pi]

Yeah, and if you're forced to do that kinda work, this site is applicable for you -
http://www.mylifeisdesi.com/

lol, some of the stuff on that site is actually really screwed up

[Panicmode]

If you consistently do 4-5 hours every day, come term 3 when it really is crucial that you study, you will find yourself slipping up. You won't recognise it as burning out, but you'll find yourself wanting to sleep in the afternoons /play more video games / go out instead of studying. You'll concede of course because you can justify that you've worked hard all year and that a small break won't kill you, even one night. However, that one night can quickly evolve into an apathetic week, and then an overall loss of motivation. I have seen this happen to some of friends - many who are incredibly and extremely self motivated and did upwards of 4 hours a night throughout the entire year. Don't let this happen to you. 

I agree a lot of what you say, but I think this para I've quoted is a bit of a generalisation. Of course it is a possibility, but it didn't happen to me (I hope!) and definitely not to many others I know (both mhs and non-mhs).

As I said earlier, the only people I know who burned out were 6+ hrs/day kids, That's way too much for summer break imo.

Yeah, and if you're forced to do that kinda work, this site is applicable for you -
http://www.mylifeisdesi.com/

This made me laugh so hard.

[Fishyiscool]

Yeah, and if you're forced to do that kinda work, this site is applicable for you -
http://www.mylifeisdesi.com/

... what does desi mean hahaha?

hmm hmm thing is, I take aaages to finish 1 thing, so I guess 4 hours a days isn't enough for me to get a substantial amount of work done.
 

Well, this is why I always encourage people to do subjects they enjoy, they will feel less pressure and enjoy working more, so burnout won't happen

Those who do subjects for scaling or for other reasons rather than enjoyment will probably feel some sort of burnout after much hard work

that's actually quite true! well... my subjects are .. pressure-abundant... ish. But I love them all so it doesn't really feel like I have to force myself to work or I'm just so used to forcing myself to do work that my brain thinks I'm having fun. i think...

[thushan]

Desi = Indian

[Fishyiscool]

Desi = Indian

oh lol

[Special At Specialist]

So many people brag about getting 99+ atars and never studying on the holidays, but let's face it: most of them are asians (AKA geniuses).
As one of the few non-asians on this site, I can safely say that I'm not as "naturally talented" as all of you. I don't go to Melbourne High School or Haileybury or any of those top schools. Instead, I go to a country school which you probably frown upon. Dux last year at my school got a 97 atar score, but the median score on atarnotes is even higher than that.

My only chance of competing against all of the geniuses is to out-study them. I can't grasp concepts as fast as other people, so it takes me longer to learn them. Where do I get the extra time to learn this stuff? On the holidays. The holidays are my only chance of catching up to you all. Whilst it may not be necessary for you to study on the holidays, they are my only chance of scoring well.

EDIT: I'm sorry if I sound racist. I really have nothing against asians.

[Fishyiscool]

So many people brag about getting 99+ atars and never studying on the holidays, but let's face it: most of them are asians (AKA geniuses).
As one of the few non-asians on this site, I can safely say that I'm not as "naturally talented" as all of you. I don't go to Melbourne High School or Haileybury or any of those top schools. Instead, I go to a country school which you probably frown upon. Dux last year at my school got a 97 atar score, but the median score on atarnotes is even higher than that.

My only chance of competing against all of the geniuses is to out-study them. I can't grasp concepts as fast as other people, so it takes me longer to learn them. Where do I get the extra time to learn this stuff? On the holidays. The holidays are my only chance of catching up to you all. Whilst it may not be necessary for you to study on the holidays, they are my only chance of scoring well.

that's really good, s@s, i wish i had that resilience. and I'm sure you'll nail dux at your school hahhaaa! I don't think it matters whether you go to a freaky school or not (I certainly don't), it's all about the effort you put in.
and LOL about being asian. It's true. -.- why couldn't I come from a country a little further up? nahh im not really hoping for 99.95 so its all good XD