Drowning in work? Try this.

📚 Feeling buried under 8 or 9 subjects? You’re not alone.

You ever feel like Sisyphus?

You know—the guy from Greek myth doomed to push a giant boulder up a hill, only for it to roll back down, again and again. That's what studying for O-Levels or A-Levels can feel like. Every day, you sit down, crack open your notes, and start pushing. A new topic. A new worksheet. Another lecture you kinda forgot halfway through.

And just when you think you're catching up—BAM. Another test. Another subject you’ve neglected. The boulder rolls back down.

But here’s the thing. Unlike Sisyphus, you’re not cursed. You can push smarter. And there are ways to stop the boulder from flattening you every other week.

Let’s talk about how.

1. Find your vibe early

You take MANY subjects, and each subject has its unique requirements and style. It is thus crucial for you to plan ahead of time: before exam season hits, experiment with different study methods. You only get a couple of hours of productive study time after school every day, so figure out quickly what works for you! Here are some actionable techniques to try:

1. Pomodoro - study in short bursts of 25 minutes, with a 5 minute break in between

2. Scribble memorisation - instead of just reading your notes blindly, try to scribble the words you're reading on a paper as you read them. This has been found to help with memorisation!

3. Feynman technique - don't just do papers blindly, try to TEACH the concepts as though you were a teacher rather than a student. This will help uncover gaps in your understanding fast, which saves you plenty of time

2. Chunk it, don’t marathon it

You know that feeling when you sit down to “study all of Chemistry” and suddenly… it’s three hours later and you’re still stuck on Chapter 2? That’s why chunking is your best friend. Instead of planning to “finish the whole chapter,” break it into small, digestible bits. Maybe:

• 20 minutes on definitions

• 20 minutes on a worked example

• 20 minutes on 3 MCQs

• Then take a 5–10 min walk, stretch, refill your Milo, whatever!

This keeps your brain fresh and helps you actually retain what you just learned—way better than grinding through 2 straight hours of half-zoning-out. Chunking also makes it less scary to get started. It’s easier to begin when you’re just committing to “a tiny chunk” than to a full-on study marathon. Start small. Stay consistent. That’s the real win.

3. Prioritise wisely with a “traffic light” method

When you’re staring down 9 subjects, 500 pages of notes, and a mental to-do list longer than a Grab delivery route during dinner rush… it’s no wonder you freeze up.

That’s where the traffic light method comes in. Simple idea, but surprisingly powerful.

💡Here’s how it works:

You go through your syllabus or revision list and label every topic using three colours:

🟢 Green: You’re confident + it’s important

🟡 Amber:You kind of get it… but not fully

🔴 Red: You’re lost or hate it + low yield

✅ Why this method is gold:

1. You get clarity fast.
When everything feels urgent, it’s hard to know where to start. Traffic lights turn your vague panic into something you can see and act on. Suddenly, you’ve got a colour-coded roadmap.

2. You stop wasting time on what’s already done.
If something’s green, don’t keep re-reading it for comfort. That’s like cleaning an already clean room to feel productive. Shift your energy to amber zones where you’ll actually improve.

3. You’re not just studying harder—you’re studying smarter.
Not all topics are created equal. Some are tested every year. Some show up once in a decade. This method lets you prioritise based on impact, not just difficulty.

🧠 How to put this into action:

Step 1: List all the topics for each subject.
Use your school’s syllabus outline, a revision guide, or a quick Google. Don't overthink this part.

Step 2: Colour-code them.
You can use highlighters, sticky dots, Notion tags, or a Google Sheet with coloured cells—whatever works for your style. Don’t worry if you’re unsure; this gets more accurate as you revise.

Step 3: Plan your week like this:

• Monday – Revise 1 green (light revision), 1 amber (focus), 1 red (just 30 mins—ease in)

• Tuesday – Focus on ambers only

• Wednesday – Red topic deep dive

• Thursday – Past paper questions from all three categories

You’ll move topics from red → amber → green over time, and watching your “green list” grow is super motivating.

🎯 Bonus tip: Re-code weekly

At the end of every week, do a quick reset. Topics you struggled with may now feel easier, and old greens might’ve gone a bit rusty. Keep the colours dynamic—it’s like updating your study GPS.

4. Think in papers, not in hours.

Let’s be honest: “I’m going to study for three hours” sounds productive, but it often turns into two hours of highlight-the-notes, one hour of zoning out, and zero retention.

Instead, flip the script.

Start framing your study goals around outputs, not time. That means saying:
👉 “I’m going to finish Math Paper 1 today.”
👉 “I’ll mark it, log the questions I got wrong, and revisit those topics tomorrow.”

This approach does three magical things:

1. It’s concrete. You know exactly what you're aiming to finish. A paper has a beginning, middle, and end—you can see your progress.

2. It mimics the real exam setting. You're training your brain to perform under timed conditions. Bonus: when the real O-Levels or A-Levels roll around, you won’t panic at the sight of a two-hour block.

3. It focuses your revision. Instead of rereading Chapter 3 for the fourth time, you’re troubleshooting the exact types of questions you’re getting wrong.

And here’s the kicker: once you're done with the paper, your work isn’t done.

Your learning gold comes from the next 20–30 minutes. Sit down with your mistakes. Ask:

• What concept did I mess up?

• Did I lose marks because I didn’t understand the question?

• Was it a careless mistake or a real gap in knowledge?

Track these in a simple notebook or Google Sheet. That “error log” becomes your most powerful study guide closer to exams.

Some students even colour-code their mistakes:
🔴 Conceptual error
🟡 Careless slip
🟢 Didn’t read question properly

That way, you’re not just practising—you’re learning how to avoid losing marks.

One last tip: if full papers are too long to start with, begin with just half a paper, or even a 30-minute block of questions. It’s the same idea, just scaled to your day.

Conclusion: What Sisyphus didn't have…

If school feels like a never-ending uphill grind, that’s not your fault. The system throws a lot at you—and most of it all at once. But the difference between feeling like Sisyphus and beating Sisyphus… is strategy.

You don’t need to study harder. You need to study better.

Chunk the load. Colour-code your chaos. Plan your week like a puzzle. And remember: pushing a boulder feels different when you’ve got sneakers on, a map in hand, and a few snacks in your bag.

One day, the slope gets less steep. You’ll look back and realise—slowly, steadily—you’ve built your way up. And the boulder? You’re not under it anymore. You’re on top of it.

Keep going. You’ve got this.