below, you’ll find 6 tips for increasing your productivity, all backed by science. that means you know they’re good.

1. try a midday workout. studies suggest that fitting in some midday fitness can increase work stamina. so, the time you lose at the gym is quickly gained back by the increase in productivity.

2. take short breaks. one study suggests the ideal formula for productivity is this: work for 52 minutes, and then take a 17 minute break. i like to go on walks, get a cup of tea, basically just stand up and get away from my computer. a word to the wise: spending your break scrolling through the endless abyss that is your facebook newsfeed is probably not the best choice.

3. look at a picture of a baby animal. seriously. researchers in japan have found that looking at these cute images improves productivity. here’s a chart of their research:

4. don’t multitask…but do be flexible.  multitasking slows us down and makes us more prone to errors, so you should give the task at hand your full attention. it’s easier said than done, so here are some tips to effectively single-task (cliffnotes version: turn off your phone and email, and make a to-do list). but, since we’re all so busy, it’s important to remain flexible — ie, be ready to switch tasks when the time is right.

5. get a plant for your desk, and admire it often. one study suggests that plants boost office productivity by 15%.

6. sleep! this one has an exclamation point because it really is that important. without enough sleep, you can’t concentrate, you’re irritable, hungry, impatient and anxious — but i don’t need to tell you, right? we’ve all been there. here are 9 tips to get the sleep your body needs.

do you have any great productivity tips? let us know in the comments! and now, i leave you with a cute baby kitten…for productivity’s sake!

the post 6 ways to be more productive, according to science appeared first on magoosh blog | high school.

can you answer the question “bro do you even prep?” with “yes, i do! and i got a 1400 or better on the sat!” then we want to give you a free t-shirt (pictured above).

if you use magoosh and scored:

• a 1400 or higher overall on the redesigned sat (or a 2000 on the old test)
• a perfect score on any section (ie, an 800 on reading, writing, or math)

you are eligible for a free t!

here’s how to claim yours:

• once you get your score report, email us at help@www.catharsisit.com with a screenshot of your scores and your mailing address.
• don’t forget to let me know what size you wear! 
• i will send you a t in the mail.

easy enough, right?

if you want double magoosh bonus points (and our eternal gratefulness!), once you get your tee, send us a picture! we have magoosh students all over the world (in 163 countries, to be exact), and we think it would be really cool to see pics of magoosh students in a bunch of different places. simply because…you guys are awesome! 

the post magoosh t-shirt program: score a 1400+ on the sat, get a free shirt! appeared first on magoosh blog | high school.

today, we’re hearing about jen’s experience with the sat. she has some great tips on studying (and on life as well!). thanks, jen!  

about me: hello! my name is giang but everyone calls me jen. i’m an exchange student from vietnam and now living with my host family in mccordsville, indiana. this cultural exchange program has encouraged me to come back to the united states in order to study hospitality management. i will probably apply to indiana university or purdue university with acceptance of financial aid or a high scholarship. of course, the sat is one of the main factors to help me achieve this goal. outside of school, studying, college, and a billion serious things in the “adult world”, i have tons of interesting hobbies. i love trying new things, outdoor activities, traveling, drawing (emphatically), playing piano and guitar. helping people is a source of my happiness and spending time with my families (now i have 2) can’t be replaced by anything.

how did the sat become my biggest enemy?: i can hardly hate anything in my life (i think my life is awesome!) until the sat became the biggest challenge for me on the path to college. seriously, i even cried before sleeping because my sat score on the practice test was terrible. so the first challenge i had to overcome was my abhorrence for the sat. the second one is probably the critical reading section (i mean…who doesn’t struggle with this?). before i came to the united states, i rarely read books in english. i would blame myself for being lazy. the challenge is i can’t comprehend what i just read or understand why the author mentions this or that, blah…blah… sometimes the context or topic is not familiar to me so i had to reread it over and over again and still barely grasp the meaning of the passages.

how did the sat become my teacher?: each difficulty is an opportunity and i find it completely right in this situation. the sat really requires persistence and a lot of determination if you want a high score. critical reading taught me to read actively. i would never force myself to pay attention to the detail and understand the reading if this section in the test had not challenged me. i understand that when i get into college, reading is an extremely important skill. this is a great opportunity for me to practice and improve my comprehension. math taught me to use strategies to win because this section is sometimes very tricky. it’s a lesson of life. writing trained me to focus on necessary parts – parts that give me points. as long as i understand what the graders need, i will write the right sentence that they look for. also, i really like to write and express myself so learning new words helps me use a variety of vocabulary and sound smart. i can see the improvement in my writing over time. oh, i forgot to mention that i really like the sat essay questions (although the essay section intimidates me most). they are always important lessons or controversial problems in our society – worthy of thinking about.

how did i become a good student of the sat?: i forced myself to stay positive and focus (one of my biggest problems). before the first time i took the sat, i had several things to work on. first, i printed a pile of sat new words which at the time i knew none of them. i set a goal of 20 new words a day, no delay. because of my forgetful brain, i can’t memorize formulaic and boring things. i came up with interesting stories or related concepts to help me memorize new words. for example, “callow” makes me think of “low” so it means immature, inexperience, low. another way that has helped me a lot is to learn prefixes, suffixes and the roots of words or etymology. believe me, these are incredibly useful. traditionally, students make flashcards or things like that but these ways make me die in boredom. so, be creative with everything you do. with math, i studied formulas and did a lot of practice exercises. except those who are math geniuses – they just do it. i can’t. the only thing that helped me is to believe working hard will pay off. the writing section is even really like math, even the essay. i recommend the book “how to ace the sat essay even when you hate to write”. i raised 3 points in my sat essay. of course, i had to write almost 20 essays to practice, not only reading the book would give me such an improvement. (duh!) as soon as you get familiar with the format of the test, types of questions, formulas, the length and time of the test, you will feel comfortable with it.

okay. just giving advice may not be persuasive enough. this is what i got on my first test: 1490. it couldn’t be worse. i’m not embarrassed to share this with you because it’s not about the score. it’s about how i overcame myself and made improvement. the second time i got 1720. it’s not high but not bad. i raised 230 points in almost 2 months. i practiced with the magoosh one-month study guide and it was incredibly helpful. i was persistently doing the practice questions every single day and keeping track of my improvement data. i’m telling you: it was difficult but i did it. don’t hesitate to ask questions. magoosh supporters are the most enthusiastic and conscientious people. however, remember to check carefully before asking. that way you will be able to kind of self-criticize a little bit.

thank you for reading this super-long post. i hope students who have just started studying for the sat test will not freak out and those who are trying to achieve a 2000 on sat like me will get what they want eventually we can all do it.

feeling inspired? check out magoosh sat and find the prep plan that’ll help you become a better sat student!

the post student post: jen’s experience with the sat appeared first on magoosh blog | high school.