The 9 Secret Skills

OF

Straight A
Students

Daniel “Jay” Jones /// @thelearningjay

 How I went from
struggling,
to scoring straight
A’s and landing
offers from the top
universities in the uk.

Hi There, I’m Jay!

At present, I’m a straight A student with offers to study at a

number of the top 5 universities in the UK (and top 10 globally).
Before, people would’ve thought of me as an average student.
There was nothing exceptional about me, and as a matter of
fact it always seemed to take me a lot longer to learn what
others could in minutes. I’m talking extra hours. While my grades
used to fluctuate, for the past few years I have been a straight A
student.

I was putting hours of additional work into my learning, seeking

help from tutors, and testing out every study technique that I
heard about. It seemed like nothing could possibly help me.

Quickly I became burned out. I was stressed. I felt guilty for

taking so long to grasp topics that seemed so simple to others.
As you’d expect, after a few years of this, my mental health
declined, my grades ebbed-and-flowed, and my understanding
of my subjects never really took off.

That was until I watched a video by Jim Kwik, a self-proclaimed

“brain coach”, who suggested that it wasn’t necessarily about
how much hard work you put in and neither was it about how
much external help you received, but that it was the way you
APPROACHED learning that had the biggest impact.
SO what is the right way to approach learning?

Well, the right approach is based entirely on INTERNAL skills. The

type of skills that you consistently find in the top-performing
students, this includes learning quickly, having a rock-solid
memory, and having the ability to solve problems both
efficiently and effectively!

I knew that the moment I began to follow this approach, I would

become “smart”. This lead to me going on a journey to master
the “Smart approach” to learning, and after a few short months I
went from struggling, to exceeding. Scoring numerous A* grades
across a series of final exams all while being able to
simultaneously manage my own business, social life, and health.

But what’s more, by learning the smart approach to learning, I

have been able to help hundreds of students to take control of
their education by applying the same, life-changing skills.

This smart approach is about more than achieving the higher

grades it makes possible, it’s about the long-lasting transferable
impact it can have on your life, mentally, socially, academically,
and professionally. These skills can help you earn more money,
perform better in your future jobs, and balance your time more
freely.

Tie all of this together, and this became the first major turning
point in helping me finally realise how important the way we
approach learning truly is.

Make sure to take this guide in depth, because I am sharing

EVERYTHING about the 9 skills that turned me from an
inconsistent, burned out student to a serene, straight A student,
with offers to study at some of the world’s leading global
universities.

In order for you to get the most out of this guide, please make
sure to read the next page very carefully.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

For best results

Here’s how you should use this guide:
1. Grab yourself a pen and some paper.
2. Take summary notes on each topic after reading. 3.
Actively apply what you learn ASAP.
4. Complete every JQ Question
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Why use this guide?

The link between success in the
present & success in the future.
Your Ability to Achieve Grades
Matter A Lot.
There are so many reasons as to why your grades
matter.

Fundamentally, grades are hugely important if you

intend on accessing higher education within a top
organisation as the best colleges and universities
often require specific entry requirements.

Another aspect, professionally (and personally)

speaking, is the related idea of being a high achiever.
We all know what it’s like to hang out with somebody
who’s passionate and a high-achiever. And yes,
recruiters do love this in a candidate, but on a
personal side you should always be aiming to better
yourself, and what better way than to challenge
yourself to succeed academically?

I’ve always believed you should be the role model

that you wish you had growing up, and one of the
best ways to do this is to push yourself to achieve
academically.

Whether it’s personal, professional, financial, or

contextual goals, this guide is a fantastic tool to
achieve any of the aforementioned objectives.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

The 2 types of approach

The Performance-Based Approach &
The Internal-Based Approach
What Makes a Smart Approach?
A Smart Approach to Learning is the
key to unlocking your academic
potential across each and any of your
courses.
They can improve your interdisciplinary performances, such as your
performance in Mathematics, English and the Sciences, whilst also improving
your personal performance in the way you lead your day to day life, your mental
performance in how you manage day-to-day stresses and problems, and also
your cognitive performance in how you manage your tasks, memory,
understanding, and of course both your Academic, and Emotional Intelligence.
Even if you’re not currently a student, learning the Smart Approach to Learning
will be the key to unlocking your limitless potential, individually, academically,
and professionally.

Without these approaches people will find themselves struggling to achieve

good grades, taking longer to improve in their studies, and will likely find
themselves suffering from declining confidence and negative self-talk. However,
with the Smart Approach, students and professionals alike easily achieve their
academic, professional, and personal goals with ease while still having more
time to do what they love and enjoy.

The Performance-Based Approach & The Internal-Based Approach

The Performance-Based The Internal-Based

Approach Approach

These help you to determine This approach aims to keep you ahead
performance across every subject, of your class with ease, saving you time
including marks in exams and and getting the most out of every hour
assessments. of work.

There are 3 main components to There are 6 main components

the Performance-Based relating the the Internal Based
Approach: Approach:

1.Learning-to-Learn 1.Focus
2.Memory 2.Collaboration
3.Problem Solving 3.Health and Fitness
4.Time
5.Motivation
6.Pressure Tolerance
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #1

How To Learn Anything Fast (any
difficulty)
(LEARNING HOW TO LEARN)
Smart Study Approach #1
How To Learn Anything Fast (any
difficulty)
After learning what you need to know, the next critical next step is making sure
you don’t forget it. Without having a strong memory of what you need to know
your mind will feel like it’s gone blank in exams leading to you struggling to
answer questions and lowering your grades. Once you work on building an
improved memory and knowledge of the study skills needed you will never
forget what you need, and your exams and class will become light-work.

TACTIC #1: HIERARCHICAL TACTIC #2: SPACED

MIND MAP TESTING
To strengthen your memory of a wholeTo combat the decline in your memory
subject or topic the key is in creating awe can use the tactic of spaced testing.
mind map that has a clear hierarchy.There are 2 parts to this tactic. The first This
means you start with the mainis making sure you are testing yourself topic in the
middle, subtopics branchingon what you need to know (active
off of it then individual main points off ofrecall), you can complete a topic test or
those subtopics. This mind map shoulda complete practice paper but the key
cover all the key points from theis to make sure you repeat these tests syllabus as
mentioned in Secret #1. Withevery 1,7,14,28 days. This is the ideal
this you will never forget what you needtesting schedule but feel free to fit these
for every subject and every exam.tests in when you can over time.
Smart Study Approach #1
How To Learn Anything Fast (any
difficulty)

TACTIC #3: FEYNMAN TECHNIQUE

To strengthen the depth of your knowledge on a particular topic we can use
the Feynman Technique. This is where you take a topic you have previously
learned and you break the content down from its very complex form, to a
simple explanation. The key is to act as if you are explaining the topic to a five
year old, as in learning it is said that to become an expert at something, you
must begin to teach it. One easy way to do this, is to create a mindmap, or
bullet pointed list of the key aspects of a topic, and change the wording to
become more fluent.

TACTIC #4: ACTIVE RECALL

To instantly reinforce what you have just learned or read it is crucial to
actively engage your brain, one way to do this is Active Recall. Active recall is
where after initially learning something, in order to review it you ask yourself
to write down and explain a topic fully without referring to your notes and
once you do this, your second step is to refer to the source material and take
note of any gaps and finally fill them in and test yourself again.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #2

How To Remember Everything You
Learn With Ease
(MEMORY MASTERY)
Smart Study Approach #2:
How To Remember Everything
You Learn With Ease
The ability you have to learn and properly understand information is
critical to how you answer exam-related questions, and even how you
remember the information in the first place. Without having the ability
to learn everything across your courses’ modules, all of the content and
all of the key concepts, you will struggle. The good thing is that this side
of learning can easily be improved by employing the right methods
which can instantly improve your comprehension and learning skills.

TACTIC #1: CREATE TACTIC #2: UTILISE A

CONCISE COURSE NOTES
The exams and assessments that you
will inevitably be assessed on are
rooted in the syllabus being taught to
you through your lectures, classes,
and textbooks. The material present in
your course syllabus must then be the
outline of everything testable in your
subjects and your courses. If you want
to learn faster and easier, begin to
create a very concise set of summary
notes that answers the questions
shown to you directly within your
syllabus, including the bullet-points
and key headings. This is one of the
most useful insights when trying to
follow a smart approach to learning.
SECOND BRAIN
In order to learn information effectively
we need to have a place-of-storage
outside our own head where any
information that we need to know and
remember can be organised. This will
be your new way of taking notes, and
we call it our “Second Brain”. Your
second brain can be a book, a folder,
or a digital hub, which contains all of
your mind maps, concise notes,
summary notes, flashcards, and
everything you need to know from
your course. If you want to take a
smart approach to learning, it is
critical that you have this.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #3

How To Score Highly On Every
Assignment & Test
(PROBLEM SOLVING)
Smart Study Approach #3:
How To Score Highly On Every
Assignment & Test
The third Smart Approach to Learning which will help you to maximise
your grades by unlocking your ability to score highly on each exam is
found in how your present what you have learned and also
remembered. The secret here is learning a number of problem solving
frameworks that can package what you know into the exact way
examiners and markers are looking for in the assessments set to you
on your course. Through my 3+ years tutoring and coaching I have built
a number of frameworks to achieve this, with one of the very tactics
shown below.

TACTIC #1: THE EXAM PREP. CYCLE

When you know that an exam is coming up and you want to perform
well, here is the exact, step-by-step process you need to follow:

Step One:
Complete a full practice exam/essay. (Replicate exam conditions)

Step Two:
Mark it and see what topics you performed the worst on.

Step Three:
Take note of the topics you performed the worst on and complete a
full TOPIC test to find which sub-areas within this topic you struggle
with.

Step Four:
Take note of the sub-areas that you struggled at within the topic test.

Step Five:
Revisit the textbook or course videos and complete exercise questions
until you have perfected them.

Step Six:
Repeat this process again and again until you are happy with the
mark you get in step one.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #4

How To Create Internal Motivation
And Feel Excited To Achieve Your
Goals.
(MOTIVATION)
Smart Study Approach #4:
How To Create Internal
Motivation And Feel Excited To
Achieve Your Goals.
Both the amount of work you put in and the quality of that work depend
on how motivated you are to learn and complete it. If you are
unmotivated to learn a module on Maths or Science, you will naturally
put less effort resulting in a lower quality of work, alongside a lower
number of hours put in. The trick to improving your motivation is to
learn how to set goals that you actually care about by working
backwards from your ambitions and creating a plan which you can
execute in small, incremental steps. With this you will begin unlocking
your internal drive to succeed, helping you to stay on track and
consistently put effort into work. Without taking this internal, goal-
setting approach you will find yourself procrastinating and struggling
needlessly.

TACTIC #1: THE 4 STEPS TO FIND & KEEP

MOTIVATION
The best way to find your motivation is to write down detailed
answers to the following questions:

Question One:
What do I want to do with my life once this course is over?

Question Two:
Based on that, what are the final grades that I need in order to
make that happen? (Write in terms of average and absolute
percentages)

Question Three:
At the moment, what marks am I getting in each
subject/module?

Question Four:
Based on my current approach which is getting me these marks,
what do I need to change in my personal and academic life to
make my new goals and grades a reality?
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #5

How To Thrive In High Pressure
Environments
(STRESS MANAGEMENT)
Smart Study Approach #5:
How To Thrive In High Pressure
Environments
At times where our brain experiences stress, it has a negative impact
on the available working memory that we can access. This means that
when we are overwhelmed with stress while sitting an exam, we
become more likely to make small, stupid mistakes, leading to us
choking and losing easy marks. To follow the Smart Student Approach
you will need to learn how to rise to the occasion and fend off stress
using the two following tactics in stress management.

TACTIC #1: PRE-TEST TACTIC #2: BUILDING

JOURNALING
From a scientific standpoint, if we
want to calm down our nerves we
should try to journal each thought
(positive or negative) that comes to
our mind before taking an exam or an
assessment. By writing these thoughts
down, we signal to our brain that we
have acknowledged these thoughts,
allowing the thoughts to come and go
more smoothly, reducing the risk of us
choking or wasting our thoughts on
negative self-talk and validating fears.
Before the next exam you sit, spend 5-
10 minutes doing the following two
tactics and watch how this new
approach helps you to thrive.
STRESS RESILIENCE
Exposure therapy is the idea that if
you struggle with something (such as
stress, or making new friends), the
best way to overcome this struggle is
to increase your exposure to it.
Inherently this tactic is mentally
challenging to initially implement, but
once you do this repeatedly over a
number of days and weeks you will
build up the exposure to become
comfortable under the same pressure
that you previously struggled with. In
education, the best way to do this is to
put yourself in an uncomfortable, new
situation, and complete a FULL
practice exam or essay, in similar
conditions to the ones you’ll be in on
exam day.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #6

How To Focus For Hours On End and
Get More Done In Less Time (Even if
you have AD&HD)
(FOCUS)
Smart Study Approach #6:
How To Focus For Hours On
End and Get More Done In Less
Time
Your brain is a muscle that with the right training, can be developed to
create an uninterruptible level of focus.

As a means to create this immense level of focus, increasing the quality

of your work, and requiring less time to achieve far better results on
your often time-intensive exams, these are the two tactics that I
recommend:

TACTIC #1: ELIMINATE TACTIC #2: TRAIN YOUR

ANY DISTRACTIONS
Wherever your go-to study area is, go
there now and declutter your desk.
Remove all things currently on it, and
then only add back on to your desk
the things that are NECESSARY to help
you get work done (your laptop,
textbook, pen, paper, light, etc). And if
you aren’t currently working at a desk,
make sure that you find one to work
at. Finally, remove your phone entirely
when you are studying. If you take this
approach, you will easily be able to
maintain focus for a longer period of
time.
FOCUS OVER TIME
Everyday for the next week, starting
today, see how long you can stay
focused for. Follow the steps from the
last tactic, and set yourself up at your
desk. Set a stopwatch and see how
long you can stay focused on your
work. Can you maintain focus for 5
minutes? 20 minutes? 2 hours? After
tracking this a few times, you’ll be able
to set an incremental goal for you to
achieve every week so that you can
build up your daily focus to upwards
of 4 hours. This approach is critical to
your success.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #7

How To Manage Your Energy And
Maintain Peak Performance Daily
(HEALTH & FITNESS)
Smart Study Approach #7:
How To Manage Your Energy &
Maintain Peak Performance
If you want to consistently perform at your best day in and day out you
are going to have to keep your mind and your body firing on all
cylinders. Our brain, body, and health are deeply interconnected, and to
achieve the best results over time, you need all of these key players to
be sharp. By improving your health, both physically and cognitively you
will become better at fighting off sickness, maintaining higher energy
throughout the day, and be able to unlock the deep reserves of
untapped potential in your learning. In my research I have found that
there are numerous studies explaining in deep detail that for your brain
to perform its best, our body must too be in good condition, but how
can we make that happen?

TACTIC #1: OPTIMISE TACTIC #2: OPTIMISE

YOUR SLEEP YOUR DIET
We all know the goal quantity of sleepThink about what it is that you eat
is 8 hours per night, but how many ofeveryday. The food you eat turns into
us achieve this? If you want to bringour body’s fuel for the day. A simple
your A game every day, your sleeptest we can do here is to write down
routine is where you should start,how we feel at certain periods of the
focusing on hitting that target of 7-8day after a typical week of eating. Do
hours per night. By sleeping for thisyou find yourself sleepy after
interval you align your circadian andbreakfast? Do you feel lethargic
ultradian rhythms better, improvingaround lunch time? If so, this indicates
your brain’s ability to function. To helpyou should change the way you are
make this 8 hour target realistic, try toeating, and monitor the changes
turn off all screens around an houragain after a week of eating these
before you sleep, while also makingdifferent foods. By learning what foods
sure to be sufficiently active every daykeep you energised and healthy
(go on a walk, a run, play a sport, orthroughout the day, your brain will
head to the gym). I personally like tothank you by becoming more
read for 20-40 minutes before I sleep.cognitively fit than ever before. If you
want to learn more about optimising
your diet for peak performance, I
recommend looking into “Eddie
Abbew”.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #8

How To Build Effective Relationships
With Your Teachers, Friends and
Family
(COLLABORATION)
Smart Study Approach #8:
How To Build Effective
Relationships
Another Smart Approach to Learning is to foster strong, impactful
relationships. This is one of the easiest and fastest ways to improve,
and is why very often, services such as tutoring and coaching are able
to get great results. Improve your relationships with your friends, your
family, and your teachers. Make sure with your friends you spend time
actively enjoying their company and having fun, while also being able
to form serious study groups with the aligned goal of improving. You
become what you surround yourself by. By establishing relationships
with supportive teachers and family members you can create a
relentless aspect of external motivation to keep you on track even when
you feel down and out.

TACTIC #1: FEYNMAN TACTIC #2: EXTRA

TECHNIQUE
As mentioned in a previous Smart
Study Approach, the Feynman
Technique is one of the key ways of
which you can improve your learning
and memory. Another application of it,
is to foster strong relationships by
teaching others what you have
learned, while also organising this
information in a coherent and logical
way. Form a study group for each
course and module you take wherein
each member can take turns in
teaching each other topics to foster
stronger bonds, and even stronger
memory.
FEEDBACK
The people who mark your
examinations and assessments, who
set you assignments, and who have a
major stake in your learning
outcomes, are your teachers. Their
feedback is of the utmost importance.
So, for assignments and exams make
sure you get as much feedback as
possible in order to give you a clear
strategy to follow on how to improve.
When you do this you safeguard
yourself against areas of weakness
and help you to reap the learning
benefits that detailed and honest
feedback can lead to.
 The 9 Secrets of Straight A Students

Smart Study Approach #9

How To Achieve Your Dream Grades
Without Burning Out
(TIME MANAGEMENT)
Smart Study Approach #9:
How To Achieve Your Dream
Grades Without Burning Out
Whether you’re a student or a professional, you have a lot on your plate.
You have so much to manage. Be it hours of required extra-reading on
a particular concept, preparing for an examination, writing reports,
completing assignments, and sitting major exams, not to mention your
personal life. It can be a lot.

By taking the Time Management Mastery approach you enable yourself

to be proactive rather than reactive in getting tasks done, resulting in a
more flexible schedule for you to work around.

TACTIC #1: MONTHLY TACTIC #2: WEEKLY

PLANNER
Keep a digital journal on your phone
to keep track of any upcoming
examinations and deadlines so you
can prepare ahead of time and be
proactive.
PLANNER
Spend some time at the start of every
week to generate a plan of everything
you need to get done to stay on track
on any particular week, ranking tasks
based on urgency, importance, and
whether they are a “want” or a
“required”.

TACTIC #3: DAILY PLANNER

Every night write yourself an action plan for tomorrow. This will consist of 5-10
tasks that you would like to complete tomorrow. Each task should be
organised by which part of your life it affects (finance, personal, health,
educational), as well as an expected duration.
THANK YOU FOR READING
By taking the Smart Approach to Learning you will help yourself
reach milestones you never thought were possible.

I am so excited to hear about your results from following these

approaches, and would love for you to keep me updated on your
journey. Make sure to follow @thelearningjay and tell me about your
progress!

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