• • Kero's Methods of Pulling an All-Nighter • •

Pulling an All-Nighter
A slacker's guide to staying up all night studying
by KerokeroCola


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• Ever had that "Oh Shit!" moment where you realized there's a 100-question quiz tomorrow and you have yet to study?
• Ever put off that paper "just one more day", and then realize there are only 12 hours before it's due?

Don't opt for the failed grade! There's an easy solution: Pull an all nighter!


This guide will help fellow slackers achieve high marks while still allowing the absentmindedness that we all can't shake.

Use these methods to help stay up all night and retain good consciousness--not only that night but the day after, too.



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Part 1: Don't Panic!
Panicking seems the first option. "Oh shit" comes first to mind, followed soon by "I'm screwed," and "What will I do?" You then begin to plot obvious ways of getting an extension that will likely backfire.... None of this will help! So don't do it!

Panicking wastes the valuable time you have left on the paper/studying/etc. It also stresses your body out, and a natural reaction to stress is to sleep. Take a few breaths and use these moments to plan out your next few hours. After all, most papers only take 5 to 10 hours of work. You'll easily be able to get it done.




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Part 2: Prepare Yourself

Unless you're used to staying up for 20+ hours a day, your body will probably want to crash at certain times during the night. This is normal, but luckily there are many things you can do to stop it.

First is the obvious, caffeine. Coffee, soda, tea, energy drinks, energy shots, even tablets. We all have some sort of caffeine in the house. This glorious drug raises your blood pressure and pulse, causing you to become less tired. However, the downside of caffeine is that it can really only last 4 to 6 hours in most bodies, and the crash can be crippling at a crucial moment in the paper-writing process. Plan the caffeine uptake wisely. If you drink an energy drink at 10 PM, you'll probably crash by 4 AM. Use caffeine as a strategic tool to avoid a crash. I typically drink a 5-hour energy at about 2 AM (which is about when I start to get really tired), so that when 7 AM rolls around (just before the crash), my body will be fuelled by the hustle and bustle of the morning. You know your body and schedule, so plan on this.



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Part 3: Be Flexible

Even with a near-lethal amount of caffeine surging through your veins, your attention is likely going to drift, and you may even want to go to sleep. This is normal, so don't plan on devoting a marathon night to the homework. I like to get a small snack (not too much because a heavy meal will make you drowsy!) when I start to drift. You can also shower, drink a glass of very cold water, walk around the house, etc. to shake off the drowsies. Things to avoid are things that involve little attention or action, like watching TV or playing video games. Just don't take too many breaks. Remember, you're staying up because you have homework to do!




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Part 4: Vigilance, my friend.

Even the most mighty warriors feel lost at one point. It's always darkest before it gets lightest, or some garbage cliche like that. :laugh:

If it seems hard, then don't pressure yourself. If you need to, take an extended break. And, if all else fails, at least get something written down on your paper. Turning in a load of BS is still a higher grade than not turning in anything. However, avoid BSing the paper if at all possible. The point if this guide is to help you still achieve a good grade.



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Part 5: The Hangover

Going a day without sleep can be quite an event for some folks. You'll likely have a less-than-great day the next day. Knowing what to expect can help a lot with the aftereffects. These are some aftereffects of a sleepy body:

Extreme drowsiness
Difficulty to concentrate
Lack of appetite
Body aches & headaches
Fatigue
Stress

Staying on-task can also help out. If you're stuck in a boring class, you're at a high risk of falling asleep. Doing something hands-on can keep your brain focused, and keep you distracted from the feelings as well. Also, be sure and allow your schedule for a full night's sleep the next night. You don't want to ruin the whole week because of one missed assignment >_<


Oh, and one last thing. Learn from your mistakes! Try and avoid doing this, as procrastination is not as good as actually doing the work on time. Still, crap happens. You sometimes gotta do what you gotta do. Enjoy.

 

• Ever put off that paper "just one more day", and then realize there are only 12 hours before it's die?


12 hours before it's due*


Otherwise great guide.

Note: Cramming doesn't work, studying in bits and pieces is definitely my recommendation; but as stated, "crap happens".

 

Yes, I wholeheartedly agree. Your brain can retain information much more efficiently if you allow it to digest information in bits and pieces. However, this is better than just taking an F.

 

Great guide, bookmarked =)

 

Amazing guide, I love staying up all night but can never handle it, Another way i found to stay up later is to drink a tablespoon of vinegar, it will straight shock you haha youll be up for awhile

 

This is actually pretty good. I was expecting a half-assed attempt, but I'm impressed.

I'd also mention: Never put yourself into a comfortable position where you're just 'resting your eyes'. Before you know it, 7 o'clock rolls around and you're screwed.

And: Leave the lights on when you work, if possible. Working in the dark strains your eyes, especially when focused on the computer.

Otherwise, really good guide.

 

Surprised none of the UE's have critiqued this, I'm impressed Kero. I'll split my critique into two sections.

Information: This is certainly one of the stronger guides I've seen over the last month or two. Usually when I read a guide I think in my head if there's anything else that could've been included and this is the first time in a while I've been unable to think of any additional information that could be included. I especially enjoyed how you added in an after affects part. You've used good punctuation and the language used is very appealing.

Formatting: Again, strong. Starting with the text, the cyan colour stands out and makes the guide look a lot more fun then it would've if you'd used plain boring text. You've used the colour and font well as it looks good but also hasn't been overdone. The images and .Gifs you've used are also appealing and work with the text, very good.

This is certainly a well worked guide and I hope to see more like this in the future. If you complete an application with guides this good you'll certainly be a strong candidate.

 

Lol this guide is great it includes humour and some great information although if I have big paper I didn't do I usually just fake sick and do it on my day off

 

haha dont we all

I personally loved this guide.

 

Decent guide, good pictures but I would recommend posting oyur source for them (google?). Overall, 8/10 will be sure to use if I need to pull an all-nighter.

 

Hey Kero! It's funny that you choose to write on this topic, because I remember when I first applied for the user Education team I wrote a guide fairly similar to this. (Although I would have to say your guide looks a lot better then mine was at the time )

Anyways, as for your guide I think it looks very good. You have a lot of useful tips that one could use while trying to pull of this feat, and also I really liked the fact that you added in to be careful about your caffeine intake. I say this because when most people think about staying up all night the first thing that pops up in there head is loading up on caffeine, when actually they should be doing the opposite. As for the pictures on your guide, they all look good and go along well with your overall guide. Your grammar looks good which is a big plus, and also all of the steps are fairly detailed.

As for the overall look of the guide, like Brendan said the color is very pleasing to the eye. With that said I don't like the fact that all of the text is centered. It's completely up to you on how you want your guide to look, but personally I think it looks a lot better when you keep away from the centering tool. (i'm not saying completely stay away, but just to not over use it) I've also heard that centering text makes it harder on your eyes to read. Besides that the only thing I can think of is that your spacing is kind of weird, but I do the same exact thing so I cant say much.

 

The only good studying pattern is studying bit by bit.
For example, I have two (somewhat short) exams that are on 31/01 and I've been studying for three weeks now.
This is the -best- and most -simple- strategy you could find, no need to stay up nights.

 

Staying up all night is only good for assignments,
if you study all night for a test and get no sleep at all then you
WILL go worse than if you slept and didn't study at all.

It's proven, as you'll remember what you have learnt in class throughout the year and you'll actually be able concentrate during the test.

 

Well, antman, I rarely go to class I usually just read the textbook that the teacher reads.

Staying up all night is better if you're not prepared at all. However, as everyone is rightly saying, being prepared and not procrastinating is the best bet in any situation.


At brendan and fish: Thanks for your positive feedback. I kinda wrote this just because I had nothing to do a few weeks ago. I've been too busy to come back or even debate if I wanted to apply for UE. I just like to write out stuff; it's fun to play with my writing voice and such.

And at the rest of you: Thanks a lot for your positive comments!

 

Really nice guide, easy to read and appealing.

Good job.

 

Very well written guide. One other strategy you could add is to make sure all the lights are on. Whenever I'm putting an all nighter and the lights are off it makes me want to go to sleep. Also one should sit in a straight up position because if you slack to one side you'll start to feel drowsy as well

 

staying up all night studying - ouch!!! Nice guide tho

 

Caffeine is to wake you up after a full night's sleep or to keep you going for a few hours. It's not made to really keep you up for long periods of time, if you try to do this your body will shut down and you'll fall asleep. Caffeine isn't recommended IMO. Maybe towards the end of the day before you can get home it will work.

 

Good for papers, not test study.
When you study all night for a test and get no sleep at all then you
WILL do worse than if you slept and didn't study at all.

It's proven, as you'll remember what you have learnt in class throughout the year and you'll actually be able concentrate during the test.

 

Great guide.
Points out most of the basic things like Caffeine etc.
But other then that yeah it's good.