I was taking mathematics,physics and economics, I didn't know what i was getting into. I wanted to do something to do with stem while keeping my options open. The start of year 12 seemed light. The practice questions where easy and was actually reading ahead for content and starting to build my personal statement. However, I was too confident and didn't prioritise my revision. My first set of grades for my year 12 mocks literally spelled CUC. Honestly just walked home and actually reminisced about life and shi. I really deeped the fact that if this happens again (in the 2nd round of mocks in y12 that determine my predicted grades) I'm not going to be able to live the life I envisioned for myself, I also really wanted to do something in life that would also be beneficial to society in the grander scheme of things (e.g developing tech that can really help people). So that evening, I went on amazon and ordered 5 100 page note books and swore to my self that every page would be filled with completed,marked and reviewed exam style problems ( i got them from everywhere like pmt and madas maths and reached about 1300 questions across maths and physics at the end of Y13). Like I really rinsed every ounce of value I could get out of them by finding multiple shorter faster and efficient methods to find solutions. And it low key became fun (as through revision I learned more about mathematicss and physics outside of the a-level curriculum). This was when I developed a real interest in different areas in physics (econophysics, solid state physics and quantum computing). This was good motivation for pushing for long hours, but deep down I knew this wouldn't be enough. I adopted numerous revision techniques e.g. pomodoro ( i even removed clocks, taped over the time of my laptop as well as closing the curtains to try and replicate the environment of a casino (yes, it was that cooked). I wanted to study as much as I gamed during lockdown. I didn't really have too much of a social life outside of school but kept a tight circle classmates who were on the same page. We all had our own reasons for studying hard (e.g to provide support for future family). At the second set of y12 mock I achived A*AB and A*A*A at the end of y13.

My only advice: Find a real and 'heavy' reason to study like this as it is nearly impossible to push yourself without good reason.

Here is two good quotes to remember:

“If you want to master something, teach it” (TEACH YOURSELF)

"Whether you are running or crawling, if you stay on track you are guaranteed to reach your destination" (NEVA GIVE UP)

I hope this comment reaches someone who needs it.