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writing
Writing your worries down fixes your focus.
In a 2011 study, college students who wrote about their anxieties before an exam performed significantly better than those who did not.
Writing acts as a cognitive outlet, offloading the memory burden of stressful thoughts. By externalizing the worry, you free up the mental capacity required for complex problem-solving.
Your brain performs better when it is not carrying the mental load.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Ramirez and Beilock, 2011, Science
- What the check found
- The study exists and confirms the claim, though it is specifically relevant to highly anxious students rather than the entire student population.
- Confidence
- Solid, with limits
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.