Have you heard of the Merlin Principle?

During the course of their academic careers, students will hear a lot about many different study techniques: how to work harder, faster, better, how to set and work toward a 

specific goal.

The Merlin Principle takes that process and reverses it - students are asked to work backwards from a given target. 

This principle is applied every day in the business world. We ask ourselves where we need to be a week before our completed goal, two weeks, a month; in doing so, we create a pathway between where we intend to be and where we are, working backwards from our goal as we return to our starting point - the present. This technique can be incredibly helpful in charting a course toward ultimate success.

This month, we'll guide you through the process and provide an informative framework within which students and their support teams (tutors, parents, peers) can work. 

At Academic Success, we're devoted to giving our students the very best techniques with which to gain that critical edge in the quest for high achievement. 

Please call with any questions at (310) 823 4398 or

All the best,

Jamie

"The more technique you have, the less you have to worry about it. The more technique there is, the less there is."

                                                    - Pablo Picasso

Goals To Milestones To Tasks 

 

That is the phrase that best encapsulates the Merlin process: reducing large, ambitious goals into smaller, achievable parts. This list of things commonly done by highly productive people begins with the focus on this month's issue: knowing how to work backwards from our goals. 

 

In order for students to be able to effectively use the tool of working backwards from a goal, it can be helpful to first visualize themselves reaching their destination. This strategic guide to meditation and visualization is a terrific first step in creating a pathway to realizing our dreams.

Laying Down Markers 

This helpful, informative article, featured in the University of Wisconsin newsletter, guides students through the process of projecting ourselves forward to long-term, short-term and immediate goals, with an emphasis on solving the problems that impede a student's quest for greater success.

 "Backward Design" Resurrecting Students

While many students will use the Merlin Principle, or Backward Design as it is often called, to reach goals within the school year, sometimes educators need to take a longer view. This inspiring story details the success of a Florida public school system that laid out a detailed 5-year plan for at-risk kids, working backwards to achieve amazing results.

 Merlin Works In Business

Although this incredibly effective technique will be mostly used by our readership in the short term for study, this instructive article demonstrates that it can be used in all areas of life: academia, athletics, the creative fields and, of course, business.

 Breaking Time Into Bite-Sized Pieces 

While it may be an admirable goal to spend an entire evening at one's desk tackling multiple study assignments, many students often find it difficult or even impossible to go the distance. A four-hour block of time can seem daunting, like a mountain that's impossible to climb.