In this article, I'll walk you through how I built my Study Journal—a system that started as a simple Excel spreadsheet and eventually became a full-fledged app. Along the way, I tracked over 2,000 hours of studying and learned a lot about how to optimize my learning process.
1. The Idea: Why I Built a Study Journal
Fall 2014. Finals were coming up in December, and I was sitting in the library with my MacBook, trying to study for my Finance 301 exam.
Something felt off. I had no idea how much work I was actually putting in. No overview, no real plan—my entire study process was a complete black box.
So I opened the App Store, hoping to find something that would help me get my act together. I vaguely remembered reading about the Pomodoro technique somewhere online, and I figured I'd give it a shot. I downloaded a Pomodoro app.
What's the Pomodoro Technique?
It's a time management method where you break your work into 25-minute focused sessions, followed by 5-minute breaks. After four sessions, you take a longer 15-minute break.
The idea is that these short, focused bursts with regular breaks help you work more effectively. (Fun fact: "Pomodoro" is Italian for "tomato"—the technique is named after those tomato-shaped kitchen timers.)
Want to try it yourself? Check out our free Pomodoro Timer.
The Problem with Existing Apps
I used the Pomodoro app for a few days, but it just didn't click. The app only let me do things its way—I couldn't track my study sessions the way I wanted to.
But here's the thing: the idea of documenting every study session fascinated me. I couldn't shake it.
So I opened Numbers (Apple's version of Excel) and started building my own tracking system. My goal was simple: create a little "database" to log my study time.
What did I need? Just three things: the subject, the start and end time, and a quick note about what I worked on.
And just like that, the first version of my Study Journal was born.
2. The Concept: A Tool to Help Me Study More
What gets measured gets managed—tracking makes the invisible visible.
The core idea behind the Study Journal is pretty simple:
More time spent studying beats less time spent studying.
My assumption? The more time you put in, the better your chances of getting a good grade. Sure, there are diminishing returns at some point, but all else being equal, more studying is better than less.
I know this sounds almost too simple—it doesn't account for things like study efficiency. But that's kind of the point.
One Important Distinction
The Study Journal isn't about how you study. It's not about flashcards vs. practice problems, or studying alone vs. in groups. It's purely about measuring how much you study.
As Peter Drucker famously said:
What gets measured gets managed.
That's exactly what my Study Journal does—it's a tracking system that helps me study more by making the invisible visible. Here's how I'd sum it up:
The Study Journal tracks every study session, creates transparency, and motivates me to keep going.
This philosophy of accountability in studying eventually became the foundation for Athenify.
3. How It Works
Over the years, I kept refining the Study Journal semester after semester. At first, I just wanted a clear picture of what I was actually doing—I wanted to see if my gut feeling matched reality.
The Core Data
At its heart, the Study Journal is just a spreadsheet. Each row represents one study session with these columns:
- Date: When did you study?
- Start time: When did you start?
- End time: When did you finish?
- Breaks: Any interruptions or Pomodoro breaks.
- Duration: Net study time (total time minus breaks).
- Solo or group: Did you study alone or with others?
- Type: What kind of work? (Reading slides, solving problem sets, memorizing, etc.)
- Subject: Which class was it for?
- Notes: What specifically did you cover?
Over a semester, you end up with hundreds of these entries. And with basic spreadsheet formulas, you can pull out some really interesting insights.
4. The Evolution: Building Something Better
People always ask me: "Isn't tracking every study session super time-consuming?"
The Real Time Investment
Here's how I think about it. There are two types of costs:
- Setup cost: Building the spreadsheet template. You do this once.
- Logging cost: Recording each session. Takes seconds.
Yes, setting up the template takes an hour or two upfront. But after that? You're good to go for the entire semester.
The Daily Habit
Logging each session feels weird at first, but it quickly becomes second nature. We're talking a few seconds—punch in the time, select the activity type, jot down what you did.
Even if it took a full minute per session (it doesn't), that's less than 10 hours over an entire semester with 500 sessions. In exchange, you get complete visibility into your study habits. Pretty good trade-off.
Today, Athenify's features make this whole process even faster.
5. What the Study Journal Actually Does
What started as simple documentation turned into something much more powerful. I discovered three main benefits:
- Transparency → See exactly what you're doing (Learning Analytics)
- Control → Steer your studying in the right direction (Motivational Tools)
- Understanding → Learn about your own patterns (Insights)
Why This Matters
Structure in the chaos: Let's be honest—studying is often messy and emotional. The Study Journal brings order to that chaos. Every session gets logged the same way, which means you can actually analyze what's happening.
No more guessing: With everything tracked, you can see exactly what you did (and didn't do) each day. You can compare subjects, compare semesters, and spot patterns you'd never notice otherwise.
Built-in motivation: This might be the biggest benefit. The Study Journal pushes you to hit your targets. Tools like the medal table and the share price add extra incentives that really work.
The Dashboard
Eventually, I built a dashboard to see everything at a glance. Here's what I track:
Daily study time: This was huge for me early on. I wanted to know if my actual study time matched how much I felt like I'd studied. Spoiler: it often doesn't. Some days you grind for hours and it feels like nothing. Other days, three hours feels like five.
Time per subject: This shows me exactly how much attention each class is getting. I wanted to know: does study time correlate with credits? With difficulty? Turns out I tend to study less for subjects I actually enjoy. Go figure.
Time by activity type: I first used this when writing my bachelor's thesis. I wanted to see how my time broke down between research, reading papers, outlining, writing, and editing.
7-day average: This graph shows daily study hours with a rolling weekly average (the red line). You can watch it climb as the semester progresses, eventually plateauing around 5 hours per day during finals.
Cumulative time: This one's pretty self-explanatory—it shows your total study hours over time. The curve starts flat at the beginning of the semester, then gets steeper as finals approach.
Gamification: The Secret Sauce
Here's where things get fun. I built in some psychological tricks to keep myself motivated: the medal table and the share price.
The Medal System: I figured out that 5 hours of net study time is my sweet spot. So I started awarding myself medals based on daily performance:
- ≥ 6h: Platinum
- ≥ 5h: Gold
- ≥ 4h: Silver
- ≥ 3h: Bronze
The goal? Collect as many medals as possible. I also try to build streaks—like getting 5 gold medals in a row. It sounds silly, but it works. When you're at 4.5 hours, you really want to push through to gold.
The Share Price: This one's a bit quirky, but bear with me. I set a daily study target, and my performance affects a fake "stock price." Hit the target exactly? Price stays flat. Miss it? Price drops. Beat it? Price goes up.
I even named it after myself (the "von-Hohnhorst stock"). Something about watching your personal stock price rise is weirdly motivating. Learn more about how the share price works.
6. What I Learned About Studying
After years of tracking, I understand my study habits way better. I can compare semesters, predict how many hours I'll need for certain grades, and see what actually works for me.
Insight #1: More Studying = Better Grades
I ran a correlation analysis comparing "study time per credit hour" across semesters. The correlation with GPAGrade Point Average?
The sign is negative because in Germany, lower GPA numbers are better. Bottom line: more studying correlates strongly with better grades. Correlation isn't causation, sure, but it's hard to argue that study time doesn't matter.
Insight #2: 5 Hours Is My Sweet Spot
Through trial and error, I've found that 5 hours of net study time per day is optimal for me. I can push to 6+ hours if I start early and sleep well, but my productivity drops off.
At 5 hours, I stay balanced. I still have energy for exercise, reading, and life outside of studying.
Insight #3: Keep It Simple (80/20 Rule)
My Study Journal sits at the sweet spot between powerful and manageable. Could I add more detailed analytics? Sure. But that would make it too complicated to actually use.
The Pareto principle applies here: 20% of the features deliver 80% of the value. Don't over-engineer it.
Insight #4: Your Gut Is Often Wrong
Some days feel super productive but the numbers tell a different story. Other times, you feel like you barely did anything, but you actually logged 5 solid hours.
The data doesn't lie. That's the whole point.
Insight #5: Preparation ≠ Results (Always)
Here's a tough truth: even with perfect preparation, exams can go sideways. Studying and test-taking are two different skills. You can prepare brilliantly and still have an off day, or get hit with weird questions.
When that happens, review what went wrong and move on. Every exam is a fresh start. The Study Journal helps you nail the preparation—the rest is up to you.
Ready to start your own study journal? Try Athenify for free and discover how thousands of students have transformed their study habits with modern time tracking.
