Khatzumoto over at AJATT tells the story of how he found “little and often.” It is the concept of doing something in small chunks consistently, rather than a several hour session occasionally. This lines perfectly with using SRS. Instead of holing up for several hours at the library for a few nights, it is much more efficient and fun to study in bite size few-minute pieces per day.
Most classes I average under 5 minutes per day to review Anki cards. Usually when I wake up, a few minutes before class, right after getting back from a meal, before going out, a quick break between reading and watching a movie, etc. There are tiny little cracks in the day that can be filled with quickly reviewing Anki cards. It can be done in one swoop all together, or microscopic two-card-per-session divisions. Completely up to you. I like to stop whenever it becomes frustrating and ceases to be fun.
How often to study? Everyday is a fair goal. “I never have the time!” is heard often. However, they have time to cram for 12 hours in 2-3 days before an exam. Where did all this time come from? (See: Inflating Effort). It is more efficient to spread 2 hours (for very difficult courses) over a few weeks than 6X that amount in two days. Everyone can spare a few minutes a day to study. 15 minutes less Facebook time per day to prepare for courses. This is fair considering all the time saved in the long run.
As I type this I realize what Khatzumoto also discusses: how people want to travel the path of least resistance. They have time to watch 4.5 hours of television per day, yet the 20 minutes worth of homework goes unfinished or spread out over several hours because of half-effort. SRS is a great cure for this. Studying is far more manageable and fun with quick little wins than an ambiguous few-hour boring session at the library. SRS is quantifiable. Anki shows exactly how many cards were studied and added each day. Setting a minimum personal goal will lead to another “Win.”
A few years ago I read the results of a study on BBC. The study analyzed the factors that made projects most successful for men and women. Men that kept a consistent log of their activities managed to achieve more and keep the project. Women that discussed their project accomplishments with people close to them also achieved more and continued their project. I have experienced this with keeping a log for the gym, and my Victory Wall. It makes sense for anyone to keep a log of their activities like the Victory Wall. I rarely discuss it, though I know it is important to keeping me going. Women may find talking about their accomplishments would help remain consistent.