Applying Java

I find that if i take a long time to get through a course my retention (and enthusiasm) goes down. I've also found that I take excessive notes that draw the process out, and i'd get sucked into spending half my study time reformatting my (shoddy) notes. Then when i retake the course, i produce another set of equally long notes, rather than focusing on only the stuff i struggle with, and distilling things into a minimal form.

I'd also suggest that you focus on the ideas. If you remember the big ideas (eg. use an intent, then you don't have to remember all of the details but can use google and stackoverflow to piece things together).

You might want to add some details on HOW you're studying.

to get more advice, you could repost while making the question a bit more general (eg. how to make the jump from beginner to expert). Posting under java will immediately eliminate users who are facing similar types of problems while dealing with swift, or c#. you can also use an at symbol and then a name if you want to draw specific users attention (eg. people providing advanced android advice or members of staff) .