Half the grade in life is just being in the room when things get explained.

A lot of what looks like talent is really attendance. The people who are there when something gets explained get it once, cleanly, with the chance to ask. Everyone else reconstructs it later from a photo of somebody’s notes, which costs more and works worse. Showing up is unglamorous and it quietly does half the job.

Protect the sessions where new things are introduced, even on the days you are tired. If you genuinely cannot be there, ask one person what the new idea was, not just what the homework is.