Stop Letting Organic Chemistry Scare You
Look, I get it. Organic chemistry has a reputation. Professors flex with surprise quiz questions, lectures feel like they’re written in hieroglyphs, and the whole class is branded the “weed-out course.” I hear the same line every semester: “I’m smart, but orgo terrifies me. I freeze on tests. One quiz feels like it could end me.”
Here’s the truth you probably don’t want to hear: Fear doesn’t make you fail. Lack of strategy does.
You didn’t bomb that first quiz or midterm because of the scary professor who “can’t teach.” You failed because you ignored the first red flag of confusion and chose not to do anything about it. And if you just got the urge to hit the “X” button and close this page, yeah, I struck a nerve.
Your professor isn’t the villain here (even if he feels like one). His random curveball questions? Just noise. What matters is whether you can step back, recognize the underlying pattern, and apply it under pressure. That’s all organic chemistry really is: patterns stacked on patterns.
“But I Wasn’t Taught That!”
Do you know how many times I’ve heard that line (or some variation of it)? If I had a quarter for every time…
Here’s a hard pill: you’re in college now. That means you take charge of your education. Most students roll in with a high school mindset: show up, memorize a few paragraphs, sit in the front row, call it a day. Sorry, nope, that’s not how it works.
As someone who taught college for years, I’ll tell you straight: I don’t care if you come to lectures. Of course, I’d like you there, and yes, it’s useful. But your education is in your hands. Professors aren’t here to hold your hand, coddle you, or (true story) tuck you in by 10pm because mom asked the department to make sure.
And honestly? Any professor who takes attendance in a college class has forgotten what their job really is. But I digress.
Now, think of the size of your orgo textbook, probably 1,500 pages. One semester? Half of that. You’re looking at ~50 pages a week. Doesn’t sound bad until you realize it’s dense technical material, not a beach novel. Add homework, labs, extra problems, recitations… suddenly, it’s hours every day.
And what do most students do? Open the book, try one problem, don’t “get it” immediately, panic, blame the professor, slam the book shut, and promise to try again “tomorrow.” But tomorrow, the sun is shining, the birds are singing… and nothing gets done.
Here’s the truth: you have to choose to push through the pain of organic chemistry. You have to choose to endure frustration and climb over it.
“But I Studied and I Understood Everything!”
No, you recognized it. That’s not the same thing.
“Oh yeah, I remember seeing this in lecture” ≠ “I can solve this from scratch on a blank page.” Recognition is not mastery.
So what do you do instead? Let me hit the highlights:
- Own the process. Stop waiting for hints. Professors won’t hand them out. Ask: What concept is being tested here? Acid-base? Stereochem? A mechanism? Translate the question into English before you write a single arrow.
- Practice deliberately. Doing 50 problems badly isn’t studying. Doing 5 problems well—and explaining every step as if you’re teaching it—is. Quality beats quantity. Always.
- Build scar tissue. Failure on a quiz isn’t fatal; it’s training data. Every mistake is a red flag pointing at a weak spot. Circle it. Learn it. Move on.
Here’s the kicker: you can learn orgo. I’ve worked with thousands of students who swore they “weren’t chemistry people.” Spoiler: chemistry doesn’t care about your feelings. It rewards persistence, strategy, and grit.
So stop making orgo bigger than it is. Stop letting fear run your study habits. This class isn’t a monster, it’s just patterns in a scary costume. Strip it off and it’s just another puzzle. (Imagine Scooby-Doo reveal here because why not.)
And if you want frameworks, practice, and coaching that actually cuts through the noise? That’s literally why this site exists.
Fear won’t pass the class for you. But you will, if you show up and do the work even when it feels scary or overwhelming.
