luigi40,
If/when expression is no good. If implies doubt.
No actually when you say that, it's your subconscious mind sreaming out your doubt. Notice it and ask yourself why do you doubt? Why are you setting yourself up for failure (virtually garanteed when you say "if I"). Is it something you don't really want to achieve because you are already within your comfort zone or is it the fact that achieving proficiency does not guarantee the life you imagined?
How can you snip the gap between where you are now and where you want to be by, doing whatever it takes to get to there?
There is no simple formula for striking out doubt but there is a powerful formula for manifesting the outcome you desire. It is your intention.
Intention is what you need when you come face -to-face with something you don't want to do. To say it is boring is really saying it's something you don't want to do. How do you know? Because it's not boring to everyone, some people, yes. You've included yourself in the group that doesn't really want to do it.
What makes it boring is the fact that you have no interest in it and no expectation or intention to be interested enough in it to study it well enough to get your best passing grade.
How can you build interest in a topic that doesn't interest you?
Purpose.
Okay your propose to become proficient isn't working. Why would you want to become proficient in something you don't want to do? But it is part of the whole, of the something you do want to do?
You need to know this to enough to get a passing grade so you can focus on the rest of your studies. Would that be a fair statement? It's part of the course requirement and you probably only want or need to know it well enough to tell a prospective employer what you know about it and then know it well enough so you know the other guy or gal is doing that part of the job well enough so you can do the work you enjoy.
Face your fears, face your boredom and then expect the best possible outcome. Don't let it bore you into inaction. Create a purpose and set the timer and activate the book with that purpose in mind.
Another way of looking at what a purpose is...
It's your excuse for doing something.
It's merely your reasoning for doing what you plan to do and it's usually helps you to reach a specific out come.
Purpose, to read this book and prepare for the exam as quickly as possible so I still have can go surfing today. Is a fair a purpose as to read this book and prepare for the exam so I can have career in computing support. Your purpose for a book today may not be the same as your purpose tomorrow.
And remember your purpose acts like a spotlight to the activation questions. You now know what you need to know to get to where you are going. If you don't know your purpose you don't know when you are done either.
A sidetracked story about purpose.
My nephew aged 7 decided to try and kick his shoe over a six foot fence. His purpose was "to see if he could do it" by kicking his shoe. His goal was "to get the shoe over the fence". He knew he was done when he got the shoe over the fence. It took a few goes and he wasn't the only one trying he was the only one who was successful. HIs success helped the others to realise there was a problem with getting the shoe back.
He spent the afternoon stewing because he was worried about how his mum would react when she learned he only had one shoe because the other was on the other side of the 6 foot fence outside of the school grounds and how it got there.
When his mum asked, "why did you do it?" His answer was, "I don't know."
His brain is locking on the path of hiding his purpose, it wasn't a brilliant purpose but he had one when he did it. Because we all had purposes that weren't brilliantly thought through when we were growing up we all learned to say I don't know why someone asked us why we did it or why we are doing it.
Take the time to undo the learned response "I don't know", when you ask yourself what your purpose is. There always is one and often you can string together a better one than your 7 year old mind is acustomed to creating.
If you don't know what your purpose is, ask yourself, 'well what's the point?' And you'll discover you do need to dig deeper for a meaningful purpose.
If you tell me you are reading a book or studying something and don't have a purpose or point for doing it. I offer this advice.
For goodness sake do something worthwile with your time. If there is no purpose for doing it why do it?
Sorry if the post is a tad long. The topic of purpose is an interesting one I probably should write a book about it. 
Alex
[This message has been edited by Alex K. Viefhaus (edited May 31, 2005).]
