I just finished reading Smarter Better Faster by Charles Duhigg and found it to be very useful for finding ways to increase focus, motivation, and productivity with my LSAT studying. It is also very readable since the gist of the book is structured around storytelling.

Full disclosure: My bachelors degree is in cognitive psychology and I love behavioral science, so I might have gotten carried away a bit with the length of this post, but I do believe that the using psychology to master the LSAT is necessary for doing well.

Here’s the stuff I found most useful for LSAT prep:

Ch.1 - Motivation:

Positive emotional reward linked to making decisions (gained through experience) AND belief in having control over our lives and surroundings AND linking mundane tasks (such as studying) to greater purpose or personal values, thus transforming them into a choice —> motivation to act

(Yes, those three conditions are sufficient for motivation, according to science.)

Motivation depends on emotionality.

Motivation is a skill that can be learned and honed, not a static personality trait.

Following a success, praise yourself for hard work, not your intelligence. (Focusing on static traits like intelligence shuts down motivation.)

Ch. 3 - Focus:

This chapter was most useful to me. The author talks about the concept of mental models (a story of what should happen in a future scenario) and how they can help combat cognitive tunneling (focusing one irrelevant or insufficient thing due to being overwhelmed by information) and reactive thinking (reacting to external stimuli randomly or as they arise instead of intentionally).

Mental modeling works in several ways. It helps us know what information to pay attention, because we already have a plan, so that we are better able to successfully complete a stressful/high-risk task. The author uses a story of a pilot successfully landing a totally wrecked plane and it was very relatable to trying to answer an LR question with a seemingly incomprehensible stimulus on a timed PT…

Mental modeling also provides us with a picture of what a situation should like, and when it doesn’t look that way, an alarm goes off in our head and we fix it, rather than proceeding with the bad strategy. To increase focus and avoid distraction or mistakes, the author hence recommends visualizing the anticipated task. For example, I have a hard time not getting distracted during LSAT studying by other tasks, and mental modeling allows me to set an intention and better catch myself when I deviate from what I intended to do, such as browsing the Discussion Forum instead of BR or forgetting to identify the premises and conclusions in an argument stimulus in LR.

Cognitive tunneling and mental shutdown (the flight or fight mentality that the CC talks about leading to inability to do higher order thinking) is exactly what happens to me when I get stuck while studying or a timed PTs, so it has been useful to try to transform material and strategies from the CC into mental models of what I should be doing instead of panicking. I think that the mental model idea works for individual small tasks, like answering specific question types on LR, as well as for whole sections, such as creating a mental model for active reading during RC (still a bit of a struggle for me). Another useful mental model might be for remaining calm, focused, and confident for the actual LSAT. You can practice mental modeling anytime - while commuting, cooking, showering… In relation to LSAT prep, it’s just another way of studying, but it can also be applied to any aspect of your life.

“Mental models help us by providing a scaffold for the torrent of information that constantly surrounds us. Models help us choose where to direct our attention, so we can make decisions, rather than just react.”

The concepts mentioned in the book definitely overlap with recommendations for studying and test taking form the CC, not that 7sage needs even more proof of being effective :).

Ch. 4 - Goal Setting:

Pairing two types of goals:

Ch. 6 - Decision Making:

Decision making is integral to the LSAT - choosing the right answer, choosing what to focus attention on, choosing when to skip questions…

ability to envision what will happen next (“forecasting”) probabilistically AND comfort with doubt (knowing what you don’t know) AND realistic assumptions —> good decision making

We have a success-bias, i.e. we tend to notice success more than failures, even though failures offer more insight on how to succeed, in other words, not fail. (focus on areas of struggle in LSAT prep instead of searching for ways to increase score)

Ch. 8 - Absorbing Data:

data must be understood and then applied to be useful (e.g. actually formulate study plans out LSAT Analytics page on 7sage; active reading)

large amounts of data can best be absorbed by asking series of questions (e.g. while digesting a complex LR stimuli ask: what are the Ps and C? what is the strength of support? are there any assumptions?…)

hand-written notes are the most effective because the disfluency of hand-writing forces us to take more time to reformulate the information. I believe that everyone should take comprehensive notes by hand while doing the CC.

If any of this spoke to, do yourself a favor and read the relevant parts of the book, I’ve tried hard to summarize it accurately here but you will get much more from the book :)

What do y’all think? Has anyone else read this?

What mental models would you make for studying for the LSAT?