I’ve been prepping consistently for the LSAT since around March/April. I was originally going to take the June test but decided to shift to August. So glad I did, I have an underlying concept of logic, etc. Yet on my prep test I still significantly score around the high 140s low 150s. I believe my single biggest issue is the clock. I rush, or I take too long on a question that really doesn’t need much time taken on it. I constantly feel the pressure of the clock. I’ve always preformed on test like this. I know the material, I know what to do, I know I’m able to execute. Once pressure gets involved I crumble underneath it.
Has anyone been able to overcome this? I know the mental capacity to do it is there, I know that I won’t magically be able to ignore the pressure. I’m just hoping for some strategies anyone might have to overcome this hurdle.
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This is more pep talk + reframing + some like introspection advice bc I think overcoming the time thing is part strategy and part mental battle, and the strategy part is just repetition and rationing your time efficiently, which the 7Sage curriculum helps with.
I'm not taking the august test but I took the test 5 years ago at a veryyyyy different time in my life (younger, more anxious, not well-adjusted) and I think I am realizing while studying this go around is to just lean into the fact that the LSAT is like, predictable, super dumb and, in that way, kinda like the toxic ex who repeats the same patterns over and over again. Like I know it's silly to think about it that way, but I feel like I used to be so afraid of the clock (and like I still kinda am), but I'm also kinda treating studying this time around like a debrief with my girlies: like I am manifesting a juicy score that is going to take me places and help me reach my professional goals. PERIOD. Okay but like if the LSAT is a toxic ex, I have to internalize that he's a trifling DUMMY that I can learn from so that the red flags are evident if they cross me again and I don't WASTE my sweet precious TIME. So, as one does with a girlie debrief after a nasty breakup, I will take my time learning and studying all the red flags. And with the LSAT I will take my time to blind review and like BR (just like a debrief) is never wasted time, and then I'm gonna learn to clock all the little tricks and traps. And sure it will take time, that is GROWTH and good growing takes time, and just like a debrief, you learn something new every time and you get better at pattern recognition. And then, I'm gonna take a timed PT and enter it thinking: "this is a trifling ho with red flags and I'm gonna find them and beat his ass" (bc lets be so fr the LSAT is a toxic man), and it's okay if I don't find them all in time I'm gonna keep trying, and eventually the questions will take less time and I will perform how I want.
Okay, extended metaphor aside. As someone who struggles HARD with timed test taking and has for pretty much every standardized test since high school, I'm learning that to overcome this shit, I have to actually just let go of the worry and literally talk to myself in the mirror and tell myself "it's okay if I go 4 min over target on a question, who cares? all that matters is that I get as many answers as I can correct." And like if you are already performing where you wanna be untimed, it sounds like it's just a mental battle that you need to overcome for yourself. Personally, making a little caricature out of an anxiety or a trigger really helps me regain mental control. And right now, I'm treating the LSAT like a toxic ex.
Another thing I'm thinking about is like how deep is the anxiety/pressure? Is it really just the time? Am I subconsciously afraid of exceeding my own expectations and therefore self-sabotaging by spending way too much time on a question when I know I can move on? Like sometimes we will obsess constantly over one tiny thing and lose sight of the big picture, and if time is an issue for your scoring (rather than time + accuracy), then maybe you need to ask yourself "why is the pressure making me crumble?" Is it an LSAT doom spiral of "omg there's only 35 min and 15 min have passed and I'm only on question 7 and shit now this practice test is gonna go terribly and I won't get the score I want and then the actual test will be shit and I won't get into my dream school and fuck now 17 min have gone by"? Whatever your answer is, I personally think it's worthwhile introspecting, talking it out and processing verbally with someone you trust or journaling--whatever your outlet is. I think identifying the source of the pressure will help you a lot. And I don't think it will take that long to overcome it tbh, bc once you know it, you can figure out how handle it (at least that's what I believe).
And let's be real, the LSAT is also the popular girl who wants you to think she's scary and powerful, but like actually she's not, you can literally read her and pick her apart and it sounds like to me @juicydrank you are hardworking and got this and maybe between now and whenever you are taking the test next week, you can do twice a day affirmations that the clock is a POS that doesn't deserve your anxiety or mental energy or LSAT energy. Like seriously I believe in you, and you've got this, bc like you said: you know the material, you know what to do, and you know you're able to execute.
GOOD LUCK GOOD VIBES U GOT THIS