If you are in need of an ally.

NovLSAT2019

With the June exam quickly approaching, I know that some of you, like me, are quite stressed, I just wanted to be a good friend and share a few things I repeatedly say to myself in my car on my way back from studying:

1) YES, preparing for the LSAT IS stressful, especially, like many things in life, if this is the first "real thing".

If you are stressed, you are stressed, and it's perfectly OK to be stressed about it.

2) Do NOT let your friends and/or family say/do some form of the following to you:

I. Compare you to "a friend" that scored 170+ with three months of casual studying and destroy your morale.
II. Tell you that, "it's like any other SAT's, I've taken (SAT X here) before so I just need to figure out how the test works".
III. Tell you that, "my friend's a lawyer and told me that you can't improve more than 5-10 points even after studying".

I don't know about you guys, but I don't think one can simply "figure out" this test on the ground that they've taken other SAT's. Come to think of it, what a very shitty thing of him to say. I hope he steps on dog poop on his way to work tomorrow morning.

“When I say that evil has to do with killing, I do not mean to restrict myself to corporeal murder. Evil is that which kills spirit. There are various essential attributes of life -- particularly human life -- such as sentience, mobility, awareness, growth, autonomy, will. It is possible to kill or attempt to kill one of these attributes without actually destroying the body. Thus we may 'break' a horse or even a child without harming a hair on its head. "

wink

3) If you are struggling with ANYTHING from LR, LG, RC, or whatever LSAT in general, don't worry, it means that you are learning. If your head is throbbing after intense study sessions, and you are truly annoyed and frustrated, it means it's working and learning is taking place.

YES, it means it's functioning! It's being stretched! It's learning!

4) You are NOT lazy for taking a day or two or even three off because you feel like you just can't do it anymore.

I know that many people, including myself, have issues forgiving, therefore allowing, yourself to truly enjoy the rest. When I'm not understanding a passage, or a game, or some LR question, I personally had a hard time putting my pencil down and tell myself "it's ok, it might not be right now, but it will come". It was usually something like, "what the fuck is wrong with me why am I so retarded? goddamnit I hate myself", and go outside to smoke. I realized that there's a fine line between being critical and being abusive to oneself.

"Since God forgives us, to fail to forgive ourselves is to hold ourselves higher than God---thereby indulging in the sin of perverted form of pride."

I'm not in any way trying to start anything related to any form of religion. The book happened to be written by a psychiatrist who based his ideas on Christian doctrine...

5) For god's sake, you can do it, don't give up

Don't. Give. Up.

keets993

Yess 100%! Also, can I add, postponing or needing more time than you thought you would doesn't make you dumb or reflect on your character. It's normal and natural.

studyingandrestudying

Thank you for this. A question: What do you do when you don't understand the stimulus? I know about skipping, but what else? Thanks!

NovLSAT2019

@lsatplaylist said:
Thank you for this. A question: What do you do when you don't understand the stimulus? I know about skipping, but what else? Thanks!

I mean, honestly, for me, drilling RC helps. I've been drilling RC for past week and I started drilling LR today. The density and complexity of RC passages help so much with LR stim comprehension. I'm sure there's a multitude of ways to approach your question, but that's what worked for me.

keets993

@lsatplaylist try to figure out what's confusing you, the content or the structure. Sometimes, if the grammar or content confuse me, breaking the stimulus down to its structure helps. If it's content you're unfamiliar with, try googling the idea or watching a video on the topic to help with your understanding.

mew41195

4 is HUGE and so important - i'm going on month 8 of pretty intense studying and still feel the "rest day guilt" like no other... your brain is like a muscle group in your body - you CANNOT train it everyday and expect it to perform at peak all the time! take a day, watch a movie, and sleep that extra hour.

Admin note: edited out “#”

teamteamvicster

I've read this post so many times lately!

smallkenya

Thanks for this post; I really needed it!

sjiang666

Thx for the post!

NovLSAT2019

Hah! I came back to this post after a dismal descriptive flaw and method of reasoning drilling session. Awesome. Hope you guys are staying strong!

https://y.yarn.co/0b2656e5-2542-475f-8e12-fced278b78d9_text_hi.gif

samantha.ashley92

Number 4 is exactly what I need to keep reading! I'm trying to not get burnt out, but it's so hard for me to take an extra day (or even a half-day) for myself when I planned to study. Thanks!

ebalde1234

Bless your soul , hang in there, sending you good karma

westher008

Thanks for this post!! I, too, am taking the June exam. I am spending this last week reviewing LR and RC with Khan Academy. I figured out the exact question types I was getting wrong consistently on LR (as well as RC), so I'm reviewing only those. I figured that if I master those, I can get closer to perfect.

NovLSAT2019

I’ve seen many people compare the LSAT as learning to play and master a musical instrument. I agree. Here’s a little insight from the Distinguished Professor of Indiana Univeristy’s Jacobs School of Music, Janos Starker (god rest this incredible man’s soul).

The actual content I want to share with you is from 1:23 - 2:14.

KeepCalm

Thank you @BrianSeo :')