Am I on the right track?

acta_non_verba

My target score for June is simply a 160-162, which I am fairly confident I can attain. I've taken nearly 10 PTs now and my scores are hovering between the 157-159 range, with one reaching 161. My schedule is as follows: PT usually on a Wednesday or Thursday and then BR until the next one, which is either on Sunday or the next following Wednesday or Thursday.

I just want to know if this is a solid schedule. I feel fairly confident in my abilities, and have seen my scores increase gradually, even after a couple lower scores (155, etc.). However, I do sometimes wonder if I could be doing something different. Actually not even IF I could be doing something different, but WHAT I could be doing.

Nanchito-1-1

Are you maximizing on games? This is totally attainable if you drill your games. What's your br score and a break down of your last few pt's? What are your weaknesses?

acta_non_verba

@nanchito My last few PT's were 158, 157, and 159. My worst section on all of them is LG. LR and RC are around -5 to -7. I'd say the number I miss on average for LG, however, is 6, which is pretty annoying considering how much time I've spent on them, and how easy it usually is for me to figure out what I did wrong when I BR.

I find that I can usually do 3/4 games. There always seems to be one game that completely throws me off.

As far as my weaknesses, for LG I have a hard time with certain grouping games. For LR, Necessary Assumption questions, and some Flaw questions, are my biggest hang ups.

runiggyrun

Hi @acta_non_verba I remember you mentioning a few months ago that you were having trouble with the games. How is that going? If you're still missing a few points in the games, I would add drilling a couple of sections of games a day to whatever you're doing, to make sure you're not leaving any of those points on the table. You can add the sections from the 10 PT's you've done to the drilling pile in addition to the old 1-36 sections that people tend to start with.
You can also revisit the curriculum/drill a bit of whatever type of question is giving you most trouble in LR, if you can identify that you are weak in a certain type.

acta_non_verba

@runiggyrun Good to hear from you again! My LG scores have been MUCH better, though not perfect. I still haven't been able to achieve a -5 or less, though I would have on my last PT if it wasn't for one very difficult game. And as far as drilling for the LG, that's pretty much what I do. On the day I set aside for BRing my latest PT, I'll also go back and do a couple sections from older PTs, particularly the games that gave me trouble.

Nanchito-1-1

Dig deep and figure out why are arent getting to the last game. Could you go faster on the easy ones? Drill those until you get to or under the target time. Is there a specific kind of question that is holding you back? If so try skipping it. Could it be nerves or freezing? If so take a deep breath and if you freeze up, try not to panic, skip it and come back if you can. If you can't skip it, take a deep breath and get yourself together.

If you're feeling pressed for time, push through the rules. Hit the must be true questions, and the questions that give you a scenario ex: if x is in and y is out then what could be true? Sometimes if you cant think of multiple game boards you can brute force your way through.

acta_non_verba

@nanchito On my last PT, I aced three of the LG's. When I got to the last game, I had about 15mins left and I tried as hard as possible to figure out how to do the gameboard. I was unsuccessful and only answered one question correctly. During BR when I watched the explanation, it seemed fairly obvious to me what I did wrong.

I think the most challenging part for me is when I run into a particularly difficult or abstract game, where it isn't as clear cut as to how the board should be set up.

danielznelson

Do you go over those games at all? You may already be doing and may also find this advice to be obvious, but drilling those games (and better yet, the entire section) helps immensely. If you can't score well on games you've already done, you're likely bound to not doing much better on new ones.

acta_non_verba

@danielznelson I drill each game I come across, although I should probably be drilling them more often instead of just reserving a day or two.

danielznelson

Yeah, I would definitely revisit them every once in a while, particularly when it's been a while. I actually re-drill sections I've even aced in the past in order to keep my intuition, speed, and accuracy up.

acta_non_verba

@danielznelson I'll definitely take that advice, thank you!

runiggyrun

Yeah, what @danielznelson said. Keep going over the games you've not done in a while. Not just mechanically, but approach them with the intention to solve them the best you can. You'd be amazed that you can "see" new things on a game you've done 4-5 times already just by virtue of having done others in between. Knowledge and intuition settles in through repetition.

MrSamIam

Drill the games and RC a little more...but don't neglect LR. Ideally you should be scoring in the 160-165 range if you're aiming for a 162.
But hey, you never know...that adrenaline rush that everyone talks about might just be your saving grace.

stepharizona

@MrSamIam said:
Drill the games and RC a little more...but don't neglect LR.

What @MrSamIam says is so important. It is so easy to try to focus on an area of concern while neglecting another portion of the test and when you pick it back up, you're a bit stale or slow.