Tips for increasing speed to get at least 15 correct each time

jjoushlyn

Hello 7sagers,

I was wondering if anyone had any tips on how to increase your speed on the logic reasoning test portion. I have been studying this section rigorously for months and it is my favorite section . However, even though I understand and can get the correct answer each time untimed I still have yet to master getting 15 correct on the timed section . Any advice ? I'm not sure if I'm nervous or if there is something I can do to help bridge the gap between me taking forever to realize I know the steps .

Cant Get Right

Are you running out of time, or are you finishing and making a lot of errors?

Not Ralph Nader

First finish the core curriculum. The next step would be to take a PT and Blind Review (BR) it to see what are your weaknesses. After doing all these use analytics to focus on specific question types that give you trouble. One of best advice that I got was to not waste PTs. PTs are there to show you where you need to focus if you do not BR a PT you just wasted your time and a fresh PT.

DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME if you do not have your LR fundamentals down.

If you are struggling with timing and try to use the online stopwatch to build up your internal time clock to get a feel how long 80 seconds really take. You can do so by taking LR sections from PT 1-35 and do them individually while using a timer with loop countdown function. Set the timer on 80 seconds and 25 loops when it is past 80 seconds circle the question choose an answer choice and move on, come back to the question if you got extra time at the end of the section.

Again the above advice do not apply to you if you are not quiet sure how to attack each question type.

Online Stopwatch with Loop-countdown
http://www.online-stopwatch.com/loop-countdown/

I hope this helps you.

Alex

@"Not Ralph Nader" said:
Again the above advice do not apply to you if you are not quiet sure how to attack each question type.

Online Stopwatch with Loop-countdown
http://www.online-stopwatch.com/loop-countdown/

I hope this helps you.

I love this idea and am going to start using this myself!

Thanks @"Not Ralph Nader" !

bjphillips5

That's an awesome idea @"Not Ralph Nader" ! Brilliant. Thanks

jjoushlyn

@"Cant Get Right" It is a little bit of both. I was told to slow down for accurately so that lets me only get to 12 questions and i would still get a few wrong . Thanks @"Not Ralph Nader" i am going through the course now and will try it

Cant Get Right

Yeah, so you've definitely just got to get better on the fundamentals. Work through CC and go from there.

It's really encouraging though that you're getting everything right untimed. That reflects huge potential and if you develop it properly, I see no reason you can't get to a fairly consistent -0 range for LR.

twssmith

@"Not Ralph Nader" has given the best advice!!
You have to build fundamentals before you can be concerned with timing and then build timing to the next level as you progress through the PT phase.
And I agree with @"Cant Get Right" that it is really encouraging that you are getting everything right untimed.

If you spend the time now to become proficient in the fundamentals, then you won't waste time later when the clock is actually ticking:)

Burt Macklin

Would it be advisable to use the looped countdown timer for a few practice tests to get that feel of timing down?

Alex

@"Burt Macklin" said:
Would it be advisable to use the looped countdown timer for a few practice tests to get that feel of timing down?

I would suggest doing it with timed-sections rather than full practice tests.

abisin1234

@"Alex Divine" said:
@"Burt Macklin" said:
Would it be advisable to use the looped countdown timer for a few practice tests to get that feel of timing down?

I would suggest doing it with timed-sections rather than full practice tests.


I agree with Alex on that.

If you are getting things correct untimed then you could also use this method to help your internal clock:
Putting the loop timer on 5min intervals throughout the 35mins so you can get a sense of pacing every 5 mins. I found that I would gradually start getting through all the questions at the 25min mark and have 10mins to go back to questions that I circled or that I couldn't get right away.

I chose this method over the 80s-method because some question types take me around 40s and others might take me over 80s

Alex

@abisin1234 said:
Putting the loop timer on 5min intervals throughout the 35mins so you can get a sense of pacing every 5 mins. I found that I would gradually start getting through all the questions at the 25min mark and have 10mins to go back to questions that I circled or that I couldn't get right away.

I chose this method over the 80s-method because some question types take me around 40s and others might take me over 80s

Interesting technique! I'm actually going to try this!

loosekanen

The first ten questions on the LR sections are usually easier than the others. You could break down your practice even more by attempting first 10s of different PTs and seeing how quickly you can get them done with 9+ correct. If you can start doing that consistently in under 12ish minutes you not only will be allowing yourself more time for the harder question but also drilling the most basic fundamentals in your blind review on questions that NEED to be correct, and really only require the most basic fundamentals.

jjoushlyn

thanks everyone ! i will try the loop watch . Do you know where i can get a cheap one @abisin1234 ? And @loosekanen I will try that that sounds good for making sure i get the fundamentals as well as increasing confidence.

abisin1234

@jjoushlyn said:
Do you know where i can get a cheap one @abisin1234 ?

I'm not sure if there is a physical watch (if thats what you are asking for), but I used this website ALOT
http://www.intervaltimer.com/timers/4778240-every-5-minutes-for-3-hours

and eventually I started using this coz I could customize it a bit more (I've made an example timer but feel free to make your own)
http://www.online-stopwatch.com/full-screen-interval-timer/?c=eyuurjsz7

So I would put my first interval at 10 seconds to give myself a second to get in position, then when the first alarm goes off I start.
I found that I would get through 5 questions and be thinking "no alarm? good, keep going," then the first 5mins alarm would ring half way through my 6th question and it kind of re-affirmed my speed and sense of timing.

But as stated above, the first 10 questions are the easiest (most of the time) so that can help your timing, but don't fret if you aren't hitting the 5min marks or staying under them.

If you get to the end with spare time, knowing that you still have 2 more alarms left (i.e 10more minutes) and you only have 5 questions left kind of settles your nerves -- which I think is a good rhythm to find as you practice drilling Sections for time. Eventually you start to get to the 20th question, look at your watch, you have 5-10mins left and you don't panic because you know that that is 2 or 1 more beep(s)/alarm(s) and you've done it a million times.

PS: Don't forget to keep your volume on low so it doesn't shock you as you're writing.

Good luck!