TIME PRESSURE ADVICE?

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• 2 Likes

  Sami Live Member Sage ⭐ 7Sage Tutor

  February 2020 10774 karma

  Hey!

  I think it's fine to hide the timer right now and just use your phone for a while. This can build trust in your abilities and strategy. I used to get nervous about the time a bit as well, and one day my watch broke so I couldn't use the timer. So for a while I ended up just taking test using the timer on my phone where I couldn't see how many minutes were left. It actually ended up making me feel confident in my abilities because I realized I did great without it. When I finally got a new watch and could see the timer again, I just didn't care about the time pressure anymore because I knew I would be just fine and I could trust myself.

  You can try this and see if it helps.
• DivineRaze Alum Member

  February 2020 550 karma

  @emmorens People that usually pressed for time are individuals that either don't know the material well enough or start panicking from the first question. Once you start to panic and begin thinking about time management from the first question you will waste more time because your mind will go into fight or flight mode so you won't be able to analyze to the best of your abilities. I would suggest take your time and calmly read the stimulus so you retain what you need to retain and keep that groove going throughout the exam. You will be surprised how much time you will save but it will feel like you're going slow. The same can go for RC, when you take your time with the passage, you will fly through the questions thus efficiently using your time. Check the time when you are halfway only once, and when you near the end of the section. If you are putting too much emphasis on the time, your mind will be more or less half focused on what you really need to be focusing on, which is the actual test material.
• Michael.Cinco Member Sage ⭐

  February 2020 2116 karma

  I suppose hiding the timer can help. Generally when people struggle with time it's because they are taking too long on questions. That is either a knowledge issue , confidence issue or a tactical/execution issue. If you remove the timer as a distraction you will at least eliminate that as a factor but as someone already mentioned worrying about timing is general a symptom of another underlying cause, which you still have to rectify. If it's confidence, practice will allay that eventually. If it's a knowledge issue it will show up in your scores and blind review (Is 157 your target score?) If it's execution it will show up in the difference between BR and Real Score and it will also manifest itself on how much time you spent per question.

  Time will always be a factor though, so there is always that underlying anxiety. Managing it is one of the difficulties in this test. The goal is not the elimination of time anxiety, but minimization of it. How do you do that? Get your knowledge to a level where it needs to be. And work on strategies for executing the test that ensures you are managing time properly.
• 1 Like

  lexxx745 Alum Member Sage ⭐

  February 2020 3190 karma

  For me I hide the timer.

  in a PERFECT world, you obviously wouldnt look at the timer, because your instincts would be so good you wouldnt need it, and the 10 seconds or so you waste looking at the timer over the course of a section would be saved

  Sometimes you need to look at it tho to judge where you are at, or if its time to move on
• emmorens Core Member

  February 2020 1470 karma

  Thank you guys this is all so helpful! I think its definitely a mix of confidence/knowledge. When I do my blind review after a PT I notice all of my dumb mistakes and can tell it was from reading too fast and not paying attention (because I was worried about time). I only do it for LR and my score will immediately jump from 154 - 157 just from 2 sections...I know the knowledge is there, I just have to learn to perform it. Thanks again and if anyone has anymore advice don't hesitate to comment.