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Time Management: Balancing a full-time career and LSAT studies
Carving out time for LSAT studies is getting to be pretty specious. It is definitely plausible balancing work with studying on its face...however, it's so much harder in practice. I'd like to hear from anyone that has been successfully been able to manage both aspects and has the results to prove it.
If you want to tell me about working out, doing yoga/meditation, eating right, and all that good stuff--I've been doing all of it and then some.
Thanks!
If you want to tell me about working out, doing yoga/meditation, eating right, and all that good stuff--I've been doing all of it and then some.
Thanks!
Comments
I usually workout 3/4 times a week (early mornings) and I combine cardio with weight training. I have been eating clean for a few years (gluten intolerant) and I prep most all of meals for the week on the weekends.
My work is very demanding, I usually arrive an hour early every morning and don't always take lunch breaks - when I do, it's logic games time for me. I usually study 2 to 3 hours day from Monday to Friday and then 6 to 8 hours on the weekend.
I have been prepping for the LSAT for almost a year now. First test I got 146 (back in June 2013) and now I am scoring between 164-166. It has been really challenging to manage everything but I love working out too much to stop it. It helps me with my stress and knocks me out so I can sleep properly at time.
I have found that the key to not drown while working full time is to be organized. I make lists, I put goals to achieve each week but I am always realistic - I know I am not going to be able to work 6 hours per day on weekdays for instance.
I don't really have a social life at the moment. I still go out a bit but the LSAT is my priority.
Let me know if you have any questions.
I have virtually no social life anymore though and I havent been able to travel like I used to, but in the end this is a small price to pay for a potentially massive upgrade in the quality of my own life so I just keep that in the back of my mind when things get overwhelming at times. It's all a means to an end.
What I would suggest, like Mike Kim of the Trainer, is to focus on training your subconscious through habits. I've been making it a routine to go home, work out/run, make a sandwich and pour some water and sit at my computer desk and start reading the Trainer or reviewing prior drills. At this point i dont even think about it, my body just knows to do it and that makes it much easier to drudge through it day-to-day. Like first starting to wake up at 6am. It sucks so hard to do for the first 2 weeks or so but then it becomes no big deal and you just do it. Same thing with study habits. It's not impossible to study and work full time but it takes an immense amount of discipline to balance it efficiently and to get the most out of your days in your personal, professional and academic life. Just keep in mind that this is a sacrifice that is intended to change the rest of your life for the better. If it's not worth the hardship then find something else that is. Hope this helps anyone..
@thelocal711: Thanks for the in-depth and helpful breakdown of your study routine. I think that is a great tool to habituate your routine to the point where you don't/shouldn't need to think about it.
Do you utilize the LSAT Trainer along with 7sage? I bought the book awhile ago but only cursorily checked it out.
Can you plan in 35 minutes of LSAT before work? 35 minutes out of your lunch hour? 35 minutes after work but before you head home? 35 minutes after you eat dinner and recharge a bit? There's four timed sections right there (or, more likely, two timed sections/drill sessions and two sessions of blind review).
The greatest challenge for me is coming home from the day shift - I have little energy left. I usually start losing focus big time by around 7 PM. I work out 6 days a week, eat well, and use plenty of dietary supplements.
JY mentioned briefly in one of the intro lessons that full time workers should consider studying first thing in the morning rather than in the evening. This makes a lot of sense, and I'm going to start doing this immediately. I get up and train at 5:30 AM, so going to bed earlier and waking up at 4 AM should be doable. I will share results.
Wake up at 3:50 AM, go to the gym, lift weights/cardio from 4:00-5:30 AM, come home, shower, leave for work at 6:30, get at work for 7, study from 7-8:30, work, study from 12-1 (lunch), go home, study from 5-8, veg out from 8-10, go to sleep. Repeat.
I am a bikini competitor, so skipping the gym is unfortunately not an option for me
I am amazed that people who go to school study for the LSAT. I could not have done it! So good for you!!!
Getting up to study early is indeed useful. I do feel I absorb more info than trying to study after working a shift. In fact, I don't even bother with studying after a shift because I'm too mentally drained.
The key, however, is going to bed early. This takes getting used to for most people. I go to bed between 8 or 9 PM.
Fortunately, because I am used to training at the gym in the morning, it wasn't too hard of an adjustment. Additionally, I use a pre-workout supplement before the gym so I'm really wired in the mornings - a cup of coffee might be needed for those not used to early mornings.
If you commute on the public limo like I do, I suggest also studying on the bus. I use flash cards. My energy level is high on the commute to work, so I might as well use that time to study rather than listen to music on my phone.
I used to be a runner so It's not like I'm helpless but id like some feedback as to whether it would actually help my life out at the moment
Marleybaby, I reccommend exercise. I'll also reccommed that you do what works for you. That means something that you'll enjoy and that you'll stick to. These are your criteria for selection. Do something that works for you--I used to run three miles everyday (hated it but I was a varsity athlete in college and it was required). I totally could have jumped back into running, but it's not where I find my zen. So I picked up yoga and it has been awesome. It can be done in 15mins or an hour, and that really helped with my schedule when I needed the release but just didn't have the time for anything more intense then a 20-mintue session before I grabbed a cup of coffee on my way out the door.
Swim, play tennis, bike--it truly doesn't matter. Just have fun and blow off some steam.
I would point out, however, that the energy boost comes gradually. A lot of fitness websites and advocates, with good intentions, give the impression that exercise would lead to an instantaneous energy boost. I recall it took two or three weeks before I really felt a constant energy boost after I started regular training. After all, the energy comes from having a healthy body, and you don't just build a healthy body after an hour of training. Be patient, and you'll see the MAD GAINZ in energy!
When I was a poor undergraduate, I was very much into "ghetto fitness." But disregarding money, it's actually an amazing way to cramp exercise into a busy schedule because you can train anywhere, anytime.
Calisthenics (body weight exercises) like push-ups, sit-ups, squats, dips, etc. can be done at home.
When that stuff wasn't enough, I got creative. I did microwave squats (fill a microwave with textbooks and squat with it), lateral raises with cast iron pans, flip a chair over as a platform and did preacher curls with a fire extinguisher.
LOL - I always want to do a blog about this stuff. Maybe when I get time in the future, but the point is there's some cool exercises you can do at home with limited time. And that's a good way to start building up the energy to study the LSAT. Best of luck, and feel free to PM me if you need advice on training like this.
Few things have helped me more then setting aside one or two days per month where I went out with some friends. Do it the day before your break day (Sunday in my world) and don't worry about the hangover. Talk to some people. Eat some food. Dance on a bar.
One thing about studying for this test is that it's so easy to get trapped inside your own head. Please don't misinterpret what I'm saying. Don't feel as though you have to go and rage twice a month (or however often works for you), but Dear God!--please--do something fun. I would make a point to go people watch and read at a coffee shop because that feels relaxing to me. Other times I'd go dance my face off. Pencil it in on your calendar if you need to (I do). Just do it. Leave your flashcards at home and go be a real person.
And then go back home and drill your ass off until next time.
1) I gave myself over a year to study. Initially I planned on only 6 months - but I postponed my LSAT and extended my access to this course. SO worth it.
2) I dedicate at least 1 weekend day to nothing but the LSAT and really evaluate my weekend out of town commitments. I wake up on Sundays and study until I'm really DONE for the day. Yes to the wedding, but I won't be attending the shower. Easter at the In-Laws? I love them all but, nope. Weekend beach trip with the girls? I'll take Friday off, but I'll be home by bedtime on Saturday night. Balancing like this helps me avoid burnout. This method helped me bump from a 157 to a 168 consistently.
2.5) A note on socializing on the weekends: One of my husband's new years resolutions was to see more of his friends in the area, so socializing is pretty much obligatory for me. Let's be real about this...it's not the 4 hours on a Friday or Saturday night that eat into your LSAT study time. (Honestly - if you're home on a Friday or Saturday night - you're still not studying! You're probably unwinding from a long week and enjoying an evening of NetFlix!) What is really damaging to LSAT Success is equating socializing with imbibing copious amounts of alcohol. You go out for the evening, drink, and not only have you "lost" those hours studying, but you've also interrupted your sleep schedule, thrown off your body chemistry, dehydrated yourself, and wasted the next weekend morning (prime study time!) to a hang over. My advice - go out, socialize, see your friends, but DON'T DRINK while preparing for the LSAT.
3) When my scores started to plateau with the once a week study method - I changed things up. For the last week and a half, I've arrived at work early (between 7 and 8) and studied for anywhere from 30-90 minutes before my morning meetings. Making this small change put me over the 170 hump and gave me the forward momentum to set a new and higher goal.
4) I got a maid - she comes every other week. That 4 hours I used to spend cleaning my apartment every couple of weeks now happens while I'm at work. I come home to a clean and organized apartment with no tasks with which to procrastinate. I'm considering increasing the frequency if my scores plateau again.
5) Some minor things:
- I sit at a desk with an upright chair in a place that is associated in my mind with studying (in this case, a library at the school where my husband teaches). If I sit on the arm chairs there, I go straight to sleep.
-I gave myself incentives (like getting a delicious burger on Sundays during my study break).
-I have a printer where I study. (I asked the school's permission first!)
- My study buddy has extremely strong study habits and is NOT working on the LSAT: My husband and I go to his school library together every Sunday. He lesson plans and I study. I DARE not interrupt his precious planning time with idle chatter. Now, my next comment may be controversial, but again, this is what works for me personally! I have found during my academic life that when someone asks me to be their regular study buddy, what they are really asking me to do is tutor them. While teaching and explaining really does help me more deeply digest the course material, it also slows my pace. I made a decision NOT to have an LSAT study buddy - because I am working on getting over the low 170 hump and nailing the last five hardest questions on the test is EVERYTHING to me right now. I really don't have the bandwidth to go over material I've already mastered and been working on for over a year. Also - as a working professional - I can't wait for my study buddy to arrive when I have unexpected study time pop up!
Hope this helps!
I had to be at work from 9-5 and it was about 30 mins away.
I would type notes from the lesson and record myself reading them and on my way to and from work I would listen to my recordings of notes. It was weird at first. But it made it to the point that I knew certain things just because of the time I kept hearing them. I would also record myself saying premise & conclusion indicators, valid/invalid argument forms (these are easier seen on paper but I had a mental image after hearing them for so long), conditional indicators/rules, and etc. Whatever I thought would be helpful and that I would need to know before taking my first PT. I also had flashcards that I would pull out whenever work slowed down or when I was on my lunch break.
Since I worked for a law firm my boss knew I was studying for the LSAT and she gave me permission to study if all of my work was complete. Every day I probably spend about half of my day working on every case that was on my desk and the other half on BR. Since most attorneys aren't in the office all day it was easier for me to pull out the PT I took the day before and start BR. But when the attorneys were in office I did try to avoid having any LSAT material out. lol even though I had permission to. So instead I would BR the 1 LR section as soon as I got to work and then get to the files on my desk. Then by my lunch hour I would pull out the LG section and work on those games. By the time I got home I would only have 2 sections left to BR. I didn't feel as tired as before when I was doing everything after work. I didn't think my job was stressful or draining but my brain thought otherwise when I wanted to do LSAT prep. So by the time I would get home, I would eat dinner, shower and take a 30-45 min nap and pick up where I had left off. It would be close to 8pm by then. So from 8pm-12am I would BR/study/review/or anything that had to get done. I was usually in bed by 1 am and would get up around 7:30 AM. This was maybe 3 months into the course.
Before, I never take any of my LSAT material to work. I would just sometimes pull up 7sage and go over some lessons on my phone. lol
But I would try to get at least 7 hours of sleep and then after work I would come home to eat dinner and then go to the library. This helped me focus on finishing the course ahead of time. Because I knew I could not study at home. So I had to prevent myself from taking a nap while I studied in my room. I would do problem sets and BR right away watch video explanations and move on to the next section. But I did feel tired at work every morning. I tried waking up 2 hours earlier to study before work but for me studying in the AM has never worked. I rather stay up late studying. So I realized that it was important to me and that the way I was doing was working well for me. I also noticed that the most important thing about studying for the LSAT is getting enough sleep daily. Because your brain needs it in other to manage your full day at work + the 2-4 hours you're dedicating to the lsat.
Personally, I would wake up at least 1-2x a week early on weekdays (at around 4 or 5 in the morning) if I didn't spend 2-3 studying the night before. I would also study around 4-6 hours a day on the weekends. I minimized socializing to only hanging out with my significant other (who took the LSAT too) and then rarely with some close friends.
Additionally, I actually didn't talk to my coworkers about my LSAT too much. They're attorneys or paralegals who are also taking the LSAT so I didn't want to add to any anxiety or nervousness by talking up the exam.
Does anyone else feel like one of the hardest things about working f/t (sitting for 8 hours a day) and then LSAT prep after work... is the extra time sitting in a chair?! My lower back/ hip area and shoulders haaaaate me! It's so uncomfortable. But then, studying in bed or on the couch isn't very conducive for effective study habits. I'm seriously about to purchase one of those over-sized extra comfortable office chairs.
i know this is minimal in terms of what is truly difficult about working f/t and still dedicating 20hrs avg./week to LSAT prep.. but i had to share that with someone.
You might be able to find tables at that height
1) at ikea
2) at Goodwill
3) on Facebook neighborhood/local garage sale groups (search for your neighborhood/town/city and garage sale on FB)
4) Craigslist or
5) mount a wide shelf on your wall and use that.
At the beginning, I thought I could do work + social life + LSAT. Now I am starting to get a more realistic rhythm going, but it definitely involves less social life.
Thinking we may want to reignite this thread as we head into a new year.