How do you stay motivated?

There are actually multiple things at play here.

I am going to put in the form of a statement.

You can use the usual "Agree most - Neutral - Disagree most" to see which of the statements are applicable to you.

#1) I am just not able to motivate myself to sit down and study for the GMAT

This is a classic case of "inertia". A student in a state of rest continues to be in a state of rest unless and until acted upon by an external force

Heard of the Nike ad that says "Just do it!"? That is your mantra here. Don't plan - don't analyze - just do. Sit down every day for about 30 minutes.

Don't have any expectations of doing anything. Read through the T&C in the OG. Read up the questions. Languidly solve a few.

The key here is to get the momentum. As anyone who is preparing for the GMAT would attest - preparation is all about gaining momentum.

Once you get to the state when you start "missing" your routine - you know the GMAT bug has bitten you.

#2) Studying for the GMAT is very stressful and shoots up my anxiety

This is typically caused when the student has one of the following 3 reasons:

(a) a deadline close by - okay, so you booked your GMAT date a three months ago and thought it was sufficient time. Now you realize it isn't.

Just push the dates out. It is better to miss an application deadline (a bummer!) than apply with a low GMAT score.

(b) unrealistic expectation of improvement - so you studied for 3 weeks and went from 550 to 580. I know that is painful.

However, this is the GMAT. There are no shortcuts. You need to learn WHY you are making the mistakes and not focus on WHAT those mistakes are.

And don't assume everyone has the same learning curve. Don't' assume everyone has the same background.

(c) is a student hypochondriac - you worry too much. You start fretting over every single error, every point improvement, every silly mistake.

Learn to enjoy the journey. People who do well on the GMAT don't enjoy the prep as a result. Rather people who enjoy the prep - end up with a kickass score.

Nobody has scored well by feeling miserable. So as a first step, stock your fridge with some cold beer


#3) GMAT prep has left me burned out and brain dead.

The OP on this thread perhaps suffers from this problem.

It typically happens when you study for long hours. Remember that the human brain is an expensive tissue for your body to maintain.

Wondered why you feel drained after a 3-hour GMAT test and not watching Avengers: Endgame for a similar duration?

That is because the kind of studying needed on the GMAT is very intensive so even a short 1-hour session can leave you exhausted.

Respect that decision fatigue https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decision_fatigue is real and try to either (a) not do any other activity that consumes your brain power so much (b) keep your study sessions around 2 hours at a time (maybe 3 if you are really adventurous)

#4) I feel overwhelmed with all the topics to study on the GMAT

Remember GMAT is a thinker's test and not a doer's test. So stop trying to memorize all those grammar rules (Harvard Business School is not interested in a high school grammar teacher). Stop trying to mug up a bunch of formulae to crack quant.

Just take a deep breath and write down all the topics on a sheet of paper. Start slowly - pick 1 topic - let's say Coordinate Geometry. And during your study session focus only on that topic. Forget everything else. Don't overthink. Keep knocking off the topics one by one.

#5) Solving GMAT questions is frustrating as I am not sure I am making any progress

This is a bit of a corollary to point #2 above however, the slight difference is that there is no time pressure.

In this stage, it might make sense for you to stop whatever you are doing and spend 1-2 days just analyzing.

What is your biggest challenge? (i.e. using the 80/20 rule can you see any specific issues that are dragging you?)

What technique doesn't seem to be working? (i.e. do you see some areas where you just don't seem to be able to get to the right answer)

is your concern real or perceived? (i.e. stressed based on actual test scores or just your own self-assessment)


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Hope this helps.

I am happy to answer any questions you may have based on this

Arun