Poor Concentration & Focus

Question

Hi folks, My biggest problem when it comes to taking standardized test is poor concentration & time management. I know I can manage my time better with practice. My concern is however my poor concentration levels. My mind tends to wander constantly and as result I waste time by having to reread problems. This is especially a problem for me with Verbal, in all the three sections

Though I have noticed that in the couple of practice tests I took, I always finished my verbal section with time to spare. I know this will still be a problem as it may affect my ability to pick the right answer choices. Has anyone else experienced this problem in this forum and if yes what have you done to overcome it? Any ideas or suggestions on how I can improve my focus will be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

itsprem · Answer

gayathri, initially it happened to me also..i used to restlessly finish off the verbal section and finally they were 5-7 mins to spare :shock:

..only way is to concentrate or divide the time say 2-3 mins for a question and chking it with other options before moving to the next question...by this u r speed gets timed..although it depends on the individual style and speed..just my points on this..

brravindra · Answer

My 2 cents of opinion!!!
I think if you improve your reading speed, your concentration and comprehension would also improve. Try to identify your current rate (wpm). Reading speed is a problem with non-native English readers. There are very useful articles in this forum to improve reading speed, try to go through them you may find it useful to improve your concentration.

Good luck....

gayathri · Answer

Thanks Ravindra, I will look for the posts that talk about reading speed.

maaverick · Answer

Hello Gayathri,

I'll try and help:

" My mind tends to wander constantly and as result I waste time by having to reread problems. This is especially a problem for me with Verbal, in all the three sections "

You need to take one question at a time. When you're working on a particular question, shut your mind off to everything else. Sort of my-life-depends-on-this-problem attitude. Once you get the killer instinct to squash the question in front, your concentration is bound to come through. It might take you a couple of days/weeks to get to that level - once you're there, it'll be just another habit. The key is simple to concentrate on the problem at hand and forget about what went by and what's going to appear on the screen next.

Hope this helps. If you have questions - you know you just have to reply.

Paul · Answer

I incidentally increased my concentration level by doing many CR problems, especially LSAT ones. This is because you really need to "see through" those CR and think fast. If you can see through difficult CR plots and know what kind of answer you are looking for before even looking at the answer choices, you will be in good position to increase your RC skills.

gayathri · Answer

Thanks maverick & Paul! 

Paul, any suggestions on what LSAT material you used for CR...

Paul · Answer

The two LSAT books I used are ARCO LSAT and Peterson LSAT. I found ARCO LSAT to be very realistic questions whereas Peterson's LSAT is very abstract and I wonder if it can be compared to real LSAT or GMAT material. Peterson's RC is also brutal. Since I did not work with Official LSAT guide, I cannot tell you how representative the latter is. IMO, ARCO LSAT is good enough and will give you a good backbone for CR.

gayathri · Answer

Thanks Paul, I will check out ARCO LSAT...

gayathri · Answer

Thanks Paul, I will check out ARCO LSAT...

kayser1soze · Answer

to paul;

i have a question about the LSAT stuff. since you used these books , does that mean that the verbal content on the lsat and the gmat are alike ??? if so one can use LSAT prep material to prepare for the GMAT as well. i'm having hard times finding the 2 specified books that you mentioned would you be able to provide me with the ISBN number for them. thanx i would really appreciate it.

Paul · Answer

Hi kayser, I happened to have the book not too far... The ISBN# is 0-7689-0884-1 and there are 5 other digits which I'm not sure is part of the ISBN# but they are 52495

LSAT problems from the Peterson's book are, IMO, too abstract. Arco problems are more similar to the GMAT style probably because they are also having a good quality GMAT prep material. Agree that Peterson's also has GMAT material but from a previous post, I mentioned that their GMAT CR and RC are just plain awful.

kayser1soze · Answer

thanx for the quick response paul, i'll probably check the book out tomorrow on ebay or amazon and get it. btw are you selling yours??? if you are and are looking for a buyer private message me and we can arrange smth.

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