![\"Manhattan](\"http:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2017\/06\/gre-problem-log-myth-practice-makes-perfect-chelsey-cooley.png\")
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You can attend the first session of any of our online or in-person GRE courses absolutely free. Crazy, right? <\/i><\/b>Check out our upcoming courses here<\/i><\/b><\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n <\/i><\/b>If you\u2019ve ever played a sport, learned a language, or played a musical instrument, you\u2019ve heard the old saying: \u201cpractice makes perfect.\u201d Unfortunately, that saying is misleading. It\u2019s possible to practice something for years and never get any better. (Just ask my childhood piano teacher!) What actually matters, what actually makes you improve, is one specific thing that happens <\/span>during<\/span><\/i> practice: how you react to your mistakes.<\/span><\/p>\n Everybody makes mistakes when studying for the GRE. In fact, people who end up earning higher scores make just as many mistakes, early on, as people who end up with lower scores. That\u2019s great news\u2014we can\u2019t predict your success based on how many mistakes you make! But what <\/span>does<\/span><\/i> matter is how you react to the mistakes you make. <\/span><\/p>\n You solve a problem, and then immediately check the answer key. Uh-oh\u2014you got this one wrong. You flip to the back of the book and read the explanation. Oh, okay\u2014it looks like the equations were supposed to look like <\/span>this<\/span><\/i>, instead of like <\/span>that<\/span><\/i>. These equations make perfect sense, now that you\u2019re looking at them. Got it. Time to move on to the next problem. <\/span><\/p>\n If this seems familiar, you\u2019re not alone! It\u2019s an easy, straightforward way to practice, and it lets you get through a lot of problems quickly. The problem is, that\u2019s not how experts behave. Just practice won\u2019t make you a GRE expert\u2014you need to practice like an expert in order to become an expert. <\/span><\/p>\n Practicing like an expert is hard, and frustrating, and it isn\u2019t very fun. In order to become an expert, you\u2019ll have to spend a <\/span>lot<\/span><\/i> of time thinking about your mistakes. That can be tough! Here\u2019s the basic mindset: GRE mistakes happen because of your behaviors. You have the power to change those behaviors, and when you do, you won\u2019t make the same mistakes again. However, that means you have to understand the mistakes you\u2019ve made, and understand why you\u2019re making them. That\u2019s where your GRE problem log comes in.<\/span><\/p>\n Decide how you want your GRE problem log to look. Pick something you\u2019ll find motivating. You could use a handwritten notebook, an Excel spreadsheet, or even a set of index cards. The first thing to do is to build a new habit. Every single time you do a GRE problem, take a couple of notes on it. While you\u2019re still getting into the habit of problem logging, keep it simple\u2014don\u2019t burn yourself out! A very basic GRE problem log could include just a couple of things:<\/span><\/p>\n Once you get used to writing down the problems that you solve, step up your problem logging a bit. Start by pushing yourself to understand your mistakes on your own, rather than reading explanations written by somebody else. When you miss a problem, resist the temptation to immediately check the back of the book! Instead, try a different way of solving the problem, or try solving the problem without a timer. You might be surprised by how many problems you can solve if you give yourself extra time. If you figure it out, then try to work out how to do it more quickly! Or, use the explanation in the book as a hint. Maybe if you know what the right answer is, you can figure out <\/span>why<\/span><\/i> the GRE thinks it\u2019s right. On Text Completion or Sentence Equivalence problems, try \u2018cheating\u2019 by looking up the definitions of unfamiliar words as you solve a tough problem. That can be enough to let you figure out the answer on your own. <\/span><\/p>\n The next step is to achieve better understanding of your mistakes. Remind yourself that mistakes, even careless ones, happen for a reason. If you can identify that reason, <\/span>and think of a way to address it<\/span><\/i>, you can avoid that mistake next time. To get there, add two things to your GRE problem log. First, each time you miss a problem, identify the root cause of your mistake. Did you not know how to do the math? Was there a word you didn\u2019t know? In that case, you\u2019ve identified something you need to learn\u2014go learn it! Or did you make a process mistake\u2014did you misread something, or did you make a bad assumption? Write that down in your GRE problem log. Once a week, look through your log and try to identify patterns. Those patterns reflect behaviors that you can change. <\/span><\/p>\n Here\u2019s an example: suppose that you keep a problem log for a few weeks, and you notice that you keep missing Quant problems by misreading the question being asked. Don\u2019t just tell yourself that you need to read the question correctly next time. Instead, change the behavior. What could you do to keep yourself from misreading Quant questions? Try this: every time you do a Quant problem, start by writing down the question you\u2019re being asked. Draw a box around it on your scratch paper, then check it a second time before you submit your answer. <\/span><\/p>\n With a little introspection, you can come up with similar ways to address other types of mistakes. Logging your practice, identifying and understanding your mistakes, and then addressing them promptly\u2014that\u2019s how experts in every field practice, whether they\u2019re expert pianists, dancers, athletes, or GRE students! Invest a little time today in creating a GRE problem log, and you\u2019ll be rewarded in the long run with a boost in your GRE score. ?<\/span><\/p>\n See that \u201cSUBSCRIBE\u201d button in the top right corner? Click on it to receive all our GRE blog updates straight to your inbox!<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n Chelsey Cooley<\/a> You can attend the first session of any of our online or in-person GRE courses absolutely free. Crazy, right? Check out our upcoming courses here. If you\u2019ve ever played a sport, learned a language, or played a musical instrument, you\u2019ve heard the old saying: \u201cpractice makes perfect.\u201d Unfortunately, that saying is misleading. It\u2019s possible to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":127,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[474284,921840,6,7,733445],"tags":[403,1362432,1362431],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-10417","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-studiers","category-gre-prep-2","category-gre-strategies","category-how-to-study","category-study-tips-2","tag-error-log","tag-gre-myths","tag-gre-problem-log"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10417","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/127"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10417"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10417\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10439,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10417\/revisions\/10439"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10417"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10417"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10417"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=10417"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nHere\u2019s the wrong way to react to a mistake.<\/b><\/h4>\n
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\n![\"Chelsey](\"https:\/\/cdn2.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2015\/11\/chelsey-cooley-150x150.jpg\" "\\"Chelsey")
<\/a> is a Manhattan Prep instructor based in Seattle, Washington.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em><\/i><\/b>Chelsey always followed her heart when it came to her education. Luckily, her heart led her straight to the perfect background for GMAT and GRE teaching: she has undergraduate degrees in mathematics and history, a master\u2019s degree in linguistics, a 790 on the GMAT, and a perfect 170Q\/170V on the GRE.\u00a0<\/em><\/i>Check out Chelsey\u2019s upcoming GRE prep offerings here<\/a>.<\/em><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"