{"id":5747,"date":"2013-09-11T09:30:27","date_gmt":"2013-09-11T13:30:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/blog\/?p=5747"},"modified":"2019-08-30T16:41:35","modified_gmt":"2019-08-30T16:41:35","slug":"making-your-mindset","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/blog\/making-your-mindset\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Your Mindset"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to the GRE, your mindset can make a big difference. The test is long. The test is hard. The test is fast.\"gre The people who make the GRE are experts in creating the feeling of, \u201cI know that I know how to do this, but I just can\u2019t seem to figure it out.\u201d There are people who say that one of the problems with tests such as this on is that they aren\u2019t accurate because they have pressure and unpredictability. That would be right if the test just wanted to find your understanding of vocabulary and mathematics, but that\u2019s not all they want to test. They want to test how you deal with pressure. They want to test how you deal with unpredictability. They want to test how you reason<\/i>, above everything else. So all those added difficulties are fair game. They aren\u2019t in the way of your test; they are<\/i> your test.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what makes your mindset so important. You might be able to convince me that mindset doesn\u2019t have anything to do with your ability to do math (although I disagree) or to remember vocabulary (I still would disagree, but maybe not as strongly). But you won\u2019t be able to convince me that mindset has nothing to do with how you handle pressure, unpredictability, and reasoning.<\/p>\n

So what\u2019s a good mindset? And how do you get it? Here are some tips.<\/p>\n

Crisis mode versus panic mode<\/b><\/p>\n

I hope you haven\u2019t been in a lot of emergency situations, but I\u2019m sure you\u2019ve had at least one opportunity to see both crisis mode and panic mode demonstrated in real life. Picture a situation where John is preparing lunch and cuts his hand severely. He calls for his wife, Kelly. In panic mode, Kelly would see the blood and scream, \u201cAre you okay? Are you okay? What happened?\u201d She would go to find her keys to drive to the hospital, then decide to call the doctor, then get mad because she couldn\u2019t find the keys, then start yelling. Now picture Kelly in crisis mode. She appears calm, although she talks rapidly and with direction. \u201cJohn, sit down and put pressure on your hand with this towel. I\u2019m going to drive you to the hospital. Hand me your keys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both modes are normal responses to a problem, but the chief difference is that crisis mode works, and panic mode doesn\u2019t. Not only does panic mode not help, but it also hurts.<\/p>\n

You have to approach your test in crisis mode. Focus, take in the information you see, assess the situation, make a decision, and follow through. The good news is that crisis mode can be artificially created until it becomes a habit. In other words, fake it \u2018til you make it.<\/p>\n

Practice makes permanent<\/b><\/p>\n

Are you expecting to roll into the test and be great at geometry without any practice? No? Then you really shouldn\u2019t expect that you can wait until test day to practice your mindset. Your mindset is part of your test approach. A crisis mode of attack needs to be practiced.<\/p>\n

My music teacher used to say, \u201cPractice doesn\u2019t make perfect; practice makes permanent. Perfect practice makes perfect.\u201d I think that is a hugely important lesson. Taking practice tests doesn\u2019t really make you better at practice tests; it just cements what you\u2019re doing into place. Bad actions don\u2019t turn into good actions with practice. They just turn into bad habits. That means when you take a practice test, you should be practicing a mindset of focus, decisiveness, and careful timing strategy. If you can approach your problem sets (at least the first time through) with this same mindset, you\u2019ll be ready to knock your practice tests out of the park.<\/p>\n

Categorize to access<\/b><\/p>\n

Studying creates a huge wealth of information in your head. That\u2019s good, because the GRE tests a huge spectrum of knowledge and skills. If you\u2019ve studied the underlying material, the key to improving your score is improving your ability to categorize each question so that you can access the material you\u2019ve studied that matches up with that question.<\/p>\n

While most students don\u2019t take the time to do this actively, most of the ones that do so don\u2019t find it particularly difficult. As you study a particular question type, make the first step an active categorization based on, \u201cwhat information are they telling me, and what are they really asking me?\u201d You will start to notice patterns in the words, equations, and phrasings that come with each question type, which will help you to notice them and answer them when they show up in a mixed problem setting.<\/p>\n

Using your breaks<\/b><\/p>\n

Once you get into crisis mode, it can be tempting to want to skip your breaks and power through the test. Don\u2019t. This is a long test, and real crisis mode requires using the resources you have available to you. When you get a break, take it. I suggest that you eat something small (such as an apple), drink a small amount of water, and get some quick cardio, like running up a few flights of stairs. You should take that time to take some deep breaths and encourage yourself. If that sounds silly to you, fine. But you really don\u2019t have anything to lose by trying it.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s just a test<\/b><\/p>\n

I realize that when you\u2019re studying for a huge exam such as the GRE, it feels like everything rests on the exam score. But you have to know that isn\u2019t true. Firstly, your application to graduate school is more than your GRE scores. Secondly, you can take the test more than once. But most importantly, your mindset requires the perspective that this is just a test. It\u2019s a test you can study for and conquer. Give it the respect it requires and the preparation it deserves, but don\u2019t give it the power to affect your mindset. Because your mindset matters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When it comes to the GRE, your mindset can make a big difference. The test is long. The test is hard. The test is fast. The people who make the GRE are experts in creating the feeling of, \u201cI know that I know how to do this, but I just can\u2019t seem to figure it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[205,240],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-5747","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-how-to-study","tag-how-to-study-2","tag-mental"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5747","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\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5747"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5747\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6863,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5747\/revisions\/6863"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5747"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5747"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5747"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.manhattanprep.com\/gre\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=5747"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}