How to develop capabilities to kill this test?

[vivecan2005]

As we know that basics Quant/verbal, practice, test simulation, instructions and attacking approaches(guessing, timing etc) are most common tools to kill this test.

BUT

Apart from above preparation there are certain weakness in our personality which are ingonred because of huge pile of prep material. It is like a great car with great tires, exteriors but bad engine!

The common weakness which need to be overcome before GMAT exam:

--Ability to sit and work around 3 hours with FULL & MOST ACTIVE state of mind (A lot of time we can sit 75 minutes but active mind is remain only first 15-20 minutes then after it is only a physical posture not the "application of mind")
--No yawning, itching or stupid thoughts in mind which distracts from test (This is biggest hurdle which doesn't let you concentrate)
--No deep breath just because you got an extremely complex or multi-step quant question on screen

How to overcome these obstacles? I mean one can master OG 12, Master MGMAT 8 Books, attempt 100 sample questions from all 5 sections of test but that preparation will not be effective untill above wekness are overcome.



Any contribution to thought will be welcome.

[JasLamba]

Hi,

For me, what works is:
- knowing that the GMAT is just a means to an end. 3 hours and your out.
- think of all the effort, money, energies, time, all for a good score.
- focus. be here now. tell yourself this.
- small tricks. breathe deeply when you get a tough RC and get back to it. mini 10 second breaks can get you back in shape.
- during practice start developing focus and stamina.
- take many many mock tests simulation of experience in different times, places, and with different conditions (coffee vs tea, sleep 8 hours vs go out last night) (this is the best way)
- as you progress, if you start low, improvement shows a sign of satisfaction. improvement = its worth it to be devoting this time for this test.
- look forward to an activity post test (short term) - evening dinner for example.
- the MBA- your doing all of this to be accepted into one of the best schools in the world to obtain one of the most prestigious degrees and be selected to be part of an elite group. (i might be inflating things a bit, but tell yourself this)
- I love quant attitude. break down every problem into Polya's four step - understand problem, devise a plan, carry plan, look back.
- I love grammar attitude and I love reasoning and questioning assumptions attitude.
- practice enough that you could do it in your sleep, yawning, itching, scratching your balls, even if you took a 10 minute mid-break. (I am not at this stage at all but just a suggestion)
- motivation is key I guess.

Hope this helps.
Jas