adunsworth wrote:Ok so some background. I've been out of college for about 6-7 years. I have a BS in Accounting and my CPA certification, but even with all of that I don't really do basic arithmetic in my head these days. My life has become a crazy mix of theory based projections and debits and credits. That being said, I find basic math very challenging because, unless it's an applied problem my brain, doesn't think that way. This all being said am I just crazy? am I looking at this wrong? Has anyone else had this issue?
I'm only on day 5 of the 60 day study guide from GMAT Prep Now and I really like it but I'm getting frustrated that I seem to struggle so much with basic concepts.
Thanks in advance
In case the following is not clear, the issue here is not "your brain". The issue is what you have been practicing. You have not been practicing doing arithmetic in your head or on paper, and so, you are not that great at it at the moment.
Getting frustrated about this issue will get you nowhere. To hit your GMAT Score goal, figure out what you have to get better at and work on it. In this case, you may have to focus on some GMAT math basics for a while. If doing so means that you can't just go through the 60 Day program on schedule, so be it. One of the biggest and most common mistakes that people make when preparing for the GMAT is deciding that doing so will take an amount of work or or an amount of time other than what it will take for that person. For someone who has been doing a lot of arithmetic recently, preparing for GMAT quant may not take as much time as it will for someone who has to do some basic math practice. For someone whose first language is English, preparing for GMAT verbal may not take as long as it will for someone who is not as familiar with English.
You have some skills that will serve you well in GMAT quant. Handling arithmetic is not one of them at the moment. No big deal. You can develop that skill as you did the others, with some practice. If you are not getting sufficient practice in handling the arithmetic aspects of GMAT quant via using the 60 Day program, then go outside that program and use some other resources. There are plenty of resources that you can use to practice GMAT quant basics.
