Mental mindset going into Step 1?

[rankin]

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Can the people who have taken the exam tell me about their mindset on exam day?

Of course I know its good to be calm and maybe a bit anxious to get in the high performance zone of the anxiety performance curve but I can't help but think my whole life and tons of money are riding on this 1 exam? If I do bad on it I'm beyond screwed.

What was your thinking when you were going into the exam and during the exam etc?

PS: Originally posted this in the experience thread but it seems like it deserved its own fresh thread so it doesn't get too cluttered in that thread.

Thanks!

 

[2012mdc]

Can the people who have taken the exam tell me about their mindset on exam day?

Of course I know its good to be calm and maybe a bit anxious to get in the high performance zone of the anxiety performance curve but I can't help but think my whole life and tons of money are riding on this 1 exam? If I do bad on it I'm beyond screwed.

What was your thinking when you were going into the exam and during the exam etc?

PS: Originally posted this in the experience thread but it seems like it deserved its own fresh thread so it doesn't get too cluttered in that thread.

Thanks!

If I was still a little nervous but a few things helped out. I felt prepared and knew I had put a lot of time in - preparation will give you confidence. I relaxed the night before by watching Game 7 of the finals. I took a nice little walk with my ipod before the test. Some of my classmates took it at the same place so we calmed each other down.

Figure out how you want to take your breaks beforehand but be willing to adjust. I had always planned on taking a break between every block but if that wasn't the plan I should have been willing to adjust because my 1st block was the hardest one I had. I found it helpful to get some circulation and some fresh air after every block.

While in a block - skip all the weird questions and save them for the end. Sometimes I would have 4 hard/weird questions in a row, you do not want to get bogged down early in a block. Do all the ones you know for sure, build your confidence, and get into a groove before tackling the hard ones. Do not invest too much in one question - time-wise or mentally. There will be stuff you do not know and do not let it throw you off - always remember there are experimental questions

 

[rankin]

Nice advice! Thanks.