GMAT Day: Update!

Dec 14, 2010... GMAT Girl's 3rd attempt at the GMAT after a disastrous first 2 attempts.

Result?

630 (Q41, V35)

And as far as I'm concerned - I've beaten the GMAT, coming in at the 73rd percentile. It's definitely not a 700 or anywhere close to a 680, but, given my journey from 520, to 490 and now a 140 point improvement to 630, I'm VERY happy with my score and my efforts, and SO GLAD to be done with this stage of my life - the stage that involved lots of intense study and sacrifice.

What next? Applications here I come!

(But not before taking a few days of well deserved rest and experiencing the novelty of coming home and NOT having to study or feel guilty for not studying!)

Thanks for reading :)

10 more days to go

Just a quick post to let everyone know that, yes,  I'm still here and studying away. I do feel like I'm burning out, but feel that there's still so much material to cover in verbal (mostly SC theory) as CR and RC is a matter of practice and analysis I feel.

10 more days to go so I better get back to it! Will update soon with more progress updates.

Tomorrow is my last day with my tutor, so focusing on quant study for the rest of today, to ensure I get any questions answered by tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

22 days to go ... countdown begins

Did a GMAT Prep test today... not a great score... but my goal on doing this test was not to bother about my score but rather focus on doing a full length test with time constraints. I got 620 (Q 38, V 37)

I made 3 careless calculation errors that cost me 3 precious marks! Those 3 easy lost points could have given me a higher score in quant.... So my key takeaways on the errors I make:

• Write clearly, and reason it out instead of thinking in my head
• The other errors I made require review in ratios, prime factorization, algebra, and most importantly: READING A QUESTION and from that question DEVELOPING a formula. That will require more practice

I'm determined to do another hour before I get to bed... I'll start MGMAT SC guide now as that is a good way to see fast improvements on my verbal score.

I don't think my V 37 is accurate... its high actually because I saw a few repeat questions... need to practice on it diligently... doing 20 CR per day and 1-2 RC passage per day is helping me. Need to keep at it though.

6 hrs of studying today... it's not enough!

3 weeks to go and on my off days from work, I should be hitting 7 hrs (realistic).

The top 6 things I am working on, which I feel will help me on the exam:

1. Positive self talk and attitude - critical so that I don't panic on the exam - FEAR leads to a bad score!
2. GMAT Strategy:
1. Practice pacing/timing
2. Practice a few key steps on each and every Problem Solving question I encounter:
1. Read question and write down important facts
2. Always write down what the question is asking me so that I ensure I answer the question asked (I've made a lot of careless mistakes this way)
3. Do more Verbal practice (I've been focusing 95% of my time on quant so far) - commit to 20 CR per day and 2 RC per day (heavy but I need to squeeze it in at work)
4. Do 5 GMAT Prep practice tests before test day. Why? To get familiar with the blue screen/format and help me tackle point #1 (reduce my fear!)
5. Do MGMAT CAT #4 (focus more on GMAT Prep tests, but do 1 more MGMAT to get a bank of questions that I can practice and get my head around)
6. Review, Review, Review theory

Honesty totally kicking in...

Hey guys... I just want to say.. with 3 weeks to go and my commitment to post daily on this blog as I speed to the finish line... this space is going to get even more candid as I go through the stresses and trials of studying for this exam.

Honest thought #1 that I'm telling myself right now:
"Seriously... there's kids in countries that would grab an opportunity like I have to get up and study and not worry about anything else... so I need to think about this whenever I feel lazy or procrastinate on the studying".

Enough said. Speaking of which, I'm going to head to bed and aim to be up at 7 am and in study mode by 8 am. I've booked an 8 am exam so I need to start training my mind to think at that time!

A little less than 3 weeks to go... gulp

I meant to write more here, but my days have been a blur of lots of work and studying. Although... to be honest... I am really not happy with my studying these past few weeks. It's not that I lack quantity... I am not happy with my quality and need to go back to building in solid time for REVIEW!!!

So, I'll be honest... I am getting stressed out thinking about this exam, and it's 3 weeks away. I know if I let this fear take control, my stress will take over and I'll be a terrible mess of nerves on my 3rd attempt. It's because I really want this score. I have sacrificed over 1.5 years of my life, on and off, in the GMAT world so in my mind, the stakes are high. However, thinking this way isn't going to help me, so I'm writing down a few things I'll be doing to be targeted and strategic in my approach:

GMAT Girl's Guide to the next 3 weeks of her life:

1. Cultivate positive, can-do attitude. Don't have any self doubts and think about everything I could have done better in my prep. Think about what I have done and how important it is for me to keep that energy and spirit up.
2. I'm tired of studying. But... FIGHT with myself to get up and be consistent in studying. I'm a GMAT solider for the next 3 weeks... don't get lazy, but at the same time...
3. Take time to celebrate my daily GMAT achievements going into this exam
4. Focus on reviewing theory
5. Forget feeling guilty about all the friends I've lost touch with ... this is your life right now and the rewards will come if you work hard NOW!

In other news... I took MGMAT Cat #3 today. Got a 630 (Q 44, V 32).
I'm really disappointed in my Verbal score because that's the same score I've been hovering around and I have no idea what I need to do to improve! As for Quant score... it's still an area that I'm determined to keep practicing in, as it's not my natural strength.

More updates will come regularly in the next 3 weeks.

Day 48: Booked a test date

I wanted to write this exam earlier, but all the dates got taken up, so the earliest in Dec I got, and booked was....

December 14, 2010 at 8 am.

I'm bloody scared and nervous as its the same test centre that I failed my last 2 times. It's a weekday though... maybe that will help me.... in either case... I need to face my fear and demons and get them under control before exam day.

Right now, I'm racked with anxiety that I can't sleep.

This too shall pass.

Day 42: Slowly and painfully back into action

Did the following today. I could have done more, but given my last 10 days of almost GMAT study, today looks much better. Need to follow this same flow and slowly get back into full-blown form.

I only have 1 month left.

Accomplisments

• Completed 2 RC passages
• 10 OG CR questions
• 20 OG DS questions
• 10 OG PS questions
• 60 min of quant theory review

Planning on getting up at 7:30 am tomorrow and ensuring I'm at the library by 9 am. (I took a day off work to study so need to make it worthwhile!)

Day 41: 9 days of no study

I'll be honest - since my last post of doing the MGMAT Cat #2 till today, I have done very very minimal studying (more like nothing).

Work was long, and I got sick, and it lasted a while. Had no energy to study.

Anyway, I'm back and need to get into it again. Also, being sick sucks! I am going to start having to really do 15-20 min of stretching or light exercise to keep my body healthy - otherwise, all my studying momentum could be lost again! :S

Hope to have more regular updates soon.

Day 32: Did MGMAT CAT #2

I did a practice test today to see how far I've progressed... but, I did a MGMAT one (which is much harder than GMAT Prep!)

Also, confession, I cheated on the Quant of MGMAT and hit the PAUSE button to try and solve questions. My verbal score is right though, because I did it within the timed limits, no pauses.

So the score is: 630 (Q 44, V 32)

• Math is DEFINITELY inflated. I was so clueless and felt like I was guessing on 60% of these questions.... I don't understand how I scored 44 and will NOT take this as a victory. This test showed me that I am not confident in a lot of my base theories and need to memorize certain question types 
• Verbal... well, Verbal is 32, and that's a real score considering I didn't inflate. I feel I need to get faster and avoid mental fatigue. I need to get verbal up to 38 at least on MGMAT b/c I heard MGMAT verbal is easy!

Going to spend tomorrow reviewing my wrong answers in Quant and Verbal.

Day 30: Quality not quantity strategy

Yesterday was a write off day... I was so exhausted that I pretty much slept for 10 hrs straight.

Today (Day 30), I had off, so I re-thought of my strategy and did the following:

• Went through some previous questions I've gotten wrong from previous attempt's GMAT Prep tests (about 15 questions reviewed through this)
• Identified weaknesses in the following and spent time pounding the concept lessons into my brain:
• Ratio vs numbers
• Gross Profit
• Inequalities
• N - O/ O type problems
• OG 12: Went through all the DS questions from #1-70 that I either got wrong or took longer than 2 minutes to solve
• OG 12: 6 PS questions (#169-174)
• 2 SC

Heading to bed... my brain can't possibly cram in any more info.

Saturday I'm taking my first Practice Test since my last actual GMAT attempt!

Day 28: Recover from Sat's abysmal study day

[Edit: This weekend was a very slow study weekend. I have a day off work on Tuesday and I definitely will need to get myself to a library. Staying at home is making me an unkempt bum and it doesn't help my study habits. The days are ticking down and the stakes are high. Can't waste precious time - note to self!]

Sat was pretty much a waste day. I don't have much of an excuse really. I slept alot during the day because of a late Friday night where I lay awake doing nothing. What a waste.

With hopes of starting Sun refreshed and ready to go, I'm going to head to bed right after this post. Planning out Sunday study day:

Get up at 8 am and be ready to study for 9:30 am:

1. [COMPLETE] PS Review OG 12 solving strategy on the questions I got wrong or went over 2 min per question
2. DS (same as PS review)
3. [COMPLETE --> 8 wrong, spent over 2 min on 10 q's] 25 PS questions
4. [Did 13 questions --> 5 wrong] 25 DS questions
5. Spend 1.5 hrs tackling CR logical reasoning strategies
6. Do 1 RC passage
7. (Not related to study, but I consider this impt so adding it here so that it gets done) Excercise/stretch/or do yoga for 20 min. Keeps me from feeling lethargic

Day 27: Saturday = study day

Firstly, recap on Day 26:

• Met with my tutor for 2 hrs. I didn't find this session as useful as the first one. I've spaced the tutoring days apart by 10 - 14 days per session as I want to use her more as a coach to occasionally touch base with, to get some perspective on, but don't feel I need her regularly.
• 1 thing I learned from the tutor is CR diagramming strategies. She gave good advice: Don't focus on faster timing in CR right now - instead, struggle with the logic behind each question and deeply understand it. Once I get through that hurdle, my timing will improve as I will be able to identify the logic structure immediately.

This leads to.... Day 27 Study Plan [I will update whenever I complete each item, throughout the day]

• [COMPLETE. Spend a while struggling with necessary and sufficient condition theory. Decided to take a break and try this concepts again tomorrow because my head hurts trying to make sense of if X, then Y. Did #1-10 of OG 12 CR and reviewed notes. Small progress but at least tackled verbal today.] CR: Spend 2 hours on understanding an argument's underlying logic 
• eg. What's the structure? Theory? Illustration of a theory? Where's the premise and conclusion? What's the purpose of placing the conclusion and premise in a particular order? How does that impact the argument and flow? Where are there gaps in flow and logic

• [Bad study day today. Only 30% COMPLETE] Quant - QUALITY not quantity focus first: Review all PS and DS probs completed to date with the following analysis points: 
• What theory areas do I need to strengthen?
• (Review those theory areas)
• Read through solutions - is there another method or shortcut than my method to go faster? Study those

• [INCOMPLETE] Do 25 PS questions from OG 12

• [INCOMPLETE] Do 25 DS questions from OG 12

It's definitely an ambitious plan, considering that I'll be starting at 12 noon. But I think it's a good framework for today's study day. I need to crank up the heat, considering that I have just a MONTH to go!

Ready? Set? Go!

Day 25: Long day... but gotta put in the hours, no excuses

Woke up determined to squeeze in whatever study time I could get in today. This week is going to be very long at work, so I know I need to make the most of every minute.

So far....

8:00 am - 8:40 am: OG 12, PS, #127 - #137 (11 questions done)

To do still:

• COMPLETE - 4 more PS q's
• COMPLETE - 10 DS q's (#46-55, OG 12 DS)
• 30 min of Verbal q's
• Start thinking about what I want to achieve with my tutor tomorrow

I'll edit this post when I get home this evening. With good news of reaching study targets. (Fingers crossed) ;)

Day 24

Dead tired, however got the following done:

• OG 12, 30 questions between PS and DS
• Was feeling too exhausted for verbal q's so I read 2 articles in the Scientific American. 

And that's a wrap for today. Need to get verbal into this mix too. Asap!

Day 21: Enjoying studying

Yes... you read that heading correctly. I, GMAT Gal, am enjoying studying. This is BIG. Very bigg - considering that the last 2 times, I treated GMAT studying like an (extremely) odious chore that was killing my social life. A necessary evil to discard away with as quickly as possible.

However, the shock of getting a bad score in what I thought was my last attempt (last month), drove home a few points:

1. I really want to do an MBA. My previous attitude towards the GMAT and MBA was not serious. I know I wanted to do a grad degree, and an MBA was the right choice because of my career goals... but I wasn't so passionate about the MBA. I was reluctant. I didn't think I needed to put much effort and heart and soul into the GMAT. I figured... hey... I went to one of the best business schools in Canada (iBBA at the Schulich School of Business) ... I don't possibly need to study that hard... right? Wrong 
2. That huge desire to want to do the MBA came when I realized that if I couldn't successfully clear the GMAT... I'd never get an MBA and my future career aspirations would be halted. So.. Sept 19th onwards (the day after my exam), I found my attitude changed drastically:
1. Build up my shattered confidence
2. Learn to enjoy studying again vs treating it like a chore
3. Do NOT panic - dealing gracefully with stressful situations is a hallmark of a successful MBA candidate - and - even - a successful life!
4. Do NOT panic (I have to keep reminding myself that)

So, anyway, in the spirit of the Thanksgiving weekend, I was watching a movie that re-iterated to me the things I was thankful for:

1. My wonderful parents for supporting me fully in my educational pursuits
2. My friends - real, funny, warm and reliable
3. My good health
4. Living in a country where I can take advantage of opportunities... simply by wanting something. There are places where wanting something isn't enough. You have to have the money, or the connections, or the right political situation to get it too. In Canada, all I need to do is invest in the effort, and things will flow from there. (I love Canada!)

 So... back to rule #3, 4: Do NOT panic. I have a lot to be thankful for and really... I'm grateful that I have the opportunity to just focus on the GMAT for the next 1.5 months. Ready... set... Go!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! :)

Day 19: Some practice before bed

I was moving really slow today and got a very small amount of studying done this morning (45 min). I could have easily gotten in another good 30 min, but... its a Friday (that's my reason for being a bit more sluggish this morning).

It's the Thanksgiving long weekend over here in Toronto, so Monday is a stat holiday. And, because I need every study day that I can get, I was VERY happy that its a stat holiday because in my mind it equates to a whole other study day.

Came home, unwinded for 2 hrs and was really braindead at 10 pm, but pushed myself to do some questions. I didn't feel like going into in-depth analysis with OG 12, so I did 1 hr 15 min of www.grockit.com  - its a website that allows you to practice GMAT questions. I didn't find the questions all that hard, but I did find that doing something like that and practicing is better than doing nothing.
 ---
 It's interesting.... in my last attempt, I was absolutely miserable to have to study on a Friday night - but this time around - nothing matters but focusing, working hard and getting a good score - I am determined! 

Day 18: Taming the wild horse

I started OG 12 today, after going through MGMAT Strategy Guides #1, 2, 3 and 1/2 of 4. I decided to stop the theory and head right into the mouth of the open beast... OG 12 practice problems.

Theory is important, but so is practice. I plan on reviewing my theory notes, but also, doing 20-30 OG questions per day.

I'm timing myself with this stopwatch. Sometimes I find it discouraging to see how long it takes me to complete a question (eg 4 min), but at least I know how I'm faring. I'm keeping an excel tracker sheet this time of how I go.

Timer I use: http://www.online-stopwatch.com/full-screen-stopwatch/

The GMAT is like an untamed wild horse (analogy courtesy of my GMAT tutor) ... its a friendly beast... you just have to tame it and then it's a fun ride. lol. Well, all I know is staying positive is important, and the wild horse analogy makes me smile... maybe I'll even take a horseriding 1 day lesson after this whole GMAT journey, just for the laughs ;)

Day 14

Completed:

• Spent 20 min reviewing theory notes of previous MGMAT Strat Guides #1-3
• Started MGMAT Strat Guide #4 (Word Translations):
• Read, took theory notes - Chpt 1-3
• Did 45 drill questions from this book
• MGMAT Strat Guide #6 (Critical Reasoning): Did a quick read through all major chpts, and took notes on Chpt 1-4
• Did 3 "Find the assumption" questions and spent 4-10 min per question analyzing what the structure of the argument was, and categorizing each answer choice - even though I knew the answers intuitively, I need to develop an anlytical approach that will help me out on even the hardest questions. Found that the analysis (of the right answers) helped me more than just choosing an answer, getting it right and then moving on.

Also... I found a tutor... I'll be spending 2 hours with her on Wed... I was a bit hesitant about getting a tutor, but got convinced to try one out... let's see if its useful or not this coming Wed (Day 17).

And that's a wrap for a Sunday. Did I mention I also got a good chunk of laundry done? ;)

Day 13: Battle with Advanced strategy inequalities

I feel like I've made little to know progress today, even though I've studied around 4 hours already.

I'm doing MGMAT Strategy Guide #3, and finding that I'm getting all the advanced questions wrong for inequalities. I feel its because I didn't fully internalize the strategies in Chpt 5 (basic inequalities) because I skimmed through it.

The hard thing with learning through MGMAT is that:
1) I know most of the basics - just need to get faster and more comfortable, so when I am reading through the basic chapters, I skim over areas I feel I've already mastered. This however leads to trouble if...
2) MGMAT is teaching a new strategy that would be useful for me to know, but, will take time for me to learn because I've learned another strategy that I'm not that strong at, but find easier to do.

For me this means that I need to take a deep breathe and learn a new strategy.. because if a past strategy isn't something I'm strong in ... then why keep hitting my head against a brick wall? Scrap that and learn a new way of doing it... and doing it faster and getting it right consistently.

Battling with inequalities right now. Don't feel like giving up on it yet, but at the same time, I'm having a rising sense of worry that I only have less than 2 months to go and I need to be mindful of studying strategically.

Overall, I've made the decision to not study MGMAT Strategy Guide #5 (Geometry). Why? Because I don't have the time in my prep, and I know the basic Geo stuff anyway. If I have time later on, I'll go through it, but not now.

Focus on mastering the concepts in Strategy Guide #3 and #4 (Word Translations - something I'm really weak in)!.

Ok... so I'm going to go back to this... I hope I have happier news to report tomorrow instead of another battle with a question type.  :S

Day 12: Slowly revving up again

This week has been a very un-GMAT-esque week with social catch ups that could not be canceled and month end at work (worked a 11 hour day yesterday) :S

Today, I did about 1.5 hours of studying - measly, but better than my Mon - Thurs. What I've accomplished:

- MGMAT Strategy Guide #3, Chpt 12 of 14 chpt in theory review

Plan for Sat Oct 2:
- Finish theory review of Strat Guide #3, and do all the practice questions by the afternoon
- In the afternoon do an hour of English
- Start MGMAT Strategy Guide #4

My overall plan is to make theory notes (especially from MGMAT Advanced Strategy), and work on being able to identify problem types before moving onto doing all the OG 12 practice problems that the MGMAT suggests.

Strat Guide #4 is a harder one (Word Translations) so I expect that will take me a good 1 week to do with all the MGMAT problems, before I can move onto OG 12 questions. I plan on leaving MGMAT Strat Guide #5 out of my study (the Geo section) for now as I really want to finish #4 and start on OG practice problems next week.

I'm going to head to bed now... there's no point in me being half alert and studying. I'd rather get a good nights sleep and start properly tomorrow. Guilt? Yes I feel very guilty about this week, but, I know I can have a good study weekend.

Oops... Blogger software incorrectly filtered spam!

Apologies to those who've commented earlier... I just realized today that some of your comments went into spam for some reason and went in and indicated that it wasn't spam.

I appreciate all your comments and feedback - keep it coming! It keeps me accountable and its also good knowing I'm not the only one going through this journey.

I'll make sure I make it a habit to check Google's high security spam filter to ensure this doesn't happen in future. Apologies again :)

GMAT Gal

Day 10: GMAT comes back into focus

The perils of studying for the GMAT are that many people don't have a social life during that critical study period. Having already done an attempt in the past, I was in social hibernation and had assumed I"d be out of it at this time and had gone ahead and made a few social commitments. Unfortunately for me.. I'm not out of the woods yet, but I had to keep the appointments I'd made, so that was the focus this week.

So, while this weekend (Day 6, 7) was study oriented, my Mon - Wed (Day 8, 9, 10) were not. I"ll be honest... I averaged approximately 45 min on Day 8, 9, 10 between work and the social engagements. Being a social butterfly and then disappearing opens up a lot of questions and concerns from friends, so I had to do my rounds and assure everyone that I was still alive and kicking.

So, tomorrow, Day 11, starts afresh.

In the meantime, here's a summary of what I've accomplished from Day 5 - 10:

• Finshed MGMT Strategy Guide 2, and halfway through Strategy Guide 3 (Equations, Inequalities, VICS)
• I noticed that I got 1 or 2 'Plug in the Formula/Sequence' type questions on the GMAT, which I didn't feel I had the background knowledge for. MGMAT does a good job of laying out the ground work of what these question types will look like so I've made notes on these particular areas 
• Started reading up on MGMAT Critical Reasoning Strategy Guide
• I know that many people focus more on MGMAT's SC bible, but I want to study the CR Strategy Guide as well, b/c CR is my weakness and I like the way the key points are laid out in the guide. I try and do CR when I'm feeling not as sharp, because, even though my previous English score was low (V 29), I know that its generally something I"m more comfortable with and feel confident I can get better with practice and memorization

Goal for the end of this week:

• Simple: Finish all Strategy Guide (SG) #3 (including advanced theory), with notes. 
• Plan is to do SG #3 questions on Saturday and start SG #4 on Sunday

How am I feeling?

• I'm not feeling guilty that I didn't study much this week, because I had to do the social rounds, considering I have been off the map for a long while. However, I am eager to go back to GMAT focus because I will not feel completely relaxed until I beat this thing!

Have a good night folks! :)

Viva la GMAT! Woot! ;)

So what does it truly mean to live, breathe, sleep the GMAT?

In my previous GMAT attempts, I approached this exam as a necessary evil that would get me to the next step in the MBA application process. I didn't really integrate it with my lifestyle or thought process.

Needless to say, I don't think that approach worked for me. The scare that I got upon seeing my low score really catapulted me to think and approach this whole exam differently. Mind you, I'm still in the beginning stages of training my mind to approach it this way, but here's a few learnings:

1. Confidence is critical. You can go into that exam knowing your theory, but if you're not confident in your abilities, or in the prep you did to get to that exam room... you may as well say good bye to a solid GMAT score. In my prep this time around, I'm focusing on building my confidence through a two-pronged effort:
• Build confidence in my abilities (that's a psychological thing), and 
• Build confidence in my knowledge (a pure study/strategy thing
2. I'm not compartmentalizing the GMAT, but rather viewing it as a lifestyle. 
• I study, but, now I also make myself analyze my study schedule, and general approach to what I'm studying in my spare time. I don't mindlessly do questions. I think "Ok... is doing x number of math questions helping me learn or am I just doing them? Am I doing enough review? What are the questions I'm asking when I review my math content? Am I making an effort to categorize each question type (harder to do, but a better study strategy), or am I just jumping to the next question?"
• My main topic of conversation and thought process is GMAT - or I try to keep it that way. It sounds extreme, but, I find, for me at least, this focused approach keeps me going with committing to study hours. Eg. When I drive to work, I chill out to music, but then also spend 10 min of my drive in silence, thinking about why it is I'm doing this, and motivating myself to keep at it, and that I will see results
3. There will be good study days, and bad study days. I try not to beat myself about it too much if I only get in an hour during work days, when, really, I know I can fit in 2 hours decently. What's the point of making myself feel worse? Adds extra (and unnecessary pressure). So, I try as much as possible to let it go, head to bed worry-free and attack the next study day with zest, enthusiasm and energy
4. Find your stress-busting techniques - you'll need it! Points #1-3 are all well and good, but, I'm a fun loving gal and as serious as the GMAT is, I try not to let the seriousness get to my head too much - that would just increase the pressure and result in more fear - which is certainly not going to help me! So, I crank up my MacBook volume and dance to any beat that makes me want to get up and just enjoy the music ;) And, on the days I'm too exhausted to dance? I dust out my old travel pics from my globe-trotting days, or read through my journal entries from those days to remind myself that... hey... the GMAT is not a certification of my abilities/inabilities. I am quite an interesting person with or without the GMAT ... so its a reminder to me that getting a good score is not impossible - one just needs to keep things in perspective! :)

Carpe Diem! 

Day 4

Need to do a better job of getting in 2 quality hours... I've only averaged an hour per evening and I know I can reasonably fit in 2 hrs.

Today, I did 2 hours, covering MGMAT Strategy Guide #1 (Number Properties)
- Pretty much whizzed through the basic chapters and will start tackling the Advanced Strategy chapters tomorrow (where I will require more study time, as I know the basics)

However, a few helpful things I did pick up from the basic chapters were:
1) Rules around consecutive even and odd integers - thought process and explanation around how to categorize these questions types was new for me

2) Factors/multiples : A concept I've struggled with - it's not hard, but I need to get better at re-phrasing the question and putting it into a theoretical context of content that I've studied.

Heading to bed now, with a determination to do 2 quality hours tomorrow. Viva la GMAT!

[Side Topic: Writing the GMAT again]

I've always been known as the very optimistic gal... except when it comes to myself. On myself, I pose exacting standards and high goals that I push myself to achieve.

Ah... but the GMAT humbled me. 2 times I've written this thing and I've been left feeling completely off-kelter. Doubts rose within me - about my ability, about my intelligence. This exam is not rocket science... but it certainly is a mental battle. If you can win your mind and instill yourself with confidence and optimism, I feel that the battle of nerves has been won and you can focus on just actual GMAT concepts on test day.

So, my focus this time around?

1) I believe getting a low score was, in a way, a mixed blessing. Why? Well... it's sure instilled a fire within me to study hard and strategically, and prove to myself, most of all, that I can overcome this... and when I do? What a feeling! Visualize success and then work your way towards it!

If I can do this... then I think I'm 1 step closer to beating my worst enemy: my self doubt and lack of confidence in my own abilities! (And isn't that the sweetest victory of all?)

Life's too short to waste on worries and the past - focus on the present, and visualize the future - and most importantly, work a bit everyday to get there! Woot!

;)

Day 3

A new GMAT attempt means a fresh way of learning - ie... new books ... my set of 8 Manhattan Prep Strategy guides arrived in the mail yesterday evening and I started on Strategy Guide #1 this morning (Covers Number Properties).

Only got an hour done, however, also spent some time outlining my general approach - afterall, its not about quantity of studying, its about quality. Here's my rough outline of approach in the coming 3 weeks - readers, please feel free to critique!

1) Get really uncomfortable - ie - do not go over what I already know. I plan on reviewing all 5 MGMAT Quant Strategy guides in the next 5 weeks. Yes, going through all the sections, but the purpose is to skim over areas I am comfortable with and spend more time on the harder areas - especially MGMAT's Advanced Strategy section, where I find approaches rather challenging - and therefore, a great area to learn from.

2) Goal is to finish all 5 MGMAT Quant book theory review and problem sets by Oct 9. Perhaps a little ambitious with a full time job? I'll see how it goes and adjust accordingly.

3) Once I'm done the 5 MGMAT books, I'm going to go back to Strategy Guide #1 and do the associated questions from OG 12 and QR books that the MGMAT outlines. This will help reinforce the theory I went over in these books.

4) While I'm reviewing math before and after work, I plan on squeezing in 15-20 min of reading of the Economist and the Scientific American online magazines during work breaks, and also completing 1 Reading Comprehension passage, and 2 CR questions each on Sat and Sun. This will help keep my verbal learnings alive while I focus on math.

Day 2

Did only a mere 1 hour yesterday and determined to do 2 hours today. Work is exhausting so I need to get in at least 1 1/2 hours before I head to work when my brain is not drained out.

Today morning: 1 hour, 15 min
- Did 12 very easy DS question drills (more to keep that in my mind)
- Analyzed where I went wrong with MGMAT Cat #1, Quant section

Tutor search begins
I'm also searching for a GMAT tutor to bounce a few study strategies off of and see if I am studying the best way possible this time.

Loving the Economist
Also, I've started to read www.economist.com for 15-20 min a day - I've always loved the Economist, but was never consistent in reading it, but now that I am, enjoying the intellectual stimulation, and noticing the way the writers lay out their ideas - very elegantly written with subtle words that lead to their main points. And very rich vocabulary

[Edit: A good friend of mine is writing her GMAT today.... I am sure it will be a better GMAT end than mine - sending her good vibes all day today :)]

Day 1

Woke up this morning with a sense of urgency, stress and desire to study because there's no other way for me to score well this 3rd time than to just purely know the material, inside out. And that requires studying, so I tried to push away the stress factors.

Did an hour this morning. Trying to study in 1 hour increments and slowly make my way to 2 hour steady increments to train my brain for the actual GMAT experience. That 1 hr today was REALLY LONG and difficult. But, enough practice for my brain to stay focused during that time will soon make that 1 hour seem very doable. Consistency and practice are key!

1 hr in the morning:
- Analyzed the remainder of a previous MGMAT Cat 1 (Verbal Section), made notes on key learnings

GMAT Study Strategy

Posting this more as a reminder to myself:

1) It's QUALITY. Not QUANTITY. This time around, focus on UNDERSTANDING why I went wrong on the question, how I can prevent it the next time around, what are the similar concepts that I can apply, record in my notebook if its a key strategy/thought process that I should be remembering for other problems of that type.

2) Read cover to cover, the MGMAT books (Quant) and understand what I'm doing.

3) For verbal, CR and RC are about practice and analyzing the question type, while SC requires MGMAT Strategy guide study (do this later on in the prep). But, do 1 CR and 1/2 RC per day to get used to it. And remember to ANALYZE it (30 min on verbal per day with this exercise)

GMAT Study Schedule

Here's the plan of attack during the Monday to Friday work week.  (Subject to adjustments as I try the scheduling out)

6:30 - Get up! Get up!
6:45 - Really get up. Stop hitting the snooze button darling..
6:45 - 7:15: Brush, eat breakfast.. healthy start to the day!

7:15 - 8:45: GMAT STUDY. Theory focus (approx 1.5 hours)

8:45 - 9:30: Get ready for work
9:30 - Leave home and drive to work
10:00 - 6 pm: Work time. Focus solely on work. GMAT thoughts banned.
6:30 - 7 pm: Get home from work (Travel time is totally traffic dependent)
7:00 - 8 pm: Eat, unwind after work

8:00 - 9:30 pm: Do practice questions (approx 1 hr)

9:30 - 10 pm: Downtime
10:00 pm: Start getting ready for bed
10:30 pm: Be in bed, eyes closed. Dream GMAT dreams ;)

Total study time during weeknights = 10 - 12.5 hrs
Total study time during weekends = 10 hrs
Total study time over 8 weeks = (Approximately) 160 hours

The key is consistency.

Rules:
1) Do not take or make phone calls after 9 pm. Talking is actually quite tiring, especially considering I do it a lot during my dayjob! Stay focused. Use the drive home to catch up with friends.

2) Get an early start to the day - I have such a hard time getting up, but feel so much better once I know I did some proper studying in the morning. Less stress that I have to make up 2.5 hrs in the evening.

Sigh. Breathe. Here I go again...

I'm a very private person in real life. I don't have Facebook, or Twitter and barely use BBM for that matter. Yet, here I am, barring all in the online world.

Why?
Let me lay this out as honestly as possible: The situation is, this is my 3rd attempt at the GMAT. The first 2 went miserably wrong for a variety of reasons and I was just about to quit before I stopped, sat down and decided that this 3rd time around, I'm going to go at it completely different.

Firstly, I need to get this out: I am terribly embarrassed to be admitting to a group of anonymous readers that this is my 3rd attempt. It came as a shocker to me, especially since I feel I am a decently intellectually-endowed individual. I went to one of the top business schools in Canada and work for a nationally recognized company. Yet... this GMAT journey of mine has been bumpy at best and despairing at the worst of it.

Yet, I've decided to give this a go the 3rd time, and this time, record my entire experience doing it. This is no-holds barred writing folks. I'm not intending to edit my posts a million times because my focus is on study. So, its straight from my head, onto the keyboard and out there for millions of you to read.

I've decided to share my journey for a few reasons:
1) Sharing this sometimes lonely path will (I hope) keep me from going insane
2) Want to prove to myself that it is possible to score well, but more than that, embrace GMAT studies as a way of living (something I neglected to do the last 2 times around)
3) Hope that perhaps someone out there going on their own GMAT journey connects with this experience and gains inspiration from it.

Will I fail at the GMAT? Will I pass? I don't know. I'm going in with the hope and determination that I will pass with a decent score. I refuse to believe that someone with determination, hard work and a set goal cannot achieve it... I will have to see come test day if this theory in fact holds true.

So here I am world. No holds barred journey of the entire span of emotions and actions the GMAT creates.

And come on... at the end of the day... it's a doable test if you put in the effort. So... let me get to it.

And of course, please do not hesitate to comment with your own journey or experiences or advice! :)