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Here is what happened in the world of GMAT this week…
Have a great weekend, everybody!
Everyone struggles with some amount of anxiety when taking a test like the GMAT, but some people struggle more than others. Stress can also affect your preparation before you ever get to the test center – if you’re too stressed out when studying, that will hurt your ability to make and recall memories. So what can we do to reduce studying and test-taking stress?
The more you’re prepared for what you’re going to face, the less stressed you’ll be. This won’t completely eliminate your anxiety – nothing will – but it can help to reduce stress to more manageable levels.
One major source of stress on this test is the feeling that you need to get everything right (and getting stressed out when you hit questions that you know you’re getting wrong). Read this article: In It To Win It. The nutshell: you’re not trying to get everything right. Nobody gets everything right, including me and other 99th percentile testers!
If you have the right attitude going into the test, that will help significantly. I like to pretend that I’m playing tennis. Nobody expects to win every single point in a tennis match – that’d be silly. But I do expect to win more points than my opponent, and I don’t stress out when I lose some points. So think of this as a tough tennis match: your opponent’s going to win a lot of points, yes, but you’re going to win more!
You will of course need to know what’s coming in terms of the formulas and rules and question types and all of the other things we need to know on the test. But also know that you’re not going to know everything and that’s okay. (Why? See “In It To Win It” above.) So don’t stress out when you see a question that’s too hard or tests you on something you don’t know. That’s just one point for your opponent.
When people are trying to get everything right, they often mess up the timing. Discovering that you’re behind on time just compounds your stress and makes everything worse, so we have to know how to manage time well all the way through the test. We also need to know what to do if we find ourselves in trouble on the timing.
Read this time management article and start incorporating its recommendations into your study right away. One big note: our discussion in the last section (“know what’s coming”) tells us that we’re going to get lots of questions wrong, so don’t worry when you get a question that you think will take too long, or if you’re so behind on time that you need to skip a question or two entirely in order to catch up. Those can just be some of your opponent’s points!
When I say we need to “anticipate problems,” I’m not talking about individual test questions. I’m talking about problems such as “What should I do if I realize that I’m 5 minutes behind on time?” or “What am I going to do if I start to feel mentally fatigued or distracted but the section isn’t over yet?”
How do you make a guess on the different types of problems? When do you make that decision – I need to guess now and this is how I’m going to do it? There are all kinds of things that you can (and should) think about in advance so that, on test day, you’ll just be able to react. That will also lessen your anxiety because you’ll have anticipated all kinds of problems and you’ll know you have solutions for them in place, just in case.
What if it’s the middle of a section and you start obsessing about that last question, because you’re sure you got it wrong, but you’ve already answered it and now you can’t go back, and I have to stop thinking about this because I’m on the next question now. But that last one – I knew how to do it! Argh, I really have to stop that, I have to concentrate on this question, but…
Sound familiar? Okay, if you start thinking about anything other than the question in front of you right now, tell yourself this: I can think all I want about that as soon as I’m done with this question – just give me 2 minutes. Pretend someone at work is trying to interrupt you and you’re saying, “yes, I’ll help you, just give me a minute to finish writing this email.”
Why would I advocate that? Why not just say “Stop thinking about that!” instead? Because it’s impossible to stop thinking about something by telling yourself to stop thinking about it. It just doesn’t work. So distract yourself – give yourself permission to think about it in a minute. Just not right this second. If you’re still thinking about it when the next question starts, tell yourself the same thing – I can think about that right after I’m done with this question. If necessary, jot down a note to yourself and say, “See, I’m writing it down so that I can’t forget to think about it in a minute. But not right this minute.” And so on, till the section’s finished. Then you can think about it all you want. : )
Also, when was the last time you were driving in a ton of traffic and you thought, “Oh, look, I’m in the lane that’s moving and all of the other lanes are really slow. Ha ha!” How about, “Wow, I keep hitting all these green lights – I’m so lucky today!”
That’s not what happens. We only notice when we’re in the slow lane! We only notice when we keep hitting a bunch of red lights! The same thing will happen on the test – you’ll notice all sorts of things that you’ll think will indicate that the test is going poorly, and you’ll gloss right over the good stuff. Remind yourself of that when you’re taking the test.
Exercise. Eat well. Make sure you’re getting enough sleep – that’s crucial. Don’t pound the caffeine and pull late night study sessions. Make sure you’re doing non-GMAT things: dinner with friends, a movie, hobbies or other activities you enjoy. Do things that will genuinely take your mind off of the GMAT for a while.
Severe anxiety issues can include physical reactions, such as a racing heart rate, sweaty palms, dizziness, nausea, and feelings of panic. If you are experiencing severe reactions, then you may need to discuss your symptoms with your physician. Your physician may be able to refer you to a therapist who can help with such things as deep breathing exercises, meditation, redirecting anxious or repetitive thoughts, and other methods for reducing anxiety.
There are also medications that can help in serious cases, but you would need to test these medications well in advance, with the help of your physician, in order to ensure that you have the right treatment and dosage, and in order to ensure that there aren’t negative side effects that could be worse than the treatment.
(1) The better prepared you are for what’s coming, the easier it will be (though still not easy!) to manage your stress levels.
(2) That preparation involves the actual test content, of course, but also “What if…” scenarios about timing and other strategies. (What if you get lost on the way to the test center? What will you do? : ) ) Answer these questions in advance and you’ll just be able to react to a situation in the way that you’ve already decided to react.
(3) For severe anxiety issues, you may need the help of a physician or qualified therapist. There are a number of remedies and many people struggle with this.
A student recently asked me to show an example of how I read and take notes on a reading comprehension passage. In this older article, I discussed how to read through an RC passage in general, but I didn’t show an example. If you haven’t already read the older article, read that first; then come back here to see an example.
The passage below is from the ManhattanGMAT CAT database (copyright MG Prep). If you are still using our exams and haven’t yet seen this passage, then you may want to wait until after you’ve seen the passage before you read this article.
As a general rule, we want to spend about 2 to 2.5 minutes on shorter passages and about 2.5 to 3 minutes on longer passages. The below passage is a longer one, so give yourself up to 3 minutes to read and take light notes.
“Sarah Meyers McGinty, in her new book Power Talk: Using Language to Build Authority and Influence, argues that while the simple lingual act of declaring power does not help a powerless person gain influence, well-considered linguistic techniques and maneuvers do. McGinty does not dispute the importance of factors such as expertise and ability in determining stature, but argues persuasively that these power determinants amount to little for a person unable to communicate effectively. Surveys have shown that managers consider effective communication skills the most critical characteristic in determining promotability in the workplace.
“McGinty divides speech into two categories: “language from the center” and “language from the edge.” In McGinty’s words, “Language from the center makes a speaker sound like a leader.” McGinty suggests that such language is not only for those already in powerful positions, but also for those of lower ranks who wish to gain more power and credibility. A speaker using language from the center directs rather than responds, makes statements rather than asks questions, uses experience persuasively, and maintains an air of impersonality in the workplace. McGinty’s assertions that the use of such language can alter or create a new balance of power are supported by studies that show that people accept leadership from those they consider experts.
“Language from the edge stands in stark contrast to language from the center. Language from the edge is exploratory, inclusive, deferential, and collaborative. A speaker using language from the edge responds rather than directs, asks questions, strives to make others feel heard, and avoids argument. Language from the center strives to claim authority for a speaker, while language from the edge strives to build consensus and trust. McGinty argues that true power comes from a deep understanding of when to use which style and the ability to use both as necessary.
“What distinguishes McGinty’s discussion of effective communication is her focus on communication skills as a way of gaining power; by contrast, most workplace communication theory focuses on communication skills as a way of preventing misunderstandings, avoiding conflict, and fostering interpersonal relationships. McGinty, however, holds that language not only helps maintain relationships but also lends authority.”
Many of you are probably thinking: that was nowhere near enough time. How am I supposed to get through something like that in 3 minutes (or faster!)? If you’ve read the other article I linked above, then you know my answer already: because we’re not going to read and try to understand every last detail in there. I’m going to take you through what I would think and what I would write while I’m reading this passage for the first time.
Paragraph 1
The first column contains the actual text, but I’ve underlined the words that I really read carefully and inserted “blah blah blah” when I started seriously skimming. The wording without underlines indicates things that I did read but to which I didn’t pay that much attention.
|
What I read |
What I think |
What I write |
| Sarah Meyers McGinty, in her new book Power Talk: blah blah blah, argues that while the simple lingual act of declaring power does not help a powerless person gain influence, well-considered linguistic techniques and maneuvers do. | SMM has a book and I really don’t know what it’s talking about yet! | P1
SMM book |
| McGinty does not dispute the importance of factors such as expertise and ability in determining stature, but argues persuasively that these power determinants amount to little for a person unable to communicate effectively. | SMM: Expertise and ability are important but don’t mean much if you can’t communicate well. Okay, I’m getting an idea of her topic now: communication. | P1
SMM book: comm well = imp (communicating well = important) |
| Surveys have shown that managers consider effective communication skills the most critical characteristic in determining promotability in the workplace. | Survey: managers like communication skills. This isn’t SMM talking any more. | P1
SMM book: comm well = imp Study: M: comm skills crit |
Paragraph 2
The first column contains the actual text, but I’ve underlined the words that I really read carefully and inserted “blah blah blah” when I started seriously skimming. The wording without underlines indicates things that I did read but to which I didn’t pay that much attention.
|
What I read |
What I think |
What I write |
| McGinty divides speech into two categories: “language from the center” and “language from the edge.” | SMM has two types of language (1) “center” and (2) “edge.” Okay, now we’re getting into her actual hypothesis. I don’t know what those terms mean yet. | P2
(1) Center L (2) Edge L |
| In McGinty’s words, “Language from the center makes a speaker sound like a leader.” | Center language has something to do with being a leader. | P2
(1) Center L: leaders (2) Edge L |
| McGinty suggests that such language is not only for those already in powerful positions, but also for those of lower ranks who wish to gain more power and credibility. | “Such language” means language from the center. SMM says that powerful people use this but also people who want to become powerful. So this language has something to do with power and being a leader. | P2
(1) Center L: leaders, power (2) Edge L |
| A speaker using language from the center directs rather than responds, makes statements rather than asks questions, uses experience persuasively, and maintains an air of impersonality in the workplace. | This is just a list of characteristics when someone’s using language from the center. I stopped reading carefully after the first one. If I get a question later about how to use “center” language, I’ll come back here. | P2
(1) Center L: leaders, power (2) Edge L > dtl on (1) (more detail on category 1) |
| McGinty’s assertions that the use of such language can alter or create a new balance of power are supported by studies that show that people accept leadership from those they consider experts. | Other studies also seem to support what SMM says about “center” language being used to create power. | P2
(1) Center L: leaders, power (2) Edge L > dtl on (1) Studies: SMM’s “center” theory = good |
Paragraph 3
The first column contains the actual text, but I’ve underlined the words that I really read carefully and inserted “blah blah blah” when I started seriously skimming. The wording without underlines indicates things that I did read but to which I didn’t pay that much attention.
|
What I read |
What I think |
What I write |
| Language from the edge stands in stark contrast to language from the center. | Edge language is different than center language. I don’t know how yet. | P3
edge = diff from center |
| Language from the edge is exploratory, inclusive, blah blah. | This is a description of “edge” characteristics. I’m not going to write them down – I’ll just know they’re here if I need to read them again. | P3
edge = diff from center characs
|
| A speaker using language from the edge responds rather than directs, asks questions, blah blah. | Examples of how to use this edge language – this is just like that other sentence in the last paragraph about how people use center language. | P3
edge = diff from center characs and ex. (characteristics and examples)
|
| Language from the center strives to claim authority for a speaker, while language from the edge strives to build consensus and trust. | This is a “big idea” sentence. I know this because it’s not giving me examples or details; rather, it’s giving a broad “this is true” statement about the two types of language. So I read the whole thing. | P3
edge = diff from center characs and ex. Center: claim auth Edge: build cons + trust |
| McGinty argues that true power comes from a deep understanding of when to use which style and the ability to use both as necessary. | Another “big idea” sentence. I want to pay careful attention especially because they’re mentioning McGinty again and because it says that this is what she “argues” – this is a big hypothesis. SMM thinks that “true power” comes from using BOTH types of language at the right time. That’s a bit of a surprise; I had been thinking that “center” language was for power and “edge” language wasn’t. | P3
edge = diff from center characs and ex. Center: claim auth Edge: build cons + trust SMM: use BOTH to gain power |
Paragraph 4
The first column contains the actual text, but I’ve underlined the words that I really read carefully and inserted “blah blah blah” when I started seriously skimming. The wording without underlines indicates things that I did read but to which I didn’t pay that much attention.
|
What I read |
What I think |
What I write |
| What distinguishes McGinty’s discussion of effective communication is her focus on communication skills as a way of gaining power; | SMM is different from others. She focuses on using communication skills to gain power. I guess that means others don’t. | P4
SMM diff: comm skills = way to gain power |
| by contrast, most workplace communication theory focuses on communication skills as a way of preventing misunderstandings, blah blah blah. | Yep, ok, most others focus on using comm for other stuff. I don’t care what that other stuff is now; if I need to know for a question, I’ll come back here later. I’m not even going to write that down. | P4
SMM diff: comm skills = way to gain power |
| McGinty, however, holds that language not only helps maintain relationships but also lends authority.” | They all agree on the relationship stuff, but SMM also thinks language “lends authority” – back to the power thing. This is just summarizing what I already know, so I’m still not going to write any more down. | P4
SMM diff: comm skills = way to gain power |
So that last thing – that SMM thinks that we can use communication skills to gain power and lend authority – seems to be the big idea here. That, and the fact that others don’t think the same thing as SMM; this is her theory. The correct answer to a main idea question should address those concepts.
Also, she talks about two different kinds of language: center and edge. People who want power or want to be leaders have to use both and have to know when to use each kind.
(1) On the first read-through, we’re trying to understand the “big picture” ideas as well as any major contrasts or changes of direction. That’s all. We want to take light notes, delineated by paragraph, while we’re reading.
(2) We don’t have a lot of time to read these passages, so we specifically want to try to avoid getting sucked into the detail on these passages. We should know what kind of detail we have and in which paragraph it’s located – but we’ll come back to that detail later on, and only if we actually get a question about it.
(3) You will likely feel uncomfortable with this approach at first because you will be skimming or outright skipping some of the detail. You should feel as though you don’t understand every last thing in the passage – if you do understand every last thing, you are reading too carefully and taking too much time. As long as you understand the big ideas and any major contrasts, you’ll be fine!
We invite you to test your GMAT knowledge for a chance to win! Each week, we will post a new Challenge Problem for you to attempt. If you submit the correct answer, you will be entered into that week’s drawing for a free Manhattan GMAT Prep item. Tell your friends to get out their scrap paper and start solving!
Here is this week’s problem:
If x and y are both integers chosen at random between 1 and 100, inclusive, what is the approximate probability that x/y is an integer?
This December, the team at Manhattan Prep ran its first holiday season food & toy drive. Manhattan Prep staff, Instructors and students at our New York City headquarters contributed games, stuffed animals, food items, and spare change to the efforts. In just over two weeks, we collected over 100 items of food, donated to City Harvest, and over 40 toys for Toys for Tots.
The United States Marines’ Toys for Tots program collects toys between October and December every year for children who otherwise wouldn’t have any gifts to open during the holidays. City Harvest, a New York-based nonprofit, collects food year-round to support its many community programs aimed at feeding New York City’s hungry. We’re thrilled to be supporting such worthy organizations. Thanks to all who contributed!