Devastated by my October score. Need some inspiration

[tretch_778]

About a month going into October, I was averaging 169-172 on PTs, even getting 178+ a couple times (all PTs taken w/ flex mode). October was my very first LSAT (first standardized testing experience) and idk if it was the nerves or the lack of sleep but I made very poor and costly mistakes on the LG section, which was my first section. I usually get -0/-2 on LG, and I bank on doing well on this section to get my target score on PTs, as my RC performance can be inconsistent. I messed up very badly by misreading a single, simple, tho very important rule. This wasted about 6-7 mins of my time which is very very important for LG, as I usually finish right at the 34-35 min mark for most of my sections. As such, I had to take educated guess for about 50% of the last 2 games, which sucks because I had the last (and hardest) game figured out, but just didn't have time to attempt all of the questions properly. This was my first section too, so it kinda shocked me for the rest of the test. All in all, i ended up scoring a 159, a score I hadn't seen since my two weeks of prep.

Idk where to go from here, emotionally. Luckily I'm signed up for November so I plan on doing consistent PTs for the last 2 weeks I have until test day. But emotionally this has taken a HUGE toll on my confidence and I'm starting to really question myself. If anyone has any anecdotes/stories or words of inspiration, I'd GREATLY appreciate it. Also thank you to everyone work at powerscore, The bibles were crucial for my prep and I really appreciate how you guys keep us in the loop w/ LSAC.

[Dave Killoran]

Hi Eric,

Thanks for the message. I know that what you just went through was frustrating, but surprisingly there's a lot of good news inside your situation, so let's talk about it.

First, you already know that this 159 is not representative of your ability. It's a score that is far below where you had been, and one you had surpassed early in your prep. So, you can't over-focus on the score and worry about.

Second, you already know you can do far better. This was a worst-case scenario, and unlikely to occur again. and when you do go out and improve, it will effectively erase this score from your record. Yes, I wish you'd cancelled this since it's a psychic blow for you to have this on your record, but a new score will wash it away.

Third, the place to go here is to learn from what happened, and retrace your steps so you can avoid making a simple error next time that sends you into a tailspin. Maybe that means reading each rule twice and checking it off so this doesn't occur again. I can't be sure what will work for you, so practice it.

And last, emotionally you have to look at this as a bad day and let it go. Yes, you made a mistake and it cost you. That's terrible but it happens. In this case, a new higher score next time overrides this 159, so you still have that as the ultimate out. focus on that! Do better this next time and the last time doesn't matter at all. It's like a football team that lost last year's championship game but now get to play again in this year's game: go in there thinking about winning now, and don't think about last year

One other thing: don't take too many PTs and burn yourself out. Give yourself some time to recover mentally!

Thanks and good luck—you can do it!