I used to teach high school language arts and journalism and always preached to my students about the importance of test day and making sure they did certain things to maximize their potential for success. I found myself calling on these strategies in the 24-36 hours leading up to the test. And I offer up the following in an effort to help others who are feeling pre-SIE-exam anxiety:
- Memorize. Some things you just have to flat-out memorize, and in the day or two leading up to the exam, if you haven’t already, make flashcards that have a term or formula on one side and a definition and bulleted, short lists on the other. Have a family member quiz you the day before and the morning of.
- Breathe. Nervous energy will drain you if you don’t simply breathe normally. And/or, use the 4-7-8 method: inhale for a slow count of 4; hold for a count of 7; and exhale for a count of 8. Increased oxygen = increased brain power.
- Rest/Sleep: Two nights before is just as critical as the night before, and for a person with my sleep habits, getting 8 hours on Sunday night (the test was Tuesday), proved to be incredibly valuable because it gave me a clear mind on Monday, enabling me to lock in to test prep. I went to bed around 11 Monday night and got a solid six hours.
- Practice. You’ve already done a bunch of practice quizzes and exams using the Achievable method. FINRA also has a test available. Consider running through it a day or two before. It looks different than Achievable but isn’t exactly like the actual. More importantly, practice writing out your “Dump Sheet.” I did this a half-dozen times and let me just say, once the test started, I truly dumped a ton of information onto that sheet and referred to it constantly during the test.
- Focus. The morning of the exam, go about your normal routine and consider running through your flashcards whilst you sip your coffee or tea. Avoid trying to learn anything new. Feel confident about what you know and worry not about what you don’t know. Ignore the distractions of being checked in for the test – fingerprinting, wanding, locking things up – it’s simply not worth worrying about since it’s standard protocol. Then, knock it out of the park!
Good luck. You got this!!