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Many of the same trials and tribulations we encounter on a daily basis have parallels in the world of test prep.
Take, for example, making mistakes. All of us make mistakes—we’re human, after all. But once we make a mistake, we become less likely to make that mistake again, otherwise known as trial and error. Notice that I said *less* likely. Chances are, we still will repeat that same mistake many more times…we will simply do so less frequently over time, and hopefully we will someday reach a point where we never make that mistake again.
However, in life, as in test prep, there are always certain skills that we could work on. Maybe we chronically lose our house keys. Maybe we keep forgetting to pay a certain bill on time. Or perhaps we neglect to wear sunscreen for the umpteenth time, giving ourselves a nice red sunburn in the process.
When we make these types of "life mistakes," we can choose to either give ourselves a hard time about it, or we can attempt to be more positive and constructive. Remember that in any given day, we have to do hundreds, even thousands, of little things correctly. In our relentless focus on the handful of events that went wrong, we can sometimes forget that 99% of our day went exactly according to plan. And any good student should know that any score over 97% is still considered to be A-plus work. Thus, it is necessary to toe the fine line between addressing our weaknesses and dwelling on them.
The GRE has 80 questions. The GMAT has 90. The SAT has 170 and the ACT, 215. Somewhere along the line, we are bound to make a mistake…even those of us for whom it is possible to achieve a perfect score. But so long as we do not ignore our mistakes, we are bound to lessen their frequency over time.
One of my favorite sayings is that perfection is attainable, but not maintainable. In all areas of life, we must seek perfection, but settle for excellence.
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