[lam2848]

Hi guys. I’m reviewing for REG and I’m having a really hard time staying focussed. I keep forgetting things and losing focus its making my review process very hard. I didn’t have this problem when studying for FAR so I’m a little lost at how to handle it. I think I’m a bit burned out. How do you guys stay focussed while studying?

[MSim]

I have a sticky in front of me that says: “If you're going through hell, keep going.” lol

I felt that way too with REG and there were a lot of days where I wanted to give up. Maybe you should take a day or two to unwind and then get back to grinding. For me, I just took a break when I wasn't able to focus because I felt that there's no use just staring at my computer not really learning anything anyway.

Also, one thing that helped me with REG is to study each section and don't move on to the next until I really understood it. Because when I moved on and didn't understand it yet, it became jumbled together with the new topics I started to learn.

Just keep going and good luck!

[krstnam]

This has been my #1 struggle through the whole thing. For me, different things have worked at different times. Here's a list of things that helped me remain focused at one point or another during this exam process:
1. Go to a very quiet, dark place. Put a bright lamp over the area you are studying (this was easy for me in the winter when the sun sets at 5pm and rises at 8am).
2. Mini-sessions. I do this other thing where I set a timer for 30 minutes. Before I start studying I tell myself I'll give 100% focus for 30 minutes. Then I'll take a break, and repeat.
3. I bought noise cancelling headphones. I blast instrumental music (O'Neal Brothers, Brooklyn Duo, Simply Three, 2Chellos, Dallas String Quartet are some of my favorites) from iHeart and for whatever reason, I can stay focused for longer periods of time. I think it's because all other noise is drowned out.
4. What's worked best for me so far, is kinda like the mini sessions. I have a calendar setup for how many hours a week I plan to study. For some reason, when I say “I'll do 50 mcqs” today, or I'll complete unit 4 today, it never gets done. Instead, if I say “I must study for two hours today” and that's all, I'm able to follow through. I have a tendency to meet the hour requirement, vs the task requirement. If it's going good and I want to study longer which does happen often, I just log how many extra minutes/hours I studied.

Let me know if you come up with any ideas to stay focused. I'd be happy to hear them too.

[Anonymous]

For me, I had to look at studying the exams as a second job. During busy season, I often worked 6:30 am- 7:30 or 8:00 and would study from 8:30-10:30 or later. The weekends I studied all day Saturday (if I was off) and Sunday most of the day. There were very few days off (a wedding and one other day) from January-April 15, and I knocked out three exams during that time. After that, I started FAR, I took it at a more relaxed pace, but was able to study at work some, which helped a lot.

I had very little social life from January-April, but I did it. For me, getting the exams done quickly was worth the sacrifice, but I don't know if everyone would agree. I would rather go 100% for 5 months than 50% for a year.

You have to find a strategy that works for you though.

[Recked]

When you just start, especially with FAR, its very overwhelming. Its even worse if you have been out of school for a while.
You need to retrain your brain to sit still and stay focused. Start with smaller blocks. Try to make it an hour and then take a short break, and go for another hour.
Eventually you will work up the tolerance to do longer stretches. The occasional brief break to get up and stretch can help you stay focused.

[lam2848]

Thank you guys for all of your comments! I think my lack of concentration comes from be being tired after work and also dealing with some personal stuff at the moment. But I think finding a quieter place to study may help!

[alloverit]

One other thing is you're taking what is largely considered the two most difficult tests first (everyone is different, but that would be the OVERALL consensus)

Here's some motivation for you: If you can get past REG you're going to be on a steep downhill ride to the end.

Most people go hard/easy or easy/hard in their order of test taking. The way you're doing it might be REALLY hard now, but it could make the second “half” of your journey a much easier.

[Author]

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