Remember Everything You Read: The Evelyn Wood 7-Day Speed Reading \& Learning Program pdfdrive com

Admit to yourself that you may not know all the answers to the
test.
This confession of one’s limitations can be a truly freeing
experience. So many of us, either consciously or subconsciously, assume
that we have to know everything for an exam. Then, when we find, as
we almost always do, that we don’t know everything, we experience
panic or despondency, and test performance declines.
So it’s best to approach a test with this thought in mind: “Some of the
things on the test I’ll know, and some I won’t know. But everyone is
going to be in my situation, so what I have to do is just try my best and
trust that what I do know will far outweigh what I don’t know.”
Continue normal, healthy daily habits on the last couple of days
before the test.
If you think about it, most of your life is probably
relatively relaxed or at least characterized by a certain emotional
evenness. High anxiety is not the typical emotional status for most
people.
To manage the normal feelings of nervousness and worry that
accompany examination periods at school, you should find it helpful to
continue to do what you normally do on a typical day—provided that
these activities are healthy.
Suppose you usually devote some time each day to exercise, chatting
on non-school topics with friends, watching the news on television or
perhaps praying or meditating. If such are your habits, continue with
them right up through the last day before the test.
Also, it’s extremely important to eat a normal, healthy diet. Too many
students either disrupt their normal eating habits or skip key meals, such
as the breakfast before the exam, with the result that they run out of
energy just before or during the test. Others may decide to coddle
themselves by splurging on rich or fatty foods. As a consequence, their

---

digestive tract has to work overtime, and a mental sluggishness sets in.
Both extremes are to be avoided.
A familiar routine, in itself, can help calm the mind and contain
excessive test anxiety. But whatever you do, the goal should be
relaxation and reduction of unnecessary stress. A movie on the evening
before a test may even be a good idea for some people.
On the other hand, it’s not a good idea to stay up too late, take drugs
or get drunk on the day or night before the test—even if those are part
of your normal routine. Those activities will just dull your mental
faculties, make you feel guilty or irresponsible, and aggravate feelings of
anxiety or inadequacy. In general, during the twenty-four hours
preceding the exam, stay away from any activities that make you
depressed, put you in a negative frame of mind or in any way have the
potential to upset you.
Finally, get up early enough on the day of the exam so that you can
get dressed, eat and walk to the test site without rushing. Plan on getting
to the site ten to fifteen minutes before the time when the exam is
scheduled. Any earlier may make you nervous anticipating the test; but
any later can also increase anxiety.