I don't really get my adrenaline pumping. I think I'm like partially autistic or something with tests. I don't get excited, riled up or nervous. I just ace them. I know how to study effectively, too. I use my strengths and weaknesses with recall and recollection. For example, if I study (days) before a test, I will go over the material I know least well or have the weakest understanding of, then I will try to memorize core material. But, if I know I'll have 5-10 minutes before the test, I'll take the time to make a SINGLE sheet of information to memorize. That way, it will be in my short-term recall for the entire test. The process of making a single sheet will help me memorize the material because it forces me to understand what I do and don't know in addition to choosing the material I believe I will need the most help with. In doing this, I'm developing a long-term memory, working on what I don't know and almost assuring that I have at least one or two sheets worth of key information locked up. The best part is that using this method I can reset my head for multiple tests, so since I got slammed with 4/7 finals in one day then 3/7 two days later, I could just pull out a single sheet, read over it and slam through a test like it was nothing. Another very effective trick, if you know you're going to take multiple tests, is buy like 10 packs of gum and chew a certain flavor while studying a certain subject. You will use associative memory to begin remembering information. It sounds stupid as fuck, but 6-7$ worth of gum can literally make a C or B into a B or A. All of those techniques, even still, are radical. Most of the time, I don't study. I go in perfectly calm, close my eyes and remember all the information I think I'll need. My motto is "anything you can't use during the test is pointless", ie all the notes and prep won't mean a damn of the test isn't open-notes. Throughout my academic career, I have almost ALWAYS tested higher than that girl who takes notes of everything and is the teacher's pet, or that guy that types down an entire lecture to go over it. Rely on yourself and your own mind, and you'll go a lot further.
When the pressure is on, I do better. Some people crack. Some people stutter and don't know what to do. In the field I work (fast food), I might be a manager now, but I can cite my old reviews where my department managers would say, "xxxxx will help motivate the crew using phrases like 'its not fun unless we're wrapped around' or 'if I have to go back and make my own damned burgers, I will and I'll make you hand it to the customer since I made it." I was cross-trained, but I performed order-taking in service the best/most often. I was the first in the chain because I didn't want to wait on anyone. When I went to grill, I either supported or just cooked food. Why? Because I wasn't waiting on anyone; I made food and looked for the opportunity to make things go smoother. When the pressure is on, I don't slow down. When the pressure is unbearable, that's when I just begin to have fun. And, when people that can't take it slow down, I don't like to wait. As management, I don't get to do that anymore. I have to be considerate even to the slow members of my crew and the younger grill members that can't take the pressure as well. You could say the red tape holds me back a lot.
Anyway, rant of the day is over. Point being, I believe success starts from within. If you go in with the mindset that your greatest tool is your mind, you'll begin to make use of the most powerful tool you'll ever have in your life. If you're constantly looking to be pressed a little harder or a little further, you'll never stop growing. Do you choose to be just enough, or do you strive for greater? Even if you have very little ambition, just skimming by is shitty. Reality is, if you have a processor that can barely handle its workload, it'll burn out quicker. But if you make it better than what you have to do on a daily basis, it'll last you five-six years. Be better, last longer and achieve greater - all of it begins just by looking at your next challenge, and facing that mother fucker head on.
You get a little boat for no particular reason instead.
