WATCH OUT FOR ABSOLUTES.THE ETS, THROUGH YEARS OF PRACTICE, HAS BEC...

4. Watch out for absolutes.The ETS, through years of practice, has become very skillful at encouragingtest takers to choose the wrong answer when they are not sure of the right one. Fortunately for you,several categories of distracter answers tend to recur on the GMAT exam. One type of distracter usesan absolute word such as always, never, all,ornone within an answer. Although it is possibleto find acorrect answer that uses such an absolute, if you are unsure, it is wise to avoid an answer that uses oneof these words. You will learn in Parts II and IV how to identify other types of distracters and elimi-nate them from your answer choices.To Guess or Not to Guess?On the old paper-based exams, if you did not know the answer to a question, you could skip it and come backto it later. But because the GMAT exam is a CAT, you must select an answer before you can move on to thenext question. If you do not know the answer to a question, then you have toguess to move on. But guesswisely. No matter what the question, you should be able to eliminate one or two options. If you must guessbetween two or three possible answers instead of five, you dramatically increase your chances of answeringcorrectly.

T h e E n d g a m e

If you are reading these words several weeks or more before you take the GMAT exam, you may want to book-mark this page and come back to it the week before the test (got your sticky notes handy?). Your study routineduring the last week before the exam should vary from your study routine of the preceding weeks.

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S T U D Y S K I L L S

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The Final WeekExactly one week before you take the GMAT exam is a good time for your final practice test. Then you canuse the next few days to wrap up any loose ends. You should also read back over your notes on test-takingtips and techniques at this time.During the final week, however, it is also a good idea to cut back on your study schedule. Cramming ongrammar rules and math concepts or frantically writing essays now will only make you feel less prepared andmore anxious. As mentioned previously, anxiety is your enemy when it comes to test taking. It is also yourenemy when it comes to restful sleep, and it’s extremely important that you be well rested and relaxed ontest day.You want to substitute more visualization and relaxation for studying. Visualize yourself sitting at thecomputer in the testing center, working your way through the exam in a calm and focused manner, buoyedby the confidence that you have prepared for this exam. You remain confident even though you don’t knowall the answers. When you don’t know an answer, you apply the techniques you practiced as you worked yourway through this book. Picture yourself smiling and stretching as you finish the exam, feeling good about thework you have done. Then imagine the reward you have waiting for yourself after the test. Don’t forget to tellyourself out loud, especially if you are an auditory learner, how proud you are of your hard work and howconfident you are of your success. If you sound unsure of yourself at first, repeat your words until you soundconvincing—then you will believe yourself.During that last week before the exam, make sure you know where you are taking the test. If it is an unfa-miliar place, take a test drive so you will know how much time you need to get there, where you can park,and how far you will have to walk from the parking lot to the testing center. Do this in order to avoid a last-minute rush to the test and any additional anxiety.Be sure you get adequate exercise during this last week. It will help you sleep soundly, and exercise alsohelps rid your body and mind of the effects of anxiety. However, don’t tackle any new physical skills or overdoany old ones. You don’t want to be sore and uncomfortable on test day.Check to see that your test appointment confirmation and your forms of personal identification are inorder and ready to go. You will not need anything else because you are not allowed to bring anything in withyou to the testing area.T Minus OneIt’s the day before the GMAT exam. You have done your preparation, and you are as ready as you are goingto be. Here are some dos and don’ts for this final part of the countdown:Do