Full-time workers & long-term studying
Hello! I'm writing this post specifically for those LSAT preppers out there that work a full-time job. I have a 9–5 that requires me to be in every day, and largely don't feel like I can study while at work for focus and also job requirement reasons. I wake up an hour early every morning before work to study and try to get 2 to 4 hours in each weekend day (with limited success), but I don't feel fully capable of doing those marathon study sessions all the time, especially on weeknights—my strength is in my consistency, not duration. I am making sure to engage with the material in a focused way for at least an hour each day, but usually not more, because I end up feeling really foggy and unproductive when I try to study more than that, which inevitably requires me to either wake up earlier than I already am or rally after being at work all day.
At this point, I've been studying since early June 2024 and have a registration for the February test. It feels like I've been laboring over this study process for ages now and I'm starting to feel a little burnt out, but my PTs don't reflect where I want to be score wise (in the low to mid 160s and would like to score a 169 or higher on my first go) and I'm uncertain how much I can improve in a month and a half. One recent addition is that I just got approved for extended time and haven't yet PTed under those conditions. However, sometimes with more time, I just end up overthinking things lol.
A lot of people on this forum are able to study full time, or are insanely energetic/grind oriented (admirable, but not me), which leaves me feeling like 8 months of studying is more than enough and I should just get on with it and take an official test. Bumping back to April would give me the opportunity to put more hours in, but I'm also tired (!!) and don't want to prolong the stress of studying. I get the sense that the latter option is probably best, since it seems like the conventional wisdom is to take the test when you feel ready.
The way I'm currently prepping is reading or watching a perspective on a single question type approach (7Sage, LSAT Demon, etc.), then drilling that type in 5-Q increments starting at the lowest difficulty level and increasing only when I am able to get all of the questions right & feel like I understand the questions. I keep a wrong answers journal and will also do 1-2 4/5 difficult RC passages each day to continue exposing myself to that section.
So, my question is: part-time studiers, how do you manage the stress and burnout from long-term studying? What has helped you "keep your head in the game?" How do you make sure that the limited time you have is used purposefully? What has helped you jump from 160s to 170s? Should I stick with the February registration? Any and all advice is appreciated.
