Winning Focus
Test taking is a competitive activity. As is athletics or the performing arts, outstanding achievement on the SAT/ACT depends on maintenance of powerfully sharp, energetic, mindful concentration and “winning focus.” In sports, the challenge is the opposing team. In the performing arts, it’s stage fright. In test taking, your adversaries are the test questions. Test takers, like athletes and stage performers, need to confront and conquer pressure, stress, fatigue, distractions, and other difficulties with sustained enthusiasm, relentless drive, and total commitment to success. If victory is the object, nothing less will do. An intense, aggressive, yet controlled state of concentration is critical to performing at one’s best in any competitive activity. “Winning Focus” is so important, in fact, that without it, almost nothing else matters. By definition, intensity always involves some amount of tension. Undisciplined, raw intensity can lead to varying degrees of frustrat...