In my first post of the year, I mentioned that I was pursuing a pretty big career shift and working to become a financial planner. Part of that process is passing the Series 65 Licensing Exam, so I’m spending my January studying.
The only problem is: it’s been 5 years since I’ve really had to study for anything, and studying for a life-changing exam while also working my current full-time job is exhausting. Another problem? I need this exam to give investment advice, but most of the exam feels broadly irrelevant to what I plan on doing. It’s sadly outdated in an industry that’s moving in the direction of fee-only financial planners, especially when it’s easier than ever for individuals to invest on their own.
So I’m trying to learn all about the responsibilities if I’m managing someone’s assets, even though I won’t be doing that. Or the intricacies of options, hedge funds, and other complicated investment tools when I have serious doubts about them being ever relevant to the clients I’ll be targeting (I guess I still have some learning to do, but they aren’t tools I’d ever use in my own investment strategy). Anyway, studying for something that doesn’t seem relevant is even more difficult than studying for something relevant and interesting.
So this month, I’ve been focusing quite a bit on maximizing my time and minimizing temptations and distractions. Hopefully some of this advice can help you (unless you’re one of those annoying people who never has trouble with difficult tasks…in which case, this probably isn’t the blog for you). At the very least, I like the accountability of announcing my plans to the internet.
Confession Time
I have a confession to make…I am a master procrastinator. And despite my midwestern upbringing, which frowns on bragging about oneself, this is an exception because it’s not something to be proud of…does that make it a reverse-brag?
Also, as a brief (somewhat relevant) aside. I’ve started slowly sharing my blog with loved ones in the real world (sorry internet friends, you’re real in my heart!). One of my best friends was my freshman-year roommate (and sophomore-year, and senior-year). She can 100% attest to my procrastinating ways. And my laziness, as she so helpfully mentioned after reading through all my posts (I guess true friends call it like it is). She requested an astronomy-themed alias in this blog since my pets all have them, so from here on out, I’ll refer to her as Lyra.
Anyway, back to confessions. I put things off till the last minute. And I’ve never stopped because other than quite a bit of unneeded stress, I haven’t seen a lot of negative impacts in my life from doing that. I’ve always been a good test taker, and I did well enough in school to not feel bad about missing opportunities to prepare more. Of course, all that completely ignores the fact that unneeded stress IS a very real negative impact in and of itself. I’m stressed enough about this exam as it is; I don’t want to add to that by not studying early enough.
There’s also the fact that it would be pretty humiliating if I did fail the exam. From everything I’ve heard, if you study the material, it’s a straightforward test. There are 130 counted questions, and you only need to get 72% to pass. If I do fail, I have to wait 30 days to take it again and also admit to everyone who knows I’m taking it (including the Internet) that I bombed. No thank you. This exam is high-stakes, and I don’t want to blow it.
Procrastinating isn’t an option this time. This is about my future, in the best possible way, and I don’t want to wait longer to get started. It’s also way harder to procrastinate when I know that I can’t afford sleepless nights 3 days before the exam because, again, there’s that little piece about still having to work my full-time job while building this business…
Know Thyself
I don’t do well studying in the evenings. I’m so done by the end of the
On weekdays this month, I’ve been trying to wake up at 5 am. I walk StarDog, I make coffee, and I read. It’s miserable, especially when it’s still dark out, but it’s been helpful. I have no excuses, and my willpower is stronger first thing in the day.
Now, this isn’t a hard and fast rule; it’s more of a general scheduling template. For example, yesterday, my alarm went off at 5 am, but I had trouble sleeping the night before and had only gotten 5 hours of sleep (I use a sleep tracking app). For me, getting closer to 7 hours of sleep for the night was more important than trying to force myself to read and learn when exhausted. So I pushed my alarm back an hour and didn’t feel like death at work that day.
I’ve also been shifting my schedule a bit so that happens less; if I don’t fall asleep until 10, it’s a lot harder to get 7 hours of sleep by 5 am …especially with multiple pets in bed with me (StarDog snores. And sleep-barks). Instead, I’ve been trying to go to bed around 8:30. I don’t stress as much if I don’t fall asleep right away, and I get enough sleep to not be a zombie the next day (usually).
Minimizing Distractions
Willpower is a struggle for me. If I’m binge-watching a show or reading a great book series, it’s way too easy to put off studying and keep going. Until the exam, I’m trying to limit myself to 1 TV episode a day, and as long as I get studying done, I’m allowed to cheat on the weekend. I’m also not starting any new fiction books until I take the test. It’s not nearly as hard to stop marathon reading non-fiction for some reason…
Spending money also presents a great distraction. It’s too easy to go out to lunch instead of reading in my office while eating leftovers. This month, I’m trying a no-spend challenge—loosely, I’m not spending money on anything except essentials. This wasn’t because of my exam, but it did end up being a useful coincidence. I’ll write more about what I have spent this month in next week’s post, but I’m not spending much time cooking, grocery shopping, or going out, which means I have more time for studying and fewer excuses/distractions.
Bribes Work Too…
And, when all else fails, I bribe myself. Do I want a glass of wine with dinner? I have to finish this section of the textbook first. Pancakes on the weekend? Only if put in 2 hours of studying the day before. Last week, my big bribe was getting Chipotle—a small cheat during my no-spend January goals. And a great bribe.
Any study tips or tricks you recommend? I’d love to hear them! I take this exam in mid-February, and I can’t wait until it’s done. Wish me luck!
Great post 😁