by 
Forty-two days. Christmas, New Years, and Forty-two days passed and it felt like I never left. It’s funny how our mind interprets time. While we are sitting in class or waiting in line time can pass by excruciatingly slow. Afterwards, it feels like a snap of a finger. Life is like that too. I remember vividly orientation just before freshman year of high school. I was standing in the hallway outside of the auditorium in a group waiting to go on a tour of where everything was. Before we left a senior, who was leading the tour, made a point to tell us a piece of guidance everyone hears as they grow up, “Get Involved, enjoy the next four years, they will go by before you know it.” I remember at that moment thinking I wouldn’t let that happen. I wouldn’t let four years slip by so fast. Simply put it did. The year that went by the fastest was definitely senior year. Combining applications, scholarships, and enjoying the dwindling moments left with the people who I grew up with my whole life, time disappeared.
Advice is funny. Throughout our whole life we are given random tidbits of advice, and more times than not we don’t listen to it. It is only human nature to want to figure things out ourselves. However, I have come to a position in life where I am given the opportunity to pass on wisdom I learned through my very inexperienced life span. The advice that I want to pass on is directed to those who are at the time in there flash of four years in which they are taking the SAT/ACT. In an earlier blog I wrote that my preparation was not full. I did extremely well in school with out studying. Because of this success I was under a false impression that I didn’t need to study for the SAT. This mask covering my view on school and test taking, quickly changed when I got to college. What I learned is that there is a difference between being smart and being intelligent. A lot of people are smart. They can get the right answers, do the work and get decent grades. Being intelligent is different. To be intelligent one needs to understand that to reach real success you need to apply your ‘smarts’. In applying yourself you will be able to reach your real potential. Your full potential is what you need when preparing for and taking the SAT/ACT. If you plan out time to study, understand what your weaknesses and strengths are and work hard, the effort put in will be reflected with the results you receive.
I am not an authority on how to prepare for college, what to expect, or how to do well on the SAT. What I am is honest, and I will tell you what I experienced and what the reality of the world is. A lot of kids grow up with the notion that they just want to have fun. Their kids, and have plenty of time to worry about college. The moment they think like this they have run out of time. The only way to succeed in life is to work harder than all the other people. If someone is given 100%, to be successful you need to work 150%. If you start living this philosophy in high school, given your full potential and investing in your future early on you will be better off then most other students.
The SAT is an investment in your future. Like AP classes you are already paying for it. Don’t take this chance to better your outlook lightly. College is expensive and difficult, and whether the system wants to admit it or not, where you go to college, who you know, is vital in securing a better chance of getting a job. When I took the SAT, I got flashcards and books. What I did wrong was that I reviewed and did not practice. That is the final words of wisdom I have for you. The SAT is a test of endurance. To do well you need to condition your mind to endure the rigor of such a thing. Practice, understand your weakness, and Practice some more. Time is not forgiving, and it quickly passes, however it never runs out, and there is always more when you need it.
