In today’s post, I want to tackle a skill that you will need to master, not only to succeed as a military officer, but to succeed in life. 

LONG-TERM PLANNING

Long-term planning is the ability to look ahead 3, 6, or 12 months, and set in motion a plan to accomplish a goal. 

This can get complicated depending on how many variables you are trying to coordinate (e.g. people, timing, deadlines, resources, weather, bureaucracy). 

Why don’t we learn this skill by planning...

I know for the last couple of weeks, I’ve been recommending that you use this summer to prepare for the SAT or ACT.

Well, I’m not going to stop there.

I also believe that this summer is a great opportunity to get ahead on some of next year’s classes — especially the tough ones.

PRE-STUDY

Junior year will be the most challenging year for you academically — not only because you will have the hardest classes, but for other reasons as well:

1.  Expectations....

A few weeks ago, I did my best to convince you to spend 4-6 weeks at the end of this summer studying for the SAT or ACT. 

I hope it worked. I hope you’ve carved out this time for deep study. 

This week, I want to teach you how to go about actually doing it.

The first thing we need to do is to figure out which test is better for you - the SAT or ACT. Not necessarily the one you think you might like better, or the one that your sister or best friend told you would be better, but...

This week, I will try to convince you to study for the SAT/ACT this summer. 

I don’t think I need to spend a lot more time going over why this test score is so important for your application. I’ve hammered this point home many times over the last few months and by now you should realize that it’s no joke.

As of this post, most colleges are still “test-optional” for the SAT/ACT (either temporarily or permanently). Please don’t let that distract you....