LSAT Blog: LSAT Unplugged YouTube / Podcast

When good LSAT books go bad

I’m sure the authors of many LSAT books have good-intentions. They want to help you prepare to get the best score possible. But you know what they say, “The road to an abysmal LSAT score is paved with good intentions.” Or at least I think they say something like that.

The point is there are a lot of bad LSAT prep books out there. How bad are they?

Back when I was studying, I got several hundred pages into an LSAT prep book only to come away frustrated, confused and stressed.

Here are the books the typical student is probably most familiar with:

There's Barron's, some Princeton Review, and a whole LOT of Kraplan.

AVOID THESE BOOKS AT ALL COSTS

That may seem a bit harsh, but let me explain.

Every head of a student re-using a paper they wrote for a different class? That’s essentially what these guys have been doing EVERY YEAR. They use the same fake practice tests from a bunch of different prep books, including the GRE and GMAT.

The GRE and GMAT are definitely NOT the LSAT and you can’t study for one like you study for the others. And again, they keep using the same questions!

(Note: I reviewed the Kraplan book a bazillion years ago, so it might be different now, but these books typically change so little from year to year that it's not worth my time to review each year. Just...be careful.)

Ok, I’m going to tell you something about Princeton Review's Logic Games Workout that is going to sound like a good thing, but very much is not:

LGW uses real LSAT questions that are reworded or reordered.

You would think this would make you more prepared, but it actually has the opposite effect.

Why? I have a whole article on why this is terrible, but the short answer is if you do the LGW prep and do poorly, then take an actual LSAT prep with essentially the same questions, of course you’re going to do better. You’ve seen those exact questions.

To oversimplify it a bit, it is the difference between memorizing that 5 x 5 is 25 and actually understanding how multiplication works. As soon as you get 9 x 7, you’re going to be stumped.

This is getting long, so I’ll keep this short and sweet: Barron’s has been re-using the same fake test questions for years (like since1979).

They did finally redid their LG book back in 2014, but from the reviews I’m reading it still has a lot of errors.

Here’s the bottom line: read the reviews on anything before you buy it. Do your homework. You’re going to be spending a lot of time and money on prepping for the LSAT so spend it wisely.

Sincerely,
Steve, the Book Vigilante

P.S. If you’ve had a bad experience with a prep book, let me know! Misery loves company, after all.

Recommended Resources:

1. LSAT Courses
The best of my LSAT material with exclusive access to attend my Live Online LSAT Master Classes + Q&As, and on-demand video lessons you can watch anytime. Plus, LSAT study plans to keep you on track. Save hundreds of dollars with an LSAT course package.

2. LSAT Day-By-Day Study Plans
Preparing for the LSAT is confusing. There are dozens of prep books and practice tests out there, and 1,000+ articles on my website alone. When, and how, should you use them all? These super-specific study plans give you a clear plan of attack.

3. LSAT Cheat Sheets
Based on what I'd typically do in college: read what the professor emphasized and condense it all onto a single piece of paper. It gave me a quick reference, making things a lot less threatening and a lot more manageable.

The LSAT struggle is real

Look, the LSAT is tough. Really tough. But you don’t need to freak out about it, because I’m here to help.

Chances are, you’re taking practice tests right now (or will be pretty soon), and I want to know what's giving you the most trouble.

What exactly is it that’s keeping you up at night? Nightmares about Logical Reasoning problems? Visions of Logic Games lurking in the shadows?
While everyone is going to have their own sections they find more difficult, I’m going to be focusing on the topics that get mentioned most and tackle them head on.

Why? Because I genuinely enjoy helping people take their LSAT scores from “so-so” to “woo hoo!!”

It's the reason I’ve written best-selling LSAT guides, created a series of LSAT courses, and even wrote over 1,000 FREE articles...

And they're all to help you get to where you want to be.

I've gotten a lot of questions about Logic Games lately, so one week from now, I'll start doing a deep dive into Logic Games - if you're having trouble with those, you'll hear plenty from me about those pretty soon.

If you're fine with Logic Games - great! Would you rather find out from me about Logical Reasoning? Just click this link to get some of my best Logical Reasoning advice instead.

Let’s do this!

-LSAT Steve

P.S. Do me a favor - reach out and tell me your story. Although I can’t reply to EVERY message, I do read every one myself.

LSAT Logic Games Vocab

One of the most important tools in your Logic Games toolkit is your vocabulary.

However, getting hung up on what specific words mean can actually get you bogged down in certain places.

The more important thing is to understand what various phrases mean.

Here are some quick tips to help you recognize which type of Logic Game you’re dealing with:

Pure Sequencing, Basic Linear, Advanced Linear

Consecutively / Sequentially / Successively
Ranking / Ordering
No two occur simultaneously, no two occur at the same time
One at a time / One after the other
Not simultaneously, not concurrently, not at the same time

Precedes = comes before
Follows = comes after
Immediately follows
Immediately precedes

Preceded by
Followed by
Immediately preceded by
Immediately followed by

Selection

Selected
Contained
Chosen

Splitting
(Variables are divided among) exactly one of two (groups)

But that’s just the start. There’s A LOT more to cover on top of that.

This is a big topic, so I wrote up a pretty comprehensive article about it right here.

I broke it down into 7 parts:

1. Words and phrases that can help you recognize a particular type of game.

2. General tips to help you watch out for linguistic trickery and avoid making unwarranted assumptions.

3. Phrases indicating List/Acceptability questions

4. Tips on understanding a particular kind of question that differs from List questions

5. Phrases indicating Suspension and Substitution questions.

6. Tips on understanding some rules that indicate double-arrows

7. A list of 10 words you must know for Logic Games

If you’re interested in more, you know where to go.

Talk soon,
LSAT Steve

Recommended Resources:

1. LSAT Courses
The best of my LSAT material with exclusive access to attend my Live Online LSAT Master Classes + Q&As, and on-demand video lessons you can watch anytime. Plus, LSAT study plans to keep you on track. Save hundreds of dollars with an LSAT course package.

2. Logic Games Explanations
The explanations that should have come with the LSAT. These tell you why the wrong answers are wrong, why the right answers are right, and the easiest way to get the correct answer.

3. Mastering LSAT Logic Games
This guide to Logic Games is by a former writer of actual LSAT questions! Enough said.

How to choose an LSAT test center

Today, I just wanted to drop you a quick line to point out a great resource for you. Not all test centers are created equally, and some are MUCH worse than others.

Imagine if you only discovered Rate-My-Professor AFTER you took a class with a horrible teacher and wished you could do it over again?

Well, there’s a resource just like that for LSAT Test Centers.

Behold: LSAT Test Center Reviews

If you haven’t registered for the LSAT yet, go do that ASAP – the best (and most convenient) test centers fill up fast!

(After you finish your own test, be sure to go on there and let other people know about your experience.)

Your test center experience can make ALL the difference in your score results - but most people never think about it until it's too late.

This is one of those "little things" I was talking about the other day - it's why I created my LSAT courses.

I wanted to share what top-performing students do in the lead-up to Test Day to ensure success while others - even smart, talented students - get stuck and don’t know why.

If you're looking for the strategies that will give you the edge you need - and help you stay calm if things start to spiral out of control, this is your opportunity.

I’m going to show you the system I use to prepare my students for Test Day that approaches it from every angle. If you want to increase your LSAT score and reliably perform at that level in real-world conditions, I’m going to show you some of the most effective and powerful LSAT Mindset techniques I've developed and refined since 2005.

My LSAT courses are for you if:

you’ve never taken the LSAT before and are worried about what Test Day will look like
you’ve taken the LSAT, but it didn’t go well, and you want to improve on your retake
you feel like you won’t be able to translate your understanding at home into “real-world” conditions
you’re on the fence as to whether or not you should take it because you have major test-taking anxiety
anxiety starts kicking in at the first section, and even if you manage to calm down, you still can’t finish in time because you had to keep rereading

Join now and set yourself up for LSAT Test Day Success.

Hit reply and let me know if you have any questions about it.

-Steve

P.S. Here's what one student had to say about my Test Day preparation techniques:

“Even though I had the worst week ever leading up to the test, I still felt confident because I knew exactly what to expect when I walked into the testing center...from being prepared for the extra strain of the experimental section to not wearing a hoodie into the test...Wish the guy hyperventilating next to me in Section 3 had the same 'LSAT Blog' chill pill I did.”- Allison A., 158 to 171

P.P.S. In my next email, I’ll share some strategies to help you figure out what different words and phrases mean in Logic Games.

On Public Speaking

Although I teach a lot of classes and speak a lot, I've never had any formal training or education in speaking.

While I'm not the world's most experienced public speaker by any stretch, I have gotten a few questions on this.

While theory and strategy can both help you get started and help you improve, if you want to get better at public speaking, I'm going to advise you to

Just.

Do.

It.

Do a livestream for just 1 minute. You can delete it afterward if you want. Then do another. And keep doing it until you do one you're not afraid to leave up after re-watching it.

It won't be perfect.

But it doesn't need to be.

And you have gifts worth sharing with the world if you can get over the barriers (they're not as big as they seem right now).

The biggest thing standing between you and getting past nerves / blanking-out is the six inches between your ears.

LSAT Test Day - how to prepare

In this short YouTube video, I shared 7 of the biggest LSAT Test Day mistakes.

In case you don't have the time to watch that right now, I’m going to give you 5 of the best ways to prepare for Test Day. (If you want the full list of 10, click here.)

In true listicle form....

5 recommendations for the week leading up to the test:

1. Visit your LSAT test center.

The best way to get rid of pre-test jitters is to see where you'll be taking the LSAT.

2. Decide what you'll wear.

This isn't Project Runway - I'm talking about comfort. Wear a couple of layers, including your lucky t-shirt or sweatshirt. It doesn't matter what time of year it is. The room you're in might be hot or cold. Hoodies aren't permitted, though. When I took the LSAT, security wouldn't let me bring mine in. I was forced to stash it in a nearby park because test centers don't have a place to check banned items.

3. Decide what you'll bring.

Fill a see-through plastic bag with your admission ticket, #2 pencils, energy bars, bananas, a bottle of water, photo ID, a logic game (#9 explains why), and an analog watch. Make sure you bring a watch because it's possible that the room won't have a clock. Consider bringing a magazine or something to read on your way to the test center. See the Law School Admissions Council's day of test rules since the rules are updated frequently. Security does not allow you to bring a cell phone, so plan how you'll manage.

4. Relax the day before your exam.

If you studied for a decent period of time, one more day won't make a big difference. It's good to take a break so you don't burn out. Remember - there's a world beyond the LSAT!

5. Get to bed early the night before and set multiple alarms.

You want to be well-rested for the exam. Make sure you don't drink anything with caffeine after 3PM.

There's a LOT to think about in the final weeks before the exam. And most students don't realize the strategies they need to be using until it's too late.

In order to avoid a massive score drop, you need to be ready for anything.

That's why my LSAT courses provide anxiety-reduction techniques and strategies to simulate even the worst test centers.

But that's not all - they also review the most important rules and strategies you need to be aware of before walking in.

I share what top-performing students do in the lead-up to Test Day to ensure success while others - even smart, talented students - get stuck and don’t know why.

In this course, I show you:

the 3 biggest mistakes students make when taking timed practice tests
the most common test center problems (and how to avoid them)
how to manage and overcome LSAT test anxiety
how to simulate Test Day conditions and predict your score
how to avoid an unexpected “Test Day Score Drop”

My LSAT courses are for you if:

you’ve never taken the LSAT before and are worried about what Test Day will look like
you’ve taken the LSAT, but it didn’t go well, and you want to improve on your retake
you feel like you won’t be able to translate your understanding at home into “real-world” conditions
you’re on the fence as to whether or not you should take it because you have major test-taking anxiety
anxiety starts kicking in at the first section, and even if you manage to calm down, you still can’t finish in time because you had to keep rereading

Join now and set yourself up for LSAT Test Day Success.

Very truly yours,

LSAT Steve

P.S. As always, if you have any questions or need anything as Test Day approaches, feel free to ask. I’m here to help.

P.P.S. Next time, I’ll share some advice on choosing a test center.

The LSAT and J.K. Rowling

I think most people would agree LSAT Reading Comprehension can be thoroughly and completely boring.

If you ever wondered why that is, it’s actually by design.

There are a lot of factors in what goes into writing a Reading Comprehension passage, and they almost always conspire to make it incredibly dull to read.

The good news is it doesn’t have to be!

Believe it or not, Reading Comp passages can be more like Harry Potter than deciphering Greek.

How? Here’s a counter-intuitive piece of advice: don't try to absorb all the content.

Here’s what I mean by that:

Read quickly, but don't skim.

When most people think of skimming, they think of reading on a superficial level. They try some silly strategy like reading the first and last sentence of each paragraph. Hey, if it worked for grammar school textbooks and the SAT, it'll work here, right?

Wrong.

This isn't grammar school. The LSAT's not going to bake you cookies or read you a bedtime story.

LSAT Reading Comp passages are organized differently than textbooks (or SAT passages), and they have a different focus.

You want to read quickly, but you don't want to skip the middle of a paragraph just because it's the middle. The LSAT often includes important nuggets in the middle of passages because people tend to gloss over them.

Read slightly slower than a typical skim, but faster than a thorough read.

You're not reading for content or facts. Instead, you're reading for argumentative structure and for the positions and viewpoints presented.

If you know the structure, you'll know where to find each nugget of info in the passage when the questions ask for it.

*** Click here to check out the full article with more RC strategies ***

Next time, I’ll share some ideas to help you prepare for Test Day.

Stay tuned!

LSAT Steve

Recommended Resources:
1. LSAT Courses
The best of my LSAT materials, with my full curriculum for each section, including video courses, guides, and study plans to keep you on track. You can save hundreds of dollars with an LSAT course package.

2. Reading Comprehension Explanations
The explanations that should have come with the LSAT. These don't just fall back on "out of scope," but actually tell you why the wrong answers are wrong, why the right answers are right, and the easiest way to get the correct answer.

3. LSAT Vocabulary Builder
A handbook that guides you through confusing LSAT language, but not by forcing you to memorize hundreds of words. Instead, this comprehensive guide focuses on the LSAT's most commonly-used words and phrases and gives you their meanings on the LSAT.

LSAT Quantity Words - You keep using that word…

…I do not think it means what you think it means.

For bonus points, does anyone know what movie that’s from?

Ding ding ding! The Princess Bride! One of the all-time greats, if you haven’t seen it you’re really missing out.

And that, in a rather roundabout way, brings me to the purpose of my email.

One of the most annoying things about the LSAT is it tends to use words we are familiar with in ways we aren’t used to. There are way more of these than there should be, but today I’m focusing on quantifiers.

Quantifiers are numbers that indicate a number of something and the LSAT can be a bit deceptive about how it uses them.

I’m going to go over two of them here:

Several / Many

If I told you that I have a box of a 100 chocolate-chip cookies, I confirmed that several of them are tasty, you wouldn't truly know how many I ate, or how many of them are actually tasty.

"Several" and "many" refer to some kind of sizable (and plural) number, so we know it's more than one or two, but how many exactly? It's impossible to say. This is an indeterminate number. Like most/majority, it allows the possibility of all.

Several / Many = a range of more than 2 - all the way up to 100%

For purposes of simplicity, we can think of it as 3 - 100% or 3 - all.

Some

Let's suppose I catch you stuffing your face with cookies from that 100-cookie box. I ask, "How many did you eat?" You reply, ""Some..."

Vague, right? Maybe you ate only 1, or maybe you had 5, 10, 49, 75, 99, or 100. Without more information, we don't know just how many you ate.

Like the many/majority example, making a claim regarding "some" does not exclude the possibility that "all" have that characteristic, whether it's with regard to how many of them were delicious or just how many were eaten.

In order to know that you hadn't eaten all the cookies, you would've needed to specifically claim that you had eaten "some, but not all", so I'll know that there's still at least 1 cookie remaining for me to eat.

Some = a range from 1 - all the way up to 100%

For purposes of simplicity, we can think of it as 1 - 100% or 1 - all.

Like I said, annoying. But, it’s important to know so you don’t get tripped up on something simple.

If you found that helpful, I wrote an article with a whole lot more for you to read on quantifier words - here's the link ---->

Talk soon,
LSAT Steve, the Vocal Machine

P.S. If this gave you a bit of a headache, don’t worry. Next time we’ll be talking about something more relatable (another famous movie), so it’s sure to be a more enjoyable read.

Recommended Resources:

1. LSAT Courses
The best of my LSAT material with exclusive access to attend my Live Online LSAT Master Classes + Q&As, and on-demand video lessons you can watch anytime. Plus, LSAT study plans to keep you on track. Save hundreds of dollars with an LSAT course package.

2. Logical Reasoning Explanations
The explanations that should have come with the LSAT. These don't just fall back on "out of scope," but actually tell you why the wrong answers are wrong, why the right answers are right, and the easiest way to get the correct answer.

3. Logical Reasoning Cheat Sheet
Based on what I'd typically do in college: read what the professor emphasized and condense it all onto a single piece of paper. It gave me a quick reference, making things a lot less threatening and a lot more manageable.

Want to increase your LSAT score? Get my free Easy LSAT Cheat Sheet today.