I speak to a lot of students and hear a lot of the same things. And alot of words!
Some of these words make me roll my eyes ⊠opps ⊠should I not admit that out loud?! ?
My three least favourite words are âŠ. Wait for it, Iâm not gonna tell you yet obvs ⊠I want you to read the blog!
But this blog is my outlet to scream and shout about the three words that really really make my eyes roll!
A little insight into my personality, I get passionate about certain things and with that passion I have been known to raise my voice, state and debate my argument and force some much more valuable solutions on to the table.
There are certain words that, as a revision coach, completely frustrate me! And as a human â wind me up!
Three words that make me cringe as a revision coach, because the words are just useless! The power that people associate with them doesnât bring the right positive mindset.
You know I am all about mindset because that makes such a massive difference in exam success (especially as a resitter!)
Small tweaks to your language make a big tweak to your mindset.
Like I said I am a passionate lady and I make no apologises for sharing my opinion.
I show up everyday on Linkedin and Instagram sharing my opinion, giving revision advice and supporting qualifying accountants.
I love it!
And I love when my clients grow in confidence, have revision fun and of course pass their exams! {Yes my clients are passing!}
So without further ado âŠ
Let me introduce you to my three least favourite words âŠ
Hope
Oh this is a controversial one to start with.
If you are in shock already with my first least favourite word then bare with me ? of course there is a reason why.
Hope is a positive word, absolutely.
Hope in a revision context is less than positive though.
Do you want to hope you revise this week?
Would you hope you are on the right track?
Are you hoping you have done enough?!
Gosh ⊠donât even get me started on that last sentence! ?
Hope in this revision context completely turns the positive word into a negative. The word looses the powerful context of optimism and creates a level of wishing and wondering and most importantly WORRYING!
Worrying about your revision is NOT what you need.
I know you are worried already about your exam, so I donât want you to add hope into your thought process to add another level of worry to your thoughts.
I want you to have revision confidence, self confidence and confidence in your knowledge base.
? Confidence is the empowered revision emotion that makes a huge difference ?
So ⊠how about instead of âI hope I will passâ = change to = âI will passâ
âI will pass my exam because I am a smart Accountantâ
âI will revise everyday so that I am prepared and readyâ
âI can get back on track this week but sticking to my revision planâ
Now ⊠doesnât that feel better!
Donât get me wrong, there are some positive ways to use and embrace the word hope (Iâm not heartless) â I just really believe revision calls for less hope and more action, with confidence built through action.
Donât dilute your revision confidence with the word hope.
Embrace and empower yourself, your words and your actions with stronger verbs.
Enough
Enough what?!
Even typing this work makes me want to throw my laptop out of the window!
To be really honest with you, this word winds me up!
And so so many people use it! I feel like shaking them when I hear it.
âI will only sit my exam when Iâve done enough revisionâ ⊠or âItâs not good enoughâ ⊠or âI havenât done enoughâ
By using this word in your vocabular and thoughts, why are you giving yourself a goal you will never reach?!
How is that positively motivating and support you â personally or in your revision.
Surely you can always do more?!
Because you absolutely can do more, then this word âenoughâ becomes a useless measuring stick.
It is not a self empowering word!
Again, it dilutes your efforts, confidence and preparation and you donât see the amazing work and effort you have completed.
Cos if you wait until âyouâve done enoughâ â you will never reach it!
Whatâs the point of thinking about something you will never reach â it is soul destroying â let alone the other emotions we have whilst riding the emotional revision rollercoaster.
Instead of this word, could you reframe and think about these actions instead.
? Letâs be smart â set, think and focus on specific and measurable weekly goals.
Goals that empower you and get you where you want to be, every week of your revision phase. One step at a time but moving forward.
When you have the weekly goal you will see your progress and feel great!
For example, Passed a mock. Recalled all the formulas. Written and stuck to your revision plan.
All actions and words that show you are amazing, you have done amazing work and you are on the right track.
No more thinking you are not âgood enoughâ âŠ. Blurgh â I said that horrible words again! ?
Cram
The final of my three least favourite words is cram.
Arrrggghhh cram =stress!
And who wants or why would you want revision stress?!
You donât â I know you donât â letâs be real!
Cramming is an added emotion and action that we see, and I reckon, most of us think we need to be doing!
Well, as my mum said to me when I was a kid, if you saw someone jumping off a cliff â would you copy them?!
No of course not! So please stop copying the cramming thing!
Please stop thinking itâs what you need to do.
No more cramming!
Letâs have a think of the core problem though guys.
Is it a result of poor planning, being too busy and prioritising work or procrastiniating and worrying about it instead of talking action?
All these things avoidable by the way!
Not easy, but completely avoidable.
With commitment, dedication and organisation.
You might think itâs easy for me to say that, now Iâm qualified, but I promise I was exactly where you are â working as a full time Assistant Accountant, Management Accountant, Senior Management Accountant, studying, revising, stressing, walking my dog, going on holidays, trying to run a house whilst my ex husband was in Afghan, oh and maybe a social dinner with my friends if I was lucky.
I have been where you are, and I really do not want you to make the same mistakes as I did.
Cramming is a revision mistake.
Cramming does not need to happen in a successful revision phase.
And you DO NOT need to cram to feel confident or pass your exam.
The best advice I can give you is to plan and have a 4 week revision phase. Have a read of my blog from last month about how to have a successful 4 week revision phase.
Cramming is for dumb accountants!
#sorrynotsorry
Just the thought of having to cram makes me feel stressed, anxious and uncomfortable.
I know you feel like that too, and I really donât want you to!
Let alone the friends, family and colleagues around you and how unhelpful your stress is on them and your relationship.
There is a difference between cramming and spending 4 weeks with committed revision.
There is also a difference in what you do the week before your exam when you plan or cram.
Roundup of my ranty blog!
So there you have it, my passionate (maybe a bit ranty) blog with my three least favourite words.
I canât even bring myself to type them out again in this blog summaryâŠ. Nope⊠canât do it!
But they were my three least favourite words
Hope you have enjoyed the blog ⊠there are many more to read to grab some much needed revision advice! Have a read here
I will catch you in a few weeks for the next blog â Why I wish I had a coach when I was qualifying!
Have a great week! I am here if you need any revision support â slide into my DMâs, come and watch my Thursday Linkedin Live â every Thursday at 12:30.
Oh ⊠I nearly forgot! Iâd love to invite you to my next free and live webinar â yes its free!
Come and Climb your Revision Ladder with me, to learn my revision secrets ⊠CLICK HERE to register