buchh.org

China's Korean Minority

Sat, 02 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Galatians

Tue, 13 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Invisible Planets

Mon, 05 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

I am so grateful to have gotten to take Literature of the People’s Republic of China with Professor Thomas Moran in his final semester of teaching. He encouraged us to think for ourselves and write for our classmates, which helped me develop more original ideas and arguments. The lack of grades on formal assignments gave me the freedom to experiment in my writing and helped me feel less pressure. Professor Moran has a gift for facilitating discussions and is just an overall cool guy. I loved reading pretty much all of the required books and Literature of the PRC was definitely one of my favorite courses in college thus far.

Ruth

Sat, 26 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Daniel

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Revelation

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Goodbye, Antoura

Sun, 23 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

3 John

Thu, 13 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

2 John

Wed, 12 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

1 John

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Barefoot Doctor

Mon, 10 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Read in translation.

Chronicle of a Blood Merchant

Sun, 09 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Hebrews

Thu, 06 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Revelation

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Grateful for the opportunity to read Scripture with Andy!

Peach Blossom Paradise

Wed, 26 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Read in translation.

Ruth

Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Isaiah

Thu, 30 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Ephesians

Fri, 03 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Kitchen Confidential

Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

After watching the first season of The Bear, I wanted some insight into the restaurant industry. Kitchen Confidential definitely gives you some, but Bourdain is a little too irreverent and goes into some personal/specific details I thought were unnecessary.

2 Corinthians

Sat, 07 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Man's Search for Meaning

Sat, 23 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Exodus

Tue, 19 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Screwtape Letters

Tue, 19 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Mark

Wed, 30 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Sun, 08 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

I return to this book, time and time again, and love it more each time.

The Prodigal God

Wed, 14 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

God's Smuggler

Sat, 20 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Read it.

Figure out what that means for yourself ;)

1 Corinthians

Sun, 30 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Holes

Mon, 24 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

One of my favorite reads as a kid. Remains a favorite in my book.

Lord of the Flies

Wed, 15 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Why does humanity’s great capacity for sin often come as a surprise? When reading a book like Lord of the Flies, it’s so easy for me to get mad at the characters in the story, thinking that I would’ve done better. The scary reality is that we are all more like the children on the island than we think — or more frighteningly — like the rescuing British naval officer.

Supercommunicators

Tue, 14 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Over time, I have become increasingly wary of popular “self-help” books, but I gave this one a try because I remember liking Duhigg’s seminal book, The Power of Habit. I feel a small sense of affinity towards Duhigg because I think that James Clear’s even more famous habit book, Atomic Habits, was sort of a copy of Duhigg’s.

Although I disagree with the premise that some people are so-called “supercommunicators” and others are not (I’m more inclined to believe that we are all able to communicate well, some just more easily and more of the time than others), I’m glad I read this book. I am in agreement with Duhiggg that we can all intentionally become better communicators. On my quest to boost my EQ, Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People feels like level 1 and Supercommunicators is level 2.

I recently read 1984 and George Orwell uses the character, Winston Smith, to express that sometimes the best books sometimes verbalize our intuition.

“The best books, he perceived, are those that tell you what you know already.”

Supercommunicators is like this, but I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad thing.

Here are my notes on the book:

The Three Types of Conversations

Rule 1: Pay attention to what kind of conversation is occurring.

Duhigg writes about three different types of conversations (we often shift between these in a single dialogue):

What’s this really about? (practical, decision-making conversations)
How do we feel? (emotional conversations)
Who are we? (social conversations)

Often, the worst conversations are those when people are not having the same type of conversation at the same. People don’t feel like they are being heard or understood when this happens.

One question you can ask yourself to figure out which type of conversation you may be having is, “Does this person want to be helped, hugged, or heard?”

The What’s This Really About? Conversation

Rule 2: Share you goals, and ask what others are seeking

Pay attention to what the other person wants to talk about
Be clear about what you want out of a conversation

The How Do We Feel? Conversation

Rule 3: Ask about others’ feelings and share you own

Be emotionally vulnerable
- People are looking for connection and being emotionally vulnerable brings the sense of closeness we seek
Ask deep questions about people’s values, beliefs, judgements, or experiences—rather than just facts
Ask deep questions about how people feel
Asking deep questions should feel like sharing
Utilize looping for understanding: (1) ask questions (2) summarize what you heard (3) ask if you got it right

The Who Are We? Conversation

Rule 4: Explore if identities are important to this discussion.

I think that “Chapter 7: How Do We Make the Hardest Conversations Safer?” was the most impactful part of the book. Duhigg could have written a decent book on having conversations if he stopped writing after telling people to be emotionally vulnerable, listen well, and ask good questions, but he does something significant by providing advice for the most charged conversations. By establishing guidelines for dialogue, understanding everyone’s goals, and anticipating areas of friction, we can better find mutual understanding in conversations on topics that normally become heated.

Afterword

The afterword is really worth reading. We learn about how the Harvard Study of Adult Development found that having good relationships is the factor with the strongest ties to physical health, mental health, and longevity.

“Across the decades and surveys, similar findings emerged again and again: The happiest participants called others regularly, made lunch and dinner dates, sent notes to friends saying they were proud of them, or wanted to help them shoulder sad news. Most of all, happy participants engaged in many, many conversations over the years that brought them closer to others.”

“‘The most important influence, by far, on a flourishing life is love.’ Not romantic love, but, rather, the kinds of deep connections we form with our families, friends, and coworkers, as well as neighbors and people from our community. ‘Love early in life facilitates not only love later on, but also the other trappings of success, such as prestige and even high income. It also encourages the development of coping styles that facilitate intimacy, as opposed to ones that discourage it.’”

My biggest critique would be for Duhigg to build ethos earlier (and more strongly). I think that the benefits of being a better communicator are self-evident, but it’s a little unclear to the reader why we should listen to Duhigg’s advice specifically. Despite this, I very much want to intentionally try to be a more “super” communicator.

畫兒上的美人

Tue, 07 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

我剛看我第一本中文書了！雖然我還沒學很多詞，但是這本書很有意思。我還不相信這本書那麼有意思！

Matthew

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Kingdom, The Power, and The Glory

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Life of the Beloved

Sat, 04 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This was at least my second time reading this book (though somehow my first time logging) and I love it. Last spring, when I read Life of the Beloved for the first time, I remember this deep sense of wanting — wanting something I didn’t yet have:

“When our deepest truth is that we are the Beloved and when our greatest joy and peace come from fully claiming that truth, it follows that this has to become visible and tangible in the ways we eat and drink, talk and love, play and work. When the deepest currents of our life no longer have any influence on the waves at the surface, then our vitality will eventually ebb, and we will end up listless and bored even when we are busy.”

Hearts don’t change easily, but they do change. Since last spring, my heart has moved in the direction I so longed for it to move, and for that I am grateful.

1984

Fri, 03 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

I am really glad that I revisited 1984 after a few years. The first time I read it, I was mainly concerned with the theme of mass surveillance, but recently, authoritarian regimes have been on my mind (hopefully, I’ll take a class on them this fall), so the book read differently than the first time. 1984 is a classic for a reason and I should really purchase a physical copy at some point.

Single, Dating, Engaged, Married

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Ben Stuart is great. I had already listened to a lot of his sermons on dating and some of the chapters in the book are almost exactly the same, but it was still good to read everything in a cohesive package.

James

Thu, 28 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The Psychology of Money

Mon, 18 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A lot of what Housel says is common investing advice, but I would argue he is a better explainer than most. If someone doesn’t know much about investing, this would be a great place to start.

The Psychology of Money’s insights are centered around two main themes: hubris and time.

Hubris

Don’t think you can outperform the market; most people don’t and even if you do, who’s to say it wasn’t luck? We tend to credit ourselves in successes and blame factors outside of our control in failures.

People get overly obsessed with material wealth, often thinking others will think better of them. But when has anyone looked at someone driving a nice car and thought that the driver was cool? In the more likely scenario, others are more concerned with thinking how cool others would think of them if they were driving that car and aren’t thinking about the driver at all, making it all the more stupid to take out debt to create a facade of wealth; no one will really even care.

Even if we might feel confident in what we will be doing in the future, odds are we don’t. Give your future self flexibility. True wealth isn’t about having the most money; it’s the ability to have autonomy and control over your life and time. Money helps, but getting greedy may lead to your (or your bank account’s) destruction.

Time

We cannot predict the future. People are terrible at predicting the market, so don’t think you can. The main thing we learn from history is not what might happen in the future, but that the world is full of surprises. Expect these surprises and save money for the sake of saving and make investments that let you sleep at night. Compounding interest and operating on the time-scale of decades, not days, pays dividends. Even if one can rationally figure out the best investing strategy (some have suggested that young people take out loans to increase retirement investment), you must ask yourself if a decision is reasonable, not just rational. If investing in something causes you to lose sleep, it’s not worth it. You are a human and have feelings; make the best investing decisions for you.

Slow Productivity

Tue, 12 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

I am a big fan of Cal Newport and his style of “smart productivity” that blends traditional self-help with regular non-fiction writing. I’m a regular listener of Newport’s Deep Questions Podcast where I heard about pretty much everything in the book, but it was still worth reading through this text because it nicely lays out the entire idea of “Slow Productivity” in a cohesive package.

Revelation

Sat, 02 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Give People Money

Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

John

Thu, 01 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Hebrews

Thu, 25 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Disciplines of a Godly Man

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

To Be a Christian

Sat, 20 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

2 Samuel

Thu, 18 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

1 Samuel

Wed, 17 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Meditations

Wed, 10 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Reading Meditations was deeply fascinating because Marcus Aurelius (the last emperor of the Pax Romana) did not write for an audience, but for himself, “as a means of practicing and reinforcing his own philosophical convictions.” In this book, we are given a window into a different kind of worldview than what we might be accustomed. It is so different that almost a third of the version that I read was an introduction written by Gregory Hays, which was helpful, though went over my head at times.

Marcus is focused on controlling what he can and not being controlled by what he cannot. He constantly reminds himself of his own insignificance in “the infinite time before” and “the equally unbounded time that follows” in order to focus on what is important. I believe the following quote to be a microcosm of the way Marcus sees the world. He is expressing gratitude that he had less talent in some areas of his life so he could focus on more pressing endeavors.

“That I wasn’t more talented in rhetoric or poetry, or other areas. If I’d felt that I was making better progress I might never have given them up.”

Ultimately, this book is making me consider writing down what I think is important in the grand scheme of life in a way similar to Marcus.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Wed, 10 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Romans

Tue, 09 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Romney

Tue, 02 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Damascus Station

Sat, 23 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

Mon, 11 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

What a joy it was to return to a childhood classic. There is so much depth that I missed the first time I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Elon Musk

Sat, 09 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The Three Body Problem

Fri, 24 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +0000

I’m not one that normally reads science fiction, but I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book on audio. The New York Times Magazine’s article on Ken Liu’s translation is fascinating and this book, along with CGP Grey’s rock paper scissors video¹, has me thinking about the future of humanity. It remains to be seen if I will read the rest of the trilogy—The Three Body Problem didn’t land on a cliffhanger that is compelling me to find out more; I am satisfied with the ending.

I recommend doing an honest run of the game, then clicking win until the final video—it’s the final video that’s deep ↩︎

Sweetwater

Sun, 19 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +0000

When Jason Heaton¹ writes a book, I read it. I haven’t been able to put down Sweetwater or its predecessor, Depth Charge. Heaton is unashamedly inspired by Ian Fleming and thus, his protagonist shares many tropes with James Bond, whether you like them or not. A modern day Fleming, Heaton makes a conscious effort to contemporize his book and adresses themes like mental health, eating disorders, and gender and minorities representation.

Although Heaton may have initially intended to publish this book through the traditional method, unlike with Depth Charge, he ended up self-publishing. While I don’t know the circumstances, I do know that this book was edited by a literary agent and the Kindle edition is only $2.99!

Jason co-hosts a podcast called The Grey NATO that I’ve listened to on and off throughout the years. It’s great if you’re into adventure, travel, diving, driving, gear and/or watches ↩︎

How to Be a High School Superstar

Wed, 15 Nov 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Digital Minimalism

Mon, 23 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

So Good They Can't Ignore You

Sun, 17 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

How to Become a Straight-A Student

Tue, 29 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

How to Win at College

Sun, 27 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Kelly

Tue, 13 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks for the great read, Coach Turner!

Just Mercy

Tue, 28 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

To Kill a Mockingbird

Wed, 22 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve definitely read this before…I guess I forgot to log it.

Welcoming Justice

Wed, 22 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The Cadaver King and the Country Dentist

Mon, 23 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Stay True

Sat, 21 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Mike4

Wed, 18 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Depth Charge

Wed, 04 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Anything You Want

Tue, 27 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Lee Kuan Yew

Wed, 30 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000

In Cold Blood

Wed, 16 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The Little Book of Restorative Justice

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Already familiar with the use of restorative justice in my school, this book showed me the various other applications of these practices.

Mere Christianity

Sat, 22 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

I’ll be honest. I had higher expectations for this book. It could be that I was already familiar with many of the arguments Mere Christianity introduces (likely from people who read this book themselves) or that I didn’t approach reading it with historical significance in mind. I imagine that I might revisit this book at later date—when I can appreciate it better. It was difficult for me to get past Lewis’ personal opinion in some sections and appreciate the larger picture of the arguments he made.

Angela's Ashes

Thu, 13 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

One Writer's Beginnings

Sun, 11 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

From Paycheck to Purpose

Sun, 04 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve been on a Dave Ramsey kick recently and have heard Ken Coleman co-host on The Ramsey Show several times, so I thought I would give this book a shot—even though I am far from the target audience. Like the other books from Ramsey Solutions that I’ve read, the writing quality is poor and could be consolidated to a couple of articles. I didn’t like that most supporting arguments came from anecdotal evidence.

Die With Zero

Fri, 02 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

I read this book just after being introduced to Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps, which for their obvious flaws, have helped many people climb out of debt. Die With Zero is written for people who already know that they should live below their means and save for retirement—an audience that does not overlap with Ramsey’s. Bill Perkins writes to people who are likely to oversave for retirement, and asks readers to consider a different way of looking at money.

Instead of maximizing your life for the largest retirement savings account, Perkins suggests living a life where life enjoyment is optimized. He doesn’t suggest spending lavishly, but he does put an emphasis on using your money intentionally. Money is only useful for what it can buy and because it’s so easy to delay present enjoyment for a greater reward later, it’s possible to miss out on enjoyment in the process. Money is only worth what it can buy you. It’s worthless on its own.

The Die With Zero mindset considers investment in human capital and unquantifiable returns in addition to typical investments. A trip to Europe is a great example. Timing is critical. You could do this trip while in your 20’s with little savings, or wait until your 30’s when you have a little more in the bank. Sure, saving aggressively when you’re young is important. Compound interest rewards you well. But waiting too long to take the trip to Europe, might leave you feeling too old to stay in a hostel or you could now have kids that make taking a month-long trip away from them feel foolish. And this doesn’t even consider the impact of a changed worldview from the trip. You can’t put a number that. Moreover, who’s to say you’ll even benefit from the difference in savings by delaying the trip. You might be unable to use the money you saved so diligently because you are physically incapable of doing some of the things you always dreamed of doing.

This book helped me reevaluate the way I look at spending and saving. Dying with no money in the bank is an impossible task because no one knows when they will die, but Perkins says you can try to get close. Dying with no money in the bank seems selfish at first because it sounds like you are leaving no inheritance and give nothing to charity. Perkins just means that he doesn’t want to die with money in the bank that doesn’t have a purpose. He intentionally sets aside money to be donated and for his kids.

Perkins also wants to give most of his kids’ inheritance to them while he is alive. He could put an amount aside now and let compound interest do its magic, but the longer he waits to give his kids their inheritance, the less utility of the money. Less money given to a 25-year-old can have a much bigger impact than more given to a 50-year-old. Most people already own a home at age 50 and they probably already have everything they need, but at age 25, someone might be looking to put a downpayment on a house for the first time. Perkins wants to use his inheritance where the value of the money given is greater than its face value, like in this situation. Receiving money would greatly accelerate the process of saving for a downpayment.

Personally, trying to die with no money in the bank when I die is far too extreme for me, but the thought experiments in this book have changed the way I see money forever.

I fully recommend this book. Please read it.

The Total Money Makeover

Sun, 28 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Baby Steps Millionaires

Fri, 26 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer

Wed, 17 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Slaughterhouse-Five

Thu, 11 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The Fault in Our Stars

Thu, 02 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Crying in H Mart

Fri, 20 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

This Is Water

Tue, 17 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Between Two Kingdoms

Fri, 13 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Excellent Sheep

Sat, 07 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Re: Why We Admire Zelensky

Sat, 07 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

This is the letter I submitted to The New York Times’ student letter writing competition. Although my letter was not selected, I still like what I wrote and am publishing it here¹. It is a response to an opinion piece titled: Why We Admire Zelensky.

To the Editor:

I cannot stop from wondering, “Is this real life?” After watching the first episode of Servant of the People, both the name of Zelensky’s political party and TV show he starred as president, my eyes were opened to the striking similarities between the show and reality. His character and he were elected for the same reason: “to bring professional, decent people to power.” As an outsider, Zelensky’s story sounds like a fairytale, but it is not. This is real life.

As I, along with the rest of the world, hold my breath as we watch Russia’s invasion of Ukraine unfold, I have trouble accepting real life. My generation does not know what to expect. We are the oldest alive to have never experienced widespread global conflict. We did not live through the Cold War like my parents; we never grew up during World War II like my grandparents; and we never saw the end of World War I like my great grandparents. We fear what might happen with more direct foreign involvement in this conflict. Despite the imminent threat of death, Zelensky and the Ukrainians’ resilience gives me hope that democracy and freedom can prevail.

One of the many benefits of having your own website :) ↩︎

The Art of Invisibility

Thu, 05 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

City of Glass

Thu, 21 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Permanent Record

Thu, 21 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Thu, 21 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Ready Player One

Sat, 22 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

How to Study for the SAT

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

When I first started studying for the SAT, I felt lost. I didn’t know what books I should be purchasing, which practice tests I should taking, or how much I should be studying. I thought it would be helpful for me (a high school Junior) to document my SAT studying techniques—even if it will only be helpful for my sister, who will be taking the SAT in the next couple of years (as long as it is still a relevant metric). By no means am I saying my method will work for you or that it is the best way to study for the SAT, but it could be of use to some, since it helped me gain 250+ points from my first practice test in August 2021 (85^th percentile) to the December 2021 SAT (99^th percentile). I don’t say this to gloat, but to add credibility to this approach.

In my mind, there are three stages to studying for the SAT. If you want to score above 1500, you’ll need to get to stage 3, since your margin of error is slim.

Of note, it’s notoriously difficult to improve the Evidence-Based Reading section. You really just need to read actual books to do well, though the methodology described below can help—just to a lesser extent than the other three sections. I rekindled my love for reading¹ during “lockdown” in 2020, so the Evidence-Based Reading started out as my strongest section; however, it turned out to be my weakest section on my December 2021 SAT, since my score in that section improved the least.

Stage 1: Understanding the Content

The first thing I did was make sure I knew how to solve every problem. It’s hard to practice when you don’t know how to get the right answer. Initially, I took a practice test and then went through each problem individually, marking each answer as correct or incorrect. On incorrectly marked questions, I checked to see if I knew how to get the correct answer. If I didn’t, I would (re)learn the material by watching videos I found on the internet². After this, I grinded out 1,762 free practice problems on Khan Academy. During this stage, I would recommend doing a full practice test³ on the weekends (at least one every other week, though once a week is better). Completing practice tests in full improves your concentration and allows you to become more familiar with the testing format.

You know you’re past stage 1 when you feel stupid every time you get a problem wrong because you know why the right answer is right.

SAT Books

I bought the book my tutor recommended (more on tutors below), but didn’t find it to be too helpful. It is possible that I could have gained more from my SAT book had I spent more time with it. My book—like most, if not all SAT books—was so long that I was honestly overwhelmed by it. Outside of completing a few assigned problems from my tutor, I only used my book to do extra practice tests after I ran out of the tests provided for free by College Board. I’m inclined to believe that purchasing an SAT book is not necessary, but by all means, buy the one that someone you trust recommends. Maybe it will be exactly what you need.

SAT Prep Courses

While I didn’t take an SAT prep course, I think it could be a great option for some people. If you have trouble with self-discipline and focus, an SAT prep course would probably be helpful. If practicing on your own isn’t difficult, the cost of an SAT prep course likely does not justify its high price tag.

Stage 2: Familiarity With the Test Format

After doing many practice problems, I noticed patterns in the types of questions covered on the SAT. Upon seeing a question, I immediately knew the type of answer choices that would be available since I had done many similar practice problems, just with different “variables.”

Improvement in stage 2 mainly comes from doing lots of practice tests. You don’t need to set aside 3 hours to complete a full practice test to improve in stage 2. Instead, do one section of a practice test each day. I’d still recommend doing a full practice test on the weekend. Khan Academy is great for stage 1, when you need to practice several of a certain type of problem to ensure you really know how to do it. However, in stage 2, when you know the material, doing a practice section is more helpful. It’s one thing to be able to solve a problem having done 5 very similar ones in a row; it’s a very different thing to get the question right in the format of an actual SAT.

You know you’re past stage 2 when you start reading a question and already know what College Board wants you to answer (make sure not to rush to the wrong conclusion!).

SAT Tutors

I found meeting with a tutor to be beneficial during stage 2. I met with my tutor three times (1 hour each time, totaling to 3 hours) and saw an increase of ~100 points on practice math sections. It was definitely time and money well spent. If you can, try learning new material on your own, instead of with a tutor, since your time with a tutor can be better spent elsewhere. My tutor showed how to avoid common mistakes, taught me that I should never feel ambivalent about any two answers, since there will only be one best answer, and gave me tips to better take advantage of the format of the SAT. I also learned how to solve math problems in new, faster ways that weren’t taught to me in school. These tips were not obvious to me on my own, but were extremely beneficial in helping me improve my SAT score.

Stage 3: Pacing

I got to stage 3 just a week or two before I took the December 2021 SAT.

When I first started taking practice tests, I could barely finish a section on time, but after enough practice, I had enough time to partially check my work a second time. At this point, I needed to pace myself and slow down. I found I scored better when I took my time when first answering questions, having just enough time to thoroughly check my work once than when I rushed through the test and had time to check my work twice. It was hard to convince myself to meticulously examine my work after having already done it once. To score in the 1500s, it is critical to check your work, since you can’t miss many questions.

If you get to the point where you need to slow down, there isn’t much else you can do to improve besides calming nerves and gaining confidence by doing well on additional practice tests.

Timing

I highly recommend taking the SAT in August of the start of your junior year. Because you have plenty of time before you need to submit an SAT score, you can use the August SAT as a super low pressure environment to understand what it feels like to take an SAT. Because this test date is several months earlier than the PSAT, the only opportunity to be selected as a National Merit Finalist, it may not be optimal to peak in August. Instead, try to peak when your school takes the PSAT and schedule an SAT close to that date.

The worst case scenario is really not that bad: you realize you need to study more, but at least you’ll be more prepared for your next test and for the PSAT, since you’re now more comfortable with the testing environment. The best case scenario is quite good: you don’t have to worry about the SAT anymore, since you’re happy with your score. Either way, there’s a positive outcome.

I also found it helpful to bring an analog watch with me to take the SAT. College Board doesn’t allow for any watches that make noise (basically all digital watches) or external timing devices⁴, so an analog watch is the only way to mange your time besides hoping there will be a visible clock. Not only did I have peace of mind knowing that I would certainly be able to keep track of time by bringing an analog watch, but I was able to use the watch as a countdown timer by setting it to count down to 12:00 for each section. For example, if a section was 25 minutes long, I would set the watch for 11:35 (make sure to count by 5’s so you don’t make a silly mistake and think you have more/less time than you actually have).

Closing

Good luck on your SAT! If you made it this far, you care enough about your SAT that I know you’ll study hard and do well.

Check out my reading log! ↩︎
I will note that I had already completed both Algebra II and Trigonometry before studying for the SAT. It will probably be harder to understand all content that could be on the SAT if you have not taken those classes. ↩︎
Take them on paper if you can. It is more similar to the actual SAT. Khan Academy provides free PDFs to print. When taking the test, you can’t search for a word or easily reference the text like you can online, but you can write on equations when doing math problems. ↩︎
See College Board’s SAT Test Day Checklist ↩︎

A Burglar's Guide to the City