I mentioned earlier in the "Intro to SAT" section that the CollegeBoard and ETS are companies and you can use that to your advantage. Knowing that you have to pay them money is something my brothers and I used to motivate ourselves.  Just imagine if you didn’t try and didn’t get the score you wanted.  This means you just paid to get a bad score.  You basically paid the CB to impede admission to the college of your choice.  The authors of the popular Underground Guide to the SAT say, “Hate is a powerful emotion: it will give you the drive and determination you need for intense study.” Beating the system does feel good.

But it's still a test - how do you psyche yourself up for an exam?  Psychology teaches us that positive rewards are the best motivating factors.  Think of where you want to be in 15 years: where do you want to live, what will you be doing, how much money will you be making, with whom will you be rubbing shoulders?  The answers to these questions could very well be determined by what undergraduate school you went to and the opportunities you found or made there. The SAT is an integral part of your college application and having choices to which college you go to gives you more opportunities.  Opportunities are a good thing.  Now think more short term.  The PSAT is essentially the same as the SAT in material aspects.  Doing well on the PSAT gives you opportunity for National Merit Scholarships which are nice for the money, but even better for the prestige.  In general, be motivated and keep a positive attitude towards the SAT; these qualities are conducive for good results.

But the SAT will get you down pretty fast.  You won’t see results as fast as you want and for most people, studying is a time-consuming endeavor.  Just remember that you are not alone.  Look around you at school.  There are other people also going through the same struggle as well.  Take this opportunity to form once-a-week practice sessions.  Have 4-5 of your buddies meet at each other’s houses every Sunday night, and take a practice section or two.  And then discuss it.  You’ll stay motivated because you are not alone and also because the competitive nature of the practice “game” will keep you interested.

Continue on to How the SAT is scored