Many students struggle when they start doing more timed sections. In drilling, they focus solely on getting the question right. Once the clock is running, everything changes.

The Clock’s Impact

Timed sections might feel different from drilling, but they’re not. Your task is the same: solve one question at a time. 

A lot of students excel at drilling. High accuracy. Confident predictions. Clear thinking. Then they switch to timed sections and everything falls apart. Their accuracy drops. Their reading gets sloppy. It feels like the clock changes the test.

It doesn’t. The test is exactly the same. But students’ attention is not.

Accuracy Drops When Pressure Builds

As soon as the clock starts running, many students stop treating each question like its own problem. They start thinking about the section as a whole.

How many questions have I done? How many are left? Am I behind? That pressure pulls your focus away from the single question in front of you.

That’s when accuracy drops.

A timed section should feel just like drilling. Read the passage carefully. Understand it. Predict the answer. Read and understand the question. Eliminate wrong answers aggressively. Pick the right answer and move on. 

If you get stuck between two choices, you missed something earlier. Go back and reread. The correct answer is rarely subtle when you understand what you read.

Your Approach Doesn’t Change

Stop treating timed sections differently. They deserve no more respect than drilling. Focus on solving the question in front of you, taking as much time as you need to find the right answer. Don't worry about the other questions. 

If you’re not sure how often to do timed sections, steal our sample study schedule. It gives you a simple weekly mix of drilling and timed sections.

The LSAT rewards understanding, not urgency. Ignore the clock. Solve the question. Move on to the next one.