for the lazy student who'll spend 30 min a night if it actually works
Goal
Quiz-and-recall the top 5 topics across 5 nights, 30 min per night.
Source principle
For minimum-viable prep, quiz-and-recall on the highest-weight topics beats re-reading everything. : from How to Become a Straight-A Student by Cal Newport.
The plan
- 📋D-5 7:00-7:30 PMList every topic, mark the 5 most likely to appear.
- ❓D-5 7:30-8:00 PMWrite 3 recall questions per top-5 topic.
- 🧠D-4 7:00-7:30 PMQuiz on topic 1-3, no notes.
- ✅D-4 7:30-8:00 PMCheck answers, mark gaps only.
- 🎯D-3 7:00-7:30 PMQuiz on topic 4-5, no notes.
- 🔁D-3 7:30-8:00 PMRe-quiz gaps from D-4, just the gaps.
- 🎲D-2 7:00-7:30 PMQuiz all 5 topics, mixed order.
- ✏️D-2 7:30-8:00 PMDrill only the gaps that resurfaced.
- 🧪D-1 7:00-7:30 PMOne mini-mock on the top 5, timed.
- 📝D-1 7:30-8:00 PMMark remaining gaps, that's it for tonight.
- 😴D-1 10:30 PMLights out, no all-nighters even for minimum viable.