Tearing Through Technical Guides Over & Over Can Get Boring. Here's How I used James Clear's 4 Laws of Behavior Change to Make IB Interview Studying Easy

Banking attracts the best and the brightest, so you probably already have a million other things on your plate - leadership positions, sports, whatever instrument you’re learning this month, etc.

So - how [in the world] are you going to find time to cram for IB studying?

I used the James Clear’s 4 Laws to land an elite boutique internship in NYC. After that, I was the President of my school’s banking org. and helped > 50 sophomores do the same.

1st Law: Make it Obvious

Articulate what it is you’re trying to achieve and block out time.

• Write + Tape to wall: “I will secure an offer from [Dream Bank] by [Insert Date]
• Plan Grind Sessions: Look at your G-Cal & block ~10hr / wk. Know if you’re more productive in the morning or evening. List boundaries / tactics you will use to avoid distractions
  • I put my phone in another room so it wasn’t even tempting
  • Recommend noise cancelling headphones (airpods work great)

2nd Law: Make it Attractive

Your 100th rep of practicing how the three statements are tied, you might want to jump off a cliff.

• Community & “In It Together” Mindset: join business orgs at your school to put yourself in environment with people who are all doing the same thing.
  • I also had an “accountability buddy” at another college I knew from HS - had weekly mocks & texted everyday to keep each other hyped
• Motivation Ritual - do something right before grind mode that you really really love. Can be listening to a hype song, getting Starbucks, etc. You’ll start to crave studying oddly enough

3rd Law: Make it Easy

To train for a marathon, you start by running 2 miles a day, not 20.

• Start Small: at beginning, do 2hr every weekend. Slowly add more hours over time until you build stamina to ~10hr total per week all in
• Warmup - NOT a full-fledged paper LBO, do a few easier questions to get the juices flowing

4th Law: Make it Satisfying

Treat yourself. My go-to was Peanut M&Ms. Kept a family size bag that I would have a few handfuls of after every successful session. Pride yourself on keeping the “Snap Streak” alive.