IELTS VIP Podcast Episode 17: How Stress Can Affect Your IELTS Score

Summary

This video script addresses the issue of stress in the context of IELTS preparation and test day, emphasizing that stress is often a manifestation of fear of the unknown or uncontrollable elements. The speaker advises on managing stress by understanding IELTS criteria, structuring preparation, and controlling controllable factors. They also highlight the positive aspects of stress and suggest taking action to alleviate it, such as planning and disciplined preparation. External pressures, particularly from family, are noted as a significant stressor, and the speaker encourages open communication to manage these expectations.

Takeaways

• 📚 Stress related to IELTS is often due to fear of the unknown and fear of failure, which can be managed by understanding and controlling preparation and test day experiences.
• 🔑 Stress can be positive, motivating you to study and focus, but it becomes negative when it's overwhelming and affects performance.
• 🧐 Identifying and addressing the root causes of stress, such as fear of the unknown and lack of control, is crucial for effective IELTS preparation.
• 📈 Understanding the IELTS marking criteria and aligning your preparation with it can significantly reduce stress and improve performance.
• 📅 Planning and scheduling your study tasks can help control stress by providing a clear path for preparation and reducing uncertainty.
• 🌟 Jeff Bezos' advice to take action to reduce stress is applicable to IELTS preparation, emphasizing the importance of starting and working through tasks.
• 🏃‍♂️ Physical well-being through sleep, diet, and exercise contributes to mental readiness and reduces stress both in preparation and on test day.
• 🌍 External pressures, such as family expectations, can add stress; it's important to manage these by setting realistic goals and communicating with loved ones.
• 🛠 Preparing well for the IELTS test gives you control over your performance, which in turn reduces stress levels on test day.
• 🌅 Starting good habits like disciplined study, healthy eating, and regular exercise well in advance of the test can lead to a stress-free test day.

Q & A

What is the main topic discussed in the script?

The main topic discussed in the script is how to deal with stress in the context of IELTS preparation and on test day.

Why do students often feel stressed about IELTS?

Students feel stressed about IELTS because of the fear of the unknown, fear of failure, and things that are out of their control during preparation and on test day.

How can stress be a positive thing during IELTS preparation and test day?

Stress can be a positive thing as it can motivate students to study harder, focus more on their tasks, and perform better under pressure during both preparation and test day.

What is the difference between stress during IELTS preparation and on test day?

Stress during preparation can be due to uncertainty about what to study or how to approach it, while on test day, it can be due to the fear of the unknown, such as what examiners are looking for or how to handle test questions.

What does the speaker suggest to combat the fear of the unknown during IELTS preparation?

The speaker suggests understanding the IELTS marking criteria, knowing what examiners are looking for, and aligning preparation with these requirements to combat the fear of the unknown.

How can taking action reduce stress according to the speaker?

Taking action, such as planning out tasks and starting to work on them, can reduce stress because it turns unknowns into knowns and gives a sense of control over the situation.

What is the role of discipline in managing stress during IELTS preparation?

Discipline plays a crucial role in managing stress by ensuring that students follow a structured study plan, which leads to a more stress-free preparation and test day experience.

Why is it important to control what you can during IELTS preparation and test day?

Controlling what you can, such as study habits, sleep, diet, and attitude, helps manage stress levels and ensures that you are prepared and in the best possible condition on test day.

What advice does the speaker give regarding external pressures during IELTS preparation?

The speaker advises having an open and honest discussion with family members or others who may be exerting undue pressure, explaining the reality of the situation and the necessary steps for success.

How can understanding the examiners' expectations reduce stress during IELTS preparation?

Understanding the examiners' expectations can reduce stress by providing clarity on what needs to be focused on during preparation, making the process more manageable and less overwhelming.

What is the significance of the saying 'discipline equals freedom' in the context of IELTS preparation?

The saying 'discipline equals freedom' implies that by being disciplined in one's preparation, such as following a study schedule and maintaining good habits, one gains the freedom to perform well on test day with less stress.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Understanding Stress in IELTS Preparation

The speaker begins by addressing the common concern of stress among IELTS candidates, particularly the stress of preparation and test day. Stress is identified as a form of fear, whether it's fear of the unknown, fear of failure, or fear of the uncontrollable. The speaker emphasizes that while stress can be a positive motivator for studying and focusing, it becomes detrimental when it's overwhelming. The key to managing stress is to understand it as fear and to tackle the unknowns and uncontrollable aspects of IELTS preparation and testing.

05:02

🛠 Tackling the Fear of the Unknown and Lack of Control

This paragraph delves into the specifics of fear related to IELTS: the fear of the unknown and things beyond one's control. The speaker suggests that to manage stress, one must reduce unknowns by understanding the IELTS criteria and aligning preparation with it. It also talks about controlling the controllables, like study habits and test-day routines, to mitigate stress. The speaker shares a personal anecdote about Jeff Bezos to illustrate how taking action can alleviate stress, advocating for proactive steps in preparation to gain control and reduce fear.

10:04

📈 The Impact of Preparation on Stress Management

The speaker discusses the direct relationship between thorough preparation and stress levels, suggesting that the more prepared one is, the less stressful the test day becomes. The paragraph highlights the importance of understanding IELTS requirements, such as grammar accuracy, and tailoring study plans accordingly. It also touches on the value of discipline and planning in reducing stress, using the adage 'discipline equals freedom' to stress the point that structured preparation leads to a more relaxed and successful test experience.

15:05

🌙 Prioritizing Sleep, Diet, and Familiarity for Test Day

This section focuses on the practical aspects of reducing stress on test day. The speaker advises on the importance of sleep, diet, and exercise leading up to the test to ensure optimal brain function. It also covers the benefits of familiarizing oneself with the test center location and conditions in advance. The speaker acknowledges that some aspects of the test, like examiner attitudes or question topics, are beyond考生 control but emphasizes that one's attitude towards these uncontrollables is crucial in managing stress.

20:05

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Addressing External Pressures in IELTS Preparation

The final paragraph addresses the external pressures, often from family members, that can exacerbate stress for IELTS candidates. The speaker suggests that this pressure, though well-intended, can be counterproductive. They recommend having open and honest discussions with family to set realistic expectations and timelines for achieving IELTS goals. The paragraph concludes with a summary of strategies for managing stress through understanding fear, controlling the controllables, and preparing well, which ultimately leads to less stress and better performance.

Keywords

💡Stress

Stress in the context of the video refers to the mental and emotional strain one experiences when preparing for or taking the IELTS exam. It is described as a response to fear of the unknown or fear of failure. The video emphasizes that while stress can be overwhelming, it can also be a positive force that motivates students to study and perform better on test day. For instance, the speaker mentions that stress can help one get up early to study or focus during the exam.

💡Preparation

Preparation is highlighted as a critical aspect of managing stress in the IELTS context. It involves understanding the exam requirements, developing a study plan, and practicing various skills. The video suggests that thorough preparation can alleviate stress by reducing the fear of the unknown and increasing confidence. An example given is the need to understand the IELTS marking criteria to align one's study efforts effectively.

💡Fear of the Unknown

Fear of the unknown is a key concept discussed in the video, which relates to the anxiety students may feel due to uncertainty about the exam process or their performance. The speaker advises that by gaining knowledge and understanding of what is expected in the IELTS, such as the marking criteria, students can reduce this fear and consequently, their stress levels.

💡Control

Control, as mentioned in the video, is about managing aspects of the IELTS process that are within one's power, such as study habits, sleep, and diet. It is posited that by controlling these factors, students can reduce stress and improve their performance. The video gives an example of planning out one's study schedule to maintain control and reduce uncertainty.

💡Action

Action is emphasized as a way to combat stress by taking steps to address the causes of stress. The video references Jeff Bezos's philosophy that things are only stressful until one takes action on them. An example from the script is the speaker's personal experience of planning out a busy week to alleviate stress.

💡Test Day

Test day refers to the actual day of the IELTS exam, which can be a source of stress due to the pressure to perform well. The video discusses strategies to manage stress on test day, such as getting adequate sleep, eating healthily, and familiarizing oneself with the test center. It is suggested that the more prepared one is, the less stressful the test day will be.

💡External Pressure

External pressure in the video refers to the stress imposed by external sources, such as family members or friends, who may have high expectations or specific demands regarding the IELTS score. The speaker notes that this pressure can be counterproductive and suggests having open discussions to manage such stress.

💡Discipline

Discipline is presented as a means to achieve freedom and reduce stress. It involves setting and adhering to a study schedule, maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and taking a proactive approach to exam preparation. The video quotes a saying, 'discipline equals freedom,' to illustrate how self-control can lead to a more stress-free experience on test day.

💡Marking Criteria

Marking criteria are the standards used by examiners to assess and score candidates in the IELTS. Understanding these criteria is crucial for effective preparation and is emphasized in the video as a way to reduce fear and stress. Knowing what examiners look for can help students align their studies and expectations with the actual requirements of the test.

💡Procrastination

Procrastination is depicted as a behavior that can exacerbate stress levels by causing last-minute cramming and inadequate preparation. The video discourages this approach, suggesting that starting preparation early and maintaining a consistent study schedule can lead to better stress management and exam performance.

💡Independence

Independence in the video is linked to the ability to make one's own decisions and manage one's own preparation for the IELTS without being overly influenced by external pressures. It is suggested that achieving a level of independence can reduce stress by allowing individuals to control their own study process and approach to the exam.

Highlights

Stress is often a fear of the unknown or things out of one's control.

Stress can be positive, motivating action, but becomes negative when overwhelming.

Understanding IELTS marking criteria can reduce stress by clarifying expectations.

Preparation is key to managing stress, as it allows control over performance.

Jeff Bezos' advice: 'Things are only stressful until you take action on them'.

Reducing unknowns in the IELTS process involves understanding examiners' expectations.

Aligning preparation with IELTS requirements can significantly decrease stress.

Controlling可控 factors such as sleep, diet, and exercise can mitigate test day stress.

The importance of discipline in reducing stress: 'Discipline equals freedom'.

Scheduling and planning can lead to a more manageable and less stressful preparation.

External pressures, like family expectations, can intensify stress and should be managed.

IELTS preparation should involve understanding and addressing both fear of the unknown and uncontrollable factors.

The role of a good teacher or course in guiding stress management and effective preparation.

The impact of a structured approach to preparation on reducing test day stress.

How to handle uncontrollable factors on test day, such as examiner behavior or question topics.

The significance of attitude in managing stress, especially in response to external pressures.

Advice for dealing with family pressures that may hinder effective IELTS preparation.

The summary of strategies to combat stress: understanding fear, controlling the controllable, and managing attitude.

Transcripts

so what we're going to talk about today

is something that a lot of you have been

asking me about and I've I've got a lot

of requests about how to deal with this

thing because many of you believe that

this is the one thing holding you back

from getting the scores you need and

that stress and that could be the stress

of preparation or it could be the stress

of test day and you're getting

overwhelmed on test day with stress so

we're going to talk a lot about what is

stress in the context of IELTS how can

you reduce stress during both your

preparation and an on test day so what I

always say the students is when they

talk about stress both during your

preparation and test day I will talk

I'll try and separate those two right

because I think they're two different

things really and so you'll hear me talk

a lot about that but it's just another

word for fear and when students talk

about like I'm really really stressed I

always say it's just what you're really

saying is you are fearful you fear the

unknown

you fear failure and you fear things

that are out of your control

so if we can solve those problems we can

solve the the stress problem before we

get into that stress can actually be a

positive thing as well and stress can

help you get up early in the morning and

study it can you know help you study a

little bit longer or when you get home

from work and you're not feeling like

studying stress can actually force you

to go and do that and on test day stress

can help you focus and give you the

energy you need to go through everything

and get everything done stress is not

just a negative thing it becomes a

negative thing when you get overwhelmed

with it so during your preparation you

get so stressed out that you know you

can't figure out which breakfast cereal

eat in the morning never mind how to

start your preparation because you're

just so stressed out and worried and on

test day you can just become overwhelmed

for example in the speaking test and it

affects your your fluency and your

and you make all these extra grammar and

vocabulary mistakes that you would never

normally make and so it is a positive

thing but it can be become a very very

negative thing so let's think about what

is stress and what is fear so I think

you can break it down into two different

categories and first of all it's fear of

the unknown so if you think about the

things that we normally get stressed

about let's think of common things that

people get stressed about one would be

like a fear of flying a lot of people

don't like flying and I think that's

because they feel like they have no they

don't know what's going to happen or

fear of spiders or fear of snakes or

fear of dogs or fear of the dark and

like my little boy is he's only four

years old and sometimes he's afraid of

the dark because in the dark there's the

unknown yeah so I think a lot of people

feel that when they're doing the

preparation on on test day they they're

uncertain about how to go about things

during the preparation they're uncertain

about what to study about who to trust

about what to believe about you know

what to do during the preparation and

then on test day they don't know really

what the examiners are looking for or

how to give it to them so that that

comes into it and the second thing would

be things that are beyond our control so

again thinking about common things I

decide that the IELTS context I remember

the time I felt most fearful would be

like moving to a new country or when I

had my little boy when my wife gave

birth to my little boy or like financial

worries or things like when you don't

feel that you have control over

something then that's when stress and

fear comes into play so why am I talking

about

you know fear of the unknown fear of

things out of your control because what

you want to do with the IELTS process is

control what you can control and kind of

shine a light on the things that are

unknown and so take things out of the

dark that you don't know what you're

doing

- into the light where you know exactly

what's happening exactly what you're

doing

the other thing I want to talk about is

something that has really really helped

me and has really helped a few other

people that I've spoken to when they've

been under stress and it's actually from

the richest man in the world and Jeff

Bezos said he rarely does interviews

he's not he's hankie spends most of his

time when I'm working on on building

Amazon into the biggest company in the

world link it's a trillion dollar

company that he he started off in his

garage I think just selling books and so

obviously he has been through a lot of

stressful times and one thing that he

said always stuck with me and has really

helped me said things are only stressful

until you take action on them so for

example even yesterday I knew that I had

a really really really busy week and I

had a lot of things that I need I needed

to do this week

a lot of different videos that I need to

make and things that I need to do the

students I remember yesterday sitting

there and my stress levels were going up

and up and up and up but then what I did

was even though it was Sunday and I was

supposed to be my day off I forced

myself to go into my office I'm plan out

my whole week and that eliminated the

stress immediately so things are only

stressful until you start working on

them and taking action on them so

there's three things there just to

summarize we need to reduce the amount

of unknowns we need to take back control

and control as many things as possible

and we need to take action we need to do

something about it

because if we do the opposite of that

which is um you know don't try and find

anything out you remain in the dark

don't take any action and don't try and

control anything then that's obviously

going to lead to stress um so let's take

the first one fear of the unknown so you

need to work on finding out exactly what

the examiners are looking for on how you

can give it to them so you need

understand the marking criteria

especially for for writing and speaking

understand what the examiners are

thinking about when they're looking at

your writing or listening to your

speaking and then understand how you can

map your preparation to be in line or a

line with that so for example you might

be pretty poor a grammar and but you've

no idea how to fix that well once you

understand that the examiners are not

looking for you to give really complex

grammar and complex sentences and all

the tenses that you need and instead

what they're looking for is more

accuracy then everything becomes much

more manageable because now you know

okay they're looking for accuracy I'm

really poor at let's say you're poor at

articles and prepositions and

punctuation okay now I know that if I

fix these things I will improve and so

that's just one tiny example so but

understanding what the examiners want

and then aligning your preparation to

that you're reducing your stress levels

significantly because you know exactly

what is going on in the same way that

you know I'm sure you've seen videos of

like someone who is afraid of flying or

afraid of spiders or something I thought

what they normally do is they talk to an

expert who knows everything about that

and explain everything and how safe it

is to fly or that a spider won't bite

you or whatever that is and then

everything just becomes much easier and

they get overlap that fear so also what

we need to do is we need to control as

many things as possible so you don't

feel out of control and and again that

comes down to preparation the number one

way that you're going to combat stress

is prepare to the level that you need to

get to you will always have a little bit

of stress but if you know exactly what

to do and the speaking test and the

reading test and the listening test then

your stress levels are going to be very

very very manageable because you're

going to control everything so the

students that

I work with in the students that have

been most successful is like in the

speaking test part two comes up they

know exactly what to do because I've

given them a structure and what to eat

how to answer the questions we've gone

through a lot of examples we've gone

through feedback and what they need to

do and what they need to improve so they

have complete control over that they

don't have control over what the

examiner is going to throw at them they

don't have control over the questions

but when they get the question they know

exactly what to do with it same for you

know part one or task one speaking or

task one writing or task two writing I

always get those mixed up for some

reason but they know no matter what

happens they have total control over

their output and what they're going to

do and they'll be able to do that and in

order to get there you're going to have

to work hard you're not going to wake up

one day and have total control over what

you're going to be doing because that

comes with hard work it comes with time

it even comes with spending money on

getting the help that you need because

if you think about it

you can either spend time and money and

energy and on things to control them or

you cannot do that and then you're going

to waste a lot of time energy and money

anyway because you're going to be

failing the test over and over again or

you're going to be so stressed that

you're overwhelmed with everything and

so that that's definitely something to

consider the the the more hard work you

put in the more time you put in the more

manageable your stress levels are going

to be another way to minimize stress

during your preparation is to invest

some time in the beginning scheduling

everything aren't so find out exactly

what you need to do sit down with a

piece of paper or with a calendar on it

with you know each day let's say you

have 90 days between now and when you

want to do the test so you have 90 boxes

and then put every task let's say you

have you know hypothetically a hundred

and eighty tasks there will be two tasks

and on each day and each

and then you know every day when you

wake up you you have to complete those

tasks and then it becomes so much more

manageable because compare that with

what most students do is they have no

idea what to do so let's say they've 90

days to go they spend the first 30 days

watching YouTube videos and looking at

every blog and reading lots of books

complete waste of time

no they've got 60 days left they spend

the next 30 days like procrastinating

and pretending that they don't actually

need to do any work and lying to

themselves and then with 30 days to go

they just try and find some way out so

they look for tips and tricks and hacks

and try and memorize essays and all

these silly things that don't work and

then they're screwed and because they're

probably going to fail if they do that

and one is very manageable and

stress-free the other is even though

that person who procrastinated and

looked for tips and tricks even though

they didn't do much work that's a much

more stressful process so you know

investing the time to to schedule

everything I and get everything done is

really really going to help you because

there's a there's a saying that I often

refer to from my own mentor someone that

I've learned from chaco will Inc which

is discipline equals freedom that might

sound really really strange discipline

equals freedom well if you think about

it if you're disciplined with your money

you don't spend money on silly things

then you're going to have a lot of

financial freedom if you get up earlier

and you get up at 5 a.m. and you are

disciplined abut how much sleep you get

you're going to have a lot of free time

and because you're going to get

everything done at the start of the day

if you're disciplined with what you eat

and discipline with your exercise regime

you're going to have a lot of freedom in

terms of your health whereas if you do

the opposite you're not going to have

any freedom with your health because

you're going to be sick you're gonna you

know be feeling bad all the time so I

know it's not exciting and it's not the

most glamorous thing in the world but

being disciplined

I'm doing the things that you need to do

is going to lead to a huge amount of

freedom and it's going to lead to your

preparation and test day being

stress-free the more work you get done

now the less stressful a test day is

going to become so let's now move to

test day because we talked a lot about

and your preparation and we separated

both of those out so test day again

think about what you can control and

what you can't control

so to reiterate the more work you do the

the less stressful test day is going to

be so the first step to making stress to

making test day stress-free is do the

work because your score will be a

reflection of your ability on that day

so the night before your test you cannot

do anything that's going to make you

better at English or better at IELTS and

improve your score it really starts you

know a year before six months before

three months before one month before

whatever it is for you but think about

what you can control so number one you

can control for example how much sleep

you get the night before the week or the

month before your test start getting

into a routine where you go to bed at

the same time everyday and you get up at

the same time every day that is the best

way to ensure that you get enough sleep

every night and then the night before

your test you're not going to be you

know up all night worrying you're just

going to get - like for me for example I

go to bed at 9 a.m. or 9 a.m. 9 p.m. and

every day and I get up at 5 a.m. so at 9

p.m.

like if I'm not in bed like my body just

is like what's going on you know you

need to know you need to get to bed

pretty quickly on the 5 a.m.

like I'm just up like this morning I got

up woke up 4:30 naturally just felt

fresh and was ready to go and started my

day if you start doing that that's gonna

really help on test day because you're

not you're going to be at your best and

same with like your diet the month the

three months or whatever

before your test start to start putting

things in your engine that you know if

you put terrible fuel in your engine

it's not gonna work very well same ways

you put you know bad oil in a car or a

motorbike and start eating healthy so

your brain starts and starts you know

working properly start getting exercise

every day that could be like a 20 minute

walk every day you know or if you're you

know if you're pretty fit you know start

going for a 20 minute run or lifting

heavy things or whatever it is that

doing those things is going to help you

immensely and it's going to reduce your

stress levels because your body and your

brain are going to be working optimally

and also like a really easy thing to do

is find out where the test center is

find out exactly which room you are

going to be in get there early find out

exactly what's going on the number of

students that I dealt with who messed up

their test because they didn't know how

to get to the test center got on the

wrong bus or got on the wrong train or

got in a traffic jam and they got there

and they're pouring with sweat and

they're like they're they're late for

and they don't know where they're going

and then they need to go to the toilet

and just messes everything up get there

early go there the day before even to

find out how long it will take you to

get there these are things that you

can't control and they really do make a

difference there there also are things

that are going to be beyond your control

you cannot control the examiners

attitude in the speaking test you kind

of control whether they will be friendly

or not you can't control whether you get

a question that you know the topic or

you don't know the topic you can't

control whether the speakers are going

to be and good in the listening test or

not you've no control over those what

you do have control over is your

attitude to those things so if the

examiner is unfriendly in the speaking

test that's not their fault it's not

their job to be nice to you

they're not there to be your friend it's

what you do control is your attitude to

that whether that affects you or not and

if you get a question that and you're

you know unsure about the topic and in

the speaking test or the writing test

you can either go oh my god I'm going to

fail or B do the opposite of you know

I'm good enough to get this scored and

I'm good enough to do this and let's do

this that's that's answer this to the

best of my ability so you do control

your attitude to those things and and

again that is going to make you're going

to allow you to be relatively

stress-free but always remember you

can't use stress and do use it on test

day just manage it as much as possible

but if you I'm going back to preparation

if you've done everything right and

you've done your preparation properly

then you know you're going to do much

much better and you're gonna your stress

levels are going to be or gonna be fine

and that's why getting a good teacher or

joining a good course or something like

that is really going to help you because

if it's a good course or if they're a

good teacher they will have gotten you

to the stage where you know exactly what

to do about three months ago I had to do

my driving test and I had a really great

instructor and they prepared me

amazingly well and I knew exactly what I

needed to do and on on the day of the

test I was pretty nervous but I used it

to to keep me focused and to keep me

going and and even though I thought I

failed a couple of times and I passed

because I they prepared me really really

well just to we're nearly finished but

just to have a little bit of bonus

content on stress one of the things that

I have noticed and it's particularly in

certain countries I'm not going to name

the countries or the regions or whatever

but I've noticed that stress can come

from external forces principally

people's families

and a lot of the people that I speak to

and they are unbelievably stressed out

and I say to them well well like they

might have just joined the course I had

one girl over the weekend who just

joined our course and she was like I I

don't know what to do I don't know where

to start and she was like unusually

stressed out and she just joined the

course as well what's happening here

like what you've just joined a few days

ago why don't you begin the course and

we can start learning and everything she

said you don't understand I really need

this and I really nice like whoa like

what's going on here and then I had kind

of had an idea and I got to the bottom

of it her her father was putting huge in

my pressure on her to get the results as

quickly as possible and we see this a

lot we see it from husbands or wives we

see it from mothers and fathers we see

it from and siblings we see it from

friends were other people especially

your family is putting undue pressure on

you to get that score and you have to

think about is this actually helping so

of course your mother or your father or

whoever it is they love you and they

want you to do well but if your father

is telling you that you need to get the

score that is required in three weeks

but an expert is telling you it's going

to take at least three months are they

actually helping you so what you would

need to do and not sit in that scenario

if that's applicable to you is I sit

down and explain to them and black and

white what what the situation is okay

you love me you want me to get this in

order for me to get this it's going to

take me a little bit longer or I'm going

to need to do this or I'm going to need

to spend money on this or I'm gonna need

this for that and just say you know I

respect you and and I love you and all

of these different things but normally

that kind of pressure comes from

ignorance by ignorance I mean that they

don't understand the scenario they don't

understand what is going on and so it

normally

what you have to do is just sit down and

have a very very frank honest discussion

with them I know in certain places

that's like the family is the most

important thing in the world and you

know that there's its different cultures

and whatnot but that kind of unjú

pressure is not helping anybody and you

need to be independent and you need to

get your independence and the great

thing about the IELTS test is it gives a

lot of people independence from their

families and because they're able to

move to the country of their dreams get

the job of their dreams and all those

different things so um but your family

might be the people stopping you from

getting that and because they're just

putting way too much pressure on you and

so that's that's just a little extra

bonus on the whole stress thing because

we see a lot of people suffering that

kind of external unfair pressure and

from especially family members who do it

out of love but to also do it out of

ignorance and so hopefully that will

help you with stress and just to

summarize you need to separate our

preparation with test day and the best

way to combat stress is to realize that

it is just fear fear of the unknown and

fear of things that you can't control so

shine a light on the unknown control the

controllable and realize that there are

some things that are out of your control

but what you do control is your attitude

to them and the more preparation you do

the easier things will become and the

more the more work you put in them and

the more time you put in the less stress

you're going to suffer from so hopefully

that was useful and if you need anything

else get in touch thank you bye bye