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On the first night of a real estate licensing class, I will have the class introduce themselves and give a little bio about their past.  I always ask them why they decided to embark on a career in real estate and often get, what seems like now, a rehearsed automatic response out of many.  It goes something like this, “Well, I just love people and I love houses and all of my friends and family have always told me that I would do great in the real estate business.”  I chuckle inside a little as I hear those responses because while inspiration might get you started, perspiration and dedication will play a much more important part of making it to the finish line.  Helping students condition themselves and brace for what is ahead is a delicate task as an instructor should balance between nurturing the dream while applying small doses of reality along the way.  
State licensing exams are generally difficult and the preparation for a real estate career begins by eliminating obstacle number one, the exam.  The dreams of friendly buyers and sellers and big beautiful homes can get lost quickly in the difficulty of mastering the material necessary to get through that exam.  You don’t have to have exceptional intelligence to get your real estate license, but if you aren’t an exceptional learner you must gain an exceptional focus.  As an instructor, I prioritize honesty with students about the challenge that is before them while instilling hope in them that it is achievable.  I strive to affirm their inspiration while challenging them with the idea that inspiration is a good starting point but dedication and hard work must follow.   Throughout the students’ experience in the classroom, I try to share many tips that will aid them in developing a good strategy for passing the state exam, below are my top 10.


Tip 1  Master Vocabulary


Real estate terms are very foreign to most students who have no real estate background.  The building blocks of learning any new language is to master vocabulary.  Every chapter in our curriculum has key terms that will be used throughout the content of that chapter.  I encourage the students to either purchase a flashcard app or better yet make their own flashcards.  I am a little old school and believe that the more senses one incorporates in the learning process, the more likely one is to remember the material.  If a student makes their own flashcards, they “see” the flashcards (visual learners), they write the words ( tactile learners), they hear the words and definitions and they recite them (auditory learners) and they can develop their own verbal applications for the words for those learners who learn by talking things out.  Most students are only vaguely aware of their actual learning style, so starting by incorporating the eyes, the hands, the ears, and the mouth can be extremely helpful.  Mastering vocabulary provides a firm foundation upon which to build, but memorizing definitions alone is not enough.  


Tip 2 Become an Analytical Thinker


The real estate exam is concept-driven and the aim of the test is to determine if the student actually understands the material enough to problem solve.  Therefore, there aren’t many questions whereby they give you a definition of a word and put forth four terms for you to choose from.   As an instructor, I am allowed to take the pre-license state exam whenever I choose and I do take it fairly often.  My goal is to recognize the style of questions in order to adapt and tweak material to condition minds to think and problem solve in a certain manner.  Most of the questions on the state exam assemble groups of terms whereby the students must grasp the different aspects of these terms and apply them to the problem.  For instance, take the following question: “

If a seller owns a property whereby the taxes on the property ($6,284 annually) are paid in arrears, what would be the proration of taxes if the seller sells the property and closes on July 24th?  Assume that the seller owns the property on the day of closing.  There is an assembling of words that are easily understood by many (seller, property, taxes), but there are some words than many non real estate people might not recognize such as “arrears”, “proration”, “closing”.  This question is highly reflective of the type of questions one is likely to encounter on the state exam.  In addition to unfamiliar words, there is the issue of some basic math application that must also be understood.  And, in addition to the math problem, there is the dilemma of not only getting the math correct but once you apply the math and come up with a number you then have to determine who gets credited and who gets debited.  
I encourage questions and interaction in the classroom so I can get a clearer picture of the state of mind the class is in.  If students are depending on memorization of definitions as their end goal in preparing, they have stopped far short of what is necessary to properly process most questions on the state exam.  The Oklahoma Real Estate Academy provides our students with almost 1,000 questions that will help them develop the kind of mental muscle necessary to problem solve and understand the material. 


Tip 3  KISS – Keep it Simple, Stupid!


When the plain sense makes perfect sense, make no other sense.  It may seem ironic that Tip 2 and Tip 3 sound almost like opposing views, but let me explain.  You must be a critical and analytical thinker, but some people outthink themselves.  An over-thinker suffers from the paralysis of analysis.  All questions, on the quizzes that our school proposes and the questions on the state exam, must be read slowly, repeatedly, and carefully.  I could spell out for you a very lengthy resume’ that qualifies me as a most recognized educator and accomplished writer of content, but I will not bore you with my services to the real estate industry or my certifications and honors.  I say this to qualify my next statement: I have taken the real estate exam many times and I still read questions when testing that baffle even me.  There have been a few questions that have caused me to scratch my head and sit in consternation over the objective of such a question.  There have been some questions that upon reading I conclude that I don’t even know what information the examiner is seeking.  However, often when I re-read the question seeking to discover the objective, I recognize what the examiner is wanting.  Rather than pondering the endless possibilities of the question, I seek the driving objective of the examiner and proceed with a common-sense approach to my answer.   


Tip 4  Major on the Major and Minor on the Minor


Different topic areas covered in the real estate licensing course have various appeals to students and some material is just easier to understand than others depending on a student’s natural inclination, experience, and comprehensive abilities.  Some subject areas constitute very little weight on the state exam and some subject areas are highly testable.  PSI (the testing entity for the Oklahoma real estate licensing exam) has an excellent breakdown of subject areas and the percentage of questions that each subject area carries on their website.  I have observed, through my many years of teaching the licensing course that many students are just not math-oriented.  I have likened teaching a real estate math class to twenty adults to the equivalent of a public school teacher teaching a class with students ranging from the 1st grade all the way to the 12th grade.  There is a broad spectrum of students when it comes to math, so, I have tried to tailor math classes to help the weaker students achieve some degree of success and present some challenging questions so that the math geniuses won’t get bored.  The good news is that there are only 8 math questions on the state exam.  I am not suggesting that anyone wave the “white flag” on math, however, if a student is extremely inept at math, they may want to scrutinize the amount of time and mental energy they want to give to that area.  For instance, there are approximately 14 questions on the state exam on contracts/contract law.  If contracts and contract law are areas that a student seems to have a handle on, that student may want to spend more time mastering the contract material.  If a student scores 13/14 on the contract law section and only 4/8 on the math area, that is still a combination of 17 out of 22 which is a total percentage score of 77%


Tip 5  Learn the Lesson of Elimination


I have been to many national conferences whereby the top dogs at PSI have been in attendance.  I have sat down to meals with them, cornered them in hallways, listened to their presentations, and courted them heavily.  The testing examiners don’t give you much in specific content questions, but they have shared with me some helpful insight.  I have also served on the education committee for the Oklahoma Real Estate Commission and headed that committee for about 4 years and helped form some of the state-specific questions for the state exam that PSI uses.  PSI officials have repeatedly told me that a good test question needs a reasonable detractor.  A detractor is a good, reasonable answer to a question but not the correct answer.  In other words, out of 4 potential answers, one is the correct answer and one is a detractor that would cause most students to do a double-take.  The other two potential answers are usually easily detected as incorrect potential answers by the studious test taker.  A good strategy when taking the multiple-choice state exam is to read carefully all four potential answers before making a decision and eliminate the most obvious potential answers.  If you can get down to 2 potentially reasonable answers, you have created a 50% chance at getting the question correct rather than a 25% chance of getting it right, doubling your odds.   Remember, because there is usually a detractor, don’t answer the question too quickly. Read all four potential answers before making your decision.  


Tip 6  Know your Saturation Point


I am an early riser and am incredibly sharp from about 4:00 in the morning until noon.  So, I do my critical thinking, writing, devotional time, and studying during my peak times.  Night owls think I’m a weird dude and can’t imagine such non-sense as studying before the sun even comes up.  I am also the most creative and receptive to learning when I do it in short spurts.  So, I usually read and study for about an hour at a time and then reward myself with a snack perhaps or a walk through my vegetable garden.  Relaxing my mind between study periods refreshes and resets my mental clock to take on new material.  I am acutely aware of the time frame whereby nothing seems to stick anymore and I just stop studying.  On any given day that you have set aside time to study, know when enough is enough, and quit.  When you attempt to continue your study once your mind is tired it often brings about a frustration that is not conducive to learning.  On the whole, near examination time, it may be more beneficial the night before the exam to take a quick look at your notes and then get a good night’s rest instead of cramming all night and tiring your body and mind.  


Tip 7  Organize Study Groups


Even if you learn best alone, never underestimate the value of meeting with other students to study.  Others may offer ideas, acronyms, videos, illustrations, applications, or other viewpoints or material that could help you move the needle a little further right and make the difference on the state exam of passing or failing.  Forming a study group can maximize the emotional experience of learning and our emotions have a huge impact on our memory cells.  The dynamic of learning together is powerful, take advantage of it.  Take the lead in your class and simply try to compile a list of names and contact information so that you can schedule a time and place to get together and study.  The Oklahoma Real Estate Academy classroom is made available much of the time to accommodate such study groups and one of our instructors will make time to attend the session if requested.  

Tip 8  Study as if You Must Teach the Material to Someone Else


This may be the teacher coming out in me instead of the student, but there is nothing like preparing material for teaching. If you had to teach the material to someone else it would greatly affect your commitment to understanding it. Plus, their grasp on what you have taught them will potentially help you gauge your actual comprehension.  I will give some instructions or explanation about a certain matter to my oldest grandson and often he will turn around and explain it back to me (occasionally adding a twist to it).  It is his way of processing and applying information.  My poor wife has had to hear me explain things to her of which frequently she probably has no interest in, but she patiently listens and gives me feedback.  I often walk around the house teaching the material out loud to myself to be sure I can communicate it effectively.  If you can communicate it effectively, you will most likely be able to apply your knowledge to answer certain questions on the state exam.     


Tip 9  What’s the Worst that can Happen?


You fail the state exam the first time, so what.  I have taught approximately 250 real estate licensing courses in my career and probably over 3,000 students.  On an extremely frequent basis, I hear these words from a student: “I am a horrible test taker”.  “Horrible” is the most common word they use to refer to themselves in relation to testing.  When I hear these words my empathetic side kicks in immediately.  I wonder in my heart was it due to a parent who was overly strict in regards to grades, or I ponder the self-esteem issues that might have developed by past failures.  Other times I guess that they may have a learning disability such as dyslexia.  Regardless of the cause, test-taking is an extremely uncomfortable experience for many.  However, I have made a clear observance that many people learn by failing.  They must first determine what they don’t know in order to truly prioritize their efforts.  Some, simply cannot process their weak areas until they see it in test results.  Failing a test is only a circumstantial setback and every circumstantial setback can become a giving-up point or an opportunity to assess, process, and progress.
A former student who became a good friend to me told me from the beginning that he would probably fail the state exam a few times before he finally passed it.  I thought that was a debilitating attitude to take, but I later realized it was truly a matter of self-awareness.  He took the state exam 8 times (a record to this day as far as I know) before he finally passed it.  I admired his fortitude and determination.  Most of our students pass the state exam on the first attempt, but to those who do not, don’t give in to your discouragement.  
The Oklahoma Real Estate Academy is a gentle place to land if you are seeking a real estate license.  We are empathetic to every kind of struggler who is dreaming of making a different life for themselves and we love being part of the dream.  We have become a rescue school for many who have taken the course through other institutions whose only contact with the student was at enrollment.  We will be there for you through the entirety of your process, we are just a bunch of hand-holders who enjoy the walk with our students.  


Tip 10  Have Fun


Your attitude will determine your altitude, as someone once said.  Determine from the onset of your real estate journey that the expected outcome will be adventurous.  It’s a process, it’s hard work, but you can make of it what you choose.  Set your mind towards making it fun and enjoy the ride from day one until that first closing.  Fun people attract more business as well. Explore techniques that are fun by such things as creating rhymes, puzzles, speed drills, acronyms, funny stories, rewards, etc…  The task of learning difficult material can seem daunting at times, making if fun will provide the mental will to get it done.  Never lose sight of the reason you started the process by imagining the end result of getting it done.  
I don’t want to brag, but I have earned the right to speak on the matter of passing the real estate licensing exam through much hard work over many years.  I offer these tips with extreme authenticity based on a long career of pursuing excellence.  I have not only taught many students but I have also been the instructor of instructors which is altogether a different level of learning.  My advice comes from many years of trial and error.  I have worked diligently at feeding the passion of learners while staying focused on the task at hand.  I have found that the more fun I can make the process, the greater the results.  My son, one of our very capable instructors at the academy, requested that I pen my approach to the learning process and I have procrastinated weeks now before actually compiling this information.  Now, once I applied myself to the task, I have thoroughly enjoyed the writing and have written feverishly as thoughts have flooded my mind.  I had fun putting these thoughts to words as I have contemplated how useful these words can be to you.