Studying for the Series 7 on the go
Preparing for a licensing exam while juggling a full-time job and family life is no small feat. From fitting study time into late nights after the kids were asleep to using innovative audio-based tools to reinforce tough concepts, Daniel shares an honest look at the challenges and mindset that helped him pass the Series 7 on his first attempt.
What motivated you to take this exam?
I wanted to be able to assist a family member who is an RIA. To maintain compliance and maximize the options for how I could help, licensing made sense.
What was the biggest challenge you faced during your prep?
I have three kids and a full-time job, so fitting it into our busy schedule was definitely the biggest challenge. It can be really daunting to be jam-packed all day and then finally get the kids down to bed, only to know that you have two hours of practice exams waiting for you with your brain totally exhausted already.
Did you use any strategies, habits, or tools that helped?
One thing that was really helpful to me was using the audio chat mode in the Perplexity app and also in my Tesla, chatting with Grok. I would do this if there were a concept that I wasn’t quite understanding. It helped me sort out concepts that just weren’t quite sticking. In the car, I would also use Grok to quiz me while I was driving.
Did your background or life circumstances shape how you approached prep?
I already spoke about the challenges around family demands. It has been at least 13 or 14 years since I took a standardized test, and I don’t think I was fully prepared for the amount of stress that I experienced leading up to the exam. Even though I felt well prepared and had put a good amount of time into using Achievable, I definitely had a moment once I hit the submit button when I convinced myself I was going to fail.
What advice would you give to someone just starting?
Don’t let hiccups derail progress. If there are concepts that aren’t quite sticking, make a note of them, but keep making your way through the study plan. You will have time during the practice exam and review section of your schedule to fine-tune certain concepts.
How did you balance studying with other responsibilities?
The audio feature was extremely valuable to me. I would listen while taking my dog for a walk or walking my son to daycare. I tried my best to get a lot of the textbook reading done earlier in the day before work, but never quite had time to fit in full practice until the evening. This made it hard because my brain was already sort of exhausted.
How did you feel going into test day?
I felt confident overall, but that changed once I realized how many questions I had marked to review. I ended up changing more answers than I expected, which really affected my confidence.
What role did Achievable play in your prep?
Aside from the AI conversations that I mentioned above, Achievable was my sole resource for studying and passing the Series 7 on my first go. Being able to listen to the textbook, especially, was great, as were the focused quiz reviews and the full practice exams.
Looking back, what would you do differently, if anything?
The biggest hiccup that I ran into was that I ended up being ready for the exam before the window was actually opened by the sponsoring firm. This caused me to have to wait for a few weeks, which was really frustrating because I started to feel myself losing certain concepts. So I would definitely recommend that anyone taking the Series 7 get the exam window open right as you’re starting to study.
What’s next for you now that you’ve finished the exam?
Onto the Series 66!
