I lowered the bar. That’s why I’m still going.

Protect the habit first

The mistake was expecting the same sharp focus at 8 PM that a workday can demand at 10 AM. This reflection records a personal adjustment: some evenings support focused study, while others are about keeping the routine from disappearing.

Today’s visual

Accessible transcript

CFA Level I · How I stay in it

I lowered the bar. That’s why I’m still going.

Not every study night is a good one. The trick is making sure there is a study night at all.

Thirty circles distinguish “a real, focused night” from “just showed up—still counts.”

30 nights. Not every one was good. Not one was skipped.

The reflection shared on LinkedIn

I stopped trying to study well after work. I started trying to just study at all.

The mistake was expecting the same sharp focus at 8 PM that I bring to the internship at 10 AM. That brain’s already spent.

So the bar changed. Some nights it’s real, focused work. Some nights it’s just showing up and keeping the streak alive. Both count.

Lowering the standard on the tired days is the only reason I haven’t quit the tired days entirely.

If you’ve juggled work and a big exam—did you push for quality every night, or just protect the habit? Curious what actually held up.

Evidence boundary

This is Dev Pandya’s personal study reflection and self-reported habit record. It does not establish study quality, hours, learning gains, exam registration, exam performance, CFA candidacy, a CFA charter, CFA Institute endorsement, medical guidance, or productivity research.