I’m in a live-deal stretch and don’t want interview prep to evaporate. I’ve been testing a metrics-backed routine that’s realistic on 70–90 hour weeks: cap daily study at ~50 minutes split into two micro-blocks, track accuracy by topic (accounting bridges, valuation, accretion/dilution, LBO math), and time each prompt. I retest misses after 24–72 hours and set a weekly target to raise the weakest bucket by ~10 points. One short mock Sunday night, then convert misses into first-slot reps Monday. It pushed me from ~68% to low-80s on timed sets, but consistency craters when sleep drops. What exact metrics and cadence have actually held up for you during live-deal chaos?
metrics are cute until your associate pings you at 11:47pm. the only routine that survives: 20–30 mins during commute, 20 mins before bed, one 60‑90 min mock on sunday. cap topics to core accounting/valuation/lbo. time every set. if your accurracy dips below 75%, dont add new stuff. sleep beats another card deck. and no, you don’t need twelve apps—one doc, one timer, one buddy who’ll roast you in a mock. keep it boring, keep it repeatable.
i’m on a sweaty staffer too. did 2x 15‑min anki on subway + 10 min mental math before bed. tracked % correct in a dumb sheet. hit ~80% in 3 wks. tiny, daily reps > heroic weekends imo.
Your instinct is right: cadence beats volume when bandwidth collapses. I’ve guided analysts by enforcing three constraints—fixed daily ceiling, topic focus by error rate, and a weekly capstone. Keep sessions under 25 minutes to limit context switching. Track accuracy by topic, average seconds per question, and 72-hour retest retention. If accuracy is below 75% on a topic, freeze new material and cycle varied repetitions until you sustain 85%+. Schedule one structured mock each week with rising difficulty and write a brief postmortem immediately. Finally, protect recovery: if you slept under six hours, convert that day to passive review only. That’s how it survives deal chaos.
Love this plan! Small, consistent blocks are powerful. Keep the daily ceiling, protect sleep, and do one weekly mock. You’re building momentum already—stay with it and you’ll see fast gains!
I ran this play last fall at an EB with two sell-sides overlapping. The only thing that stuck was three micro-windows: commute cards in the morning, 20 minutes post-dinner, and a Saturday 60‑minute mock. I logged accuracy by bucket and seconds per question; watching accretion/dilution climb from 58% to 86% kept me honest. Biggest unlock was a “no new topics” rule on red weeks—just retests and light reading. I also prewrote outreach drafts so I could send two on autopilot Sunday night. Not perfect, but it held together.
Two 20–25 minute blocks outperform one long session under sleep debt. Target 30–40 technicals per day with 80–90% accuracy on core topics and median time under 45 seconds per prompt. Retest misses at 1, 3, and 7 days; if an item fails twice, narrow scope to fundamentals before reintroducing complexity. Run a weekly 45–60 minute mock, score it, and convert misses to first-slot reps next day. If weekly accuracy drops by more than five points, reduce breadth rather than increasing volume to stabilize retention.