6 Tips to Reduce Security Guard Exam Stress

We have years of experience training people who want to earn their security guard licenses. If there’s one thing we’ve learned in that time, it’s that stress can make or break a student’s ability to pass their final exam. We’ve seen plenty of talented students who ace their in-class training. Yet, when it’s time to take their final exam, they fail.

Stress and its big sister, anxiety, do funny things to our brains. How? Well, stress and anxiety tend to increase thought patterns, but in a way that prevents or limits someone from trying to study for or take a test. The reality is text anxiety is a very real and very serious part of many people’s lives.

So, how can you prevent stress from sabotaging your final exam? It’s a good question, and you’ve come to the right place.

We’ve put together a list of our top 6 tips to help you reduce security guard exam stress. After all, you’ve worked hard to get your security guard license. We want to see you succeed.

Catch Those Z’s

When you are tired, it becomes much more difficult to retain and understand information. Yet, many of us attempt to study for an exam for six (or more) hours straight. This tactic will increase your odds of burning out, which will only increase the stress you feel about taking the exam.

A healthier approach is to balance how much sleep you’re getting with how much studying needs to get done—at least leading up to the exam. The most important thing to do to reduce stress before you write the exam is to get a good night’s sleep. Don’t “pull an all-nighter”. Less to no sleep will only make you sluggish, which will prevent you from recalling information quickly and correctly.

Work it Out

Exercise is the number one recommendation for people suffering from exam-related stress or anxiety. Let’s not forget exercise helps to release muscle tension from hitting the books. In turn, this helps you to feel more relaxed and get better sleep.

Now, we aren’t just talking about hitting the weights at your local gym (although it’s a great idea). You can get a good workout in many different ways, including,

• Joining a yoga class
• Dancing with friends
• Going for a hike
• Swimming at a local pool
• Going for a run
• Playing a sport

Not feeling up to a big workout? Don’t worry. It has been scientifically proven that just 5 minutes of exercise can help you to reduce stress. Try getting up to stretch or walk around your room during study breaks to stay fresh and motivated.

Call a Friend

The great thing about taking the security guard course is that it gives you the opportunity to meet like-minded people. These people also need to pass the exam in order to get their security guard license.

Establishing a study group is a great way to prepare for the exam. You can discuss your concerns with your colleagues and even practice answering questions. This will help to decrease your stress because you know you have their support.

It is, however, important to remember not to sacrifice or replace your study time with social time.

If you still feel particularly stressed about taking the security guard exam, try talking about your concerns with a member of your family, your neighbour, or even your security guard instructor—it doesn’t really matter who. Expressing your concerns to another person will help you to see that there isn’t anything to worry about. They will encourage you and help you see that you’ve got everything under control.

Practice Makes Perfect

One of the best ways to reduce stress is to prepare for the exam using practice questions and other related material. There are many ways to go about this, some of which include,

• Get a friend or family member to ask you questions about the material you’ve learned.
• Make flashcards with questions and quiz yourself on your own.
• Ask your instructor for some sample questions you can answer while you study.

In many cases, your instructor will provide material that will help you prepare. This material will help to significantly reduce any stress or anxiety you might have regarding the exam.

For example, security guard training programs in Ontario provide eligible students with an online test preparation guide. While it does not contain any questions, it provides a complete summary of all the information you need to know to pass your exam, in addition to helpful links and other resources.

With information like this at your fingertips, there’s no need to feel stressed about earning your license.

Don’t, Cram. Learn.

That being said, even if you have all of the information you need to ace your security guard exam, it won’t do you any good if you try and review (and remember) everything two hours before.

Cramming for an exam is one of the biggest contributors to why people feel stressed about taking the test. Trying to literally “cram” all of the information you need to pass the exam into your brain in a short period of time will not help you to pass.

Giving yourself enough time to prepare and actually learn the material will significantly reduce your stress. The best way to achieve this is to create a study schedule leading up to the exam. Knowing what to review and when to review it will give you the right amount of time to feel confident about the material. Stick to the schedule, and your stress will melt away.

Do Whatever Works for You

You might look at our top 6 tips and think to yourself, “Oh no. None of these will ever work for me.” or, “I’ve tried these tips and I still feel stressed out.”

Well, we’re here to tell you: that’s perfectly okay.

Everyone learns and retains information in different ways. What might work for you might not work for someone else. The point is to find whatever it is that helps you to reduce stress. The less stressed you are, the better you will perform on your exam.

So, now that you are armed with the tips you need to ace your security guard license exam, we wish you luck.

See you out in the field.

Interested in becoming a security guard? Check out our award-winning training program today! We offer courses in Toronto, the GTA, and more. For more information, contact us at: info@trainingcentrecanada.ca or give us a call at: (647) 479-8474.