Locked Down, Unraveled Inside
This was me during the peak of the 2020 COVID lockdowns.
Half undercover.
All in survival mode.
The world had slowed to a crawl. But inside my head? Total chaos.
I had just launched a new business. I was trying—desperately—to keep momentum going while everything around me felt fragile, uncertain, surreal.
Looking back, that season left its mark. The lessons were raw. Some painful. All unforgettable.
And strangely enough, they’ve shaped how I approach the CFA.
Here are the five truths that still guide me today.
1. Discipline Beats Environment
Offices closed. Gyms shut down. Calendars disintegrated.
Every external structure I leaned on vanished.
What I learned was simple—but hard: if you don’t build structure inside yourself, you fall apart when structure disappears outside.
What you do when no one’s watching?
That’s who you really are.
And that’s what carries you through CFA exam prep when motivation dies.
2. Stillness Isn’t Laziness
For the first time in years, I stopped moving.
No flights. No meetings. No jammed schedules. Just silence.
In that quiet, I realized something brutal: most of my “busyness” was just noise—self-inflicted distraction. A defense mechanism against clarity.
When you slow down, you see more clearly.
And when you’re studying for CFA exams, clarity is everything.
3. Connection Takes Intention
Before COVID, connection was passive. It happened in passing: hallway chats, coffee lines, casual lunches.
But when the world shut down, so did those small moments.
If I wanted to stay connected, I had to reach out. Schedule calls. Send messages. Create the community I needed.
The same goes for CFA candidates. You won’t “bump into” a great study partner.
You have to build the circle.
And keep showing up.
4. Simplicity Survives
I had plans—big ones. Then they crumbled.
The complex systems I trusted didn’t stand a chance in the pressure cooker of a pandemic.
But the simple ones?
Wake up early. Stretch. Write. Do the work.
They held.
CFA candidates often chase intricate productivity tools or elaborate schedules. But pressure reveals what works.
Simplicity wins.
Every time.
5. You Don’t Control Much—But You Can Build Systems
I couldn’t stop the pandemic. I couldn’t change policy. I couldn’t stabilize the economy.
But I could get up early.
I could track my habits.
I could keep the small promises I made to myself.
That became my new edge.
Not control—consistency.
If you’re prepping for CFA exams, this might be the most important lesson of all. You can’t control the curriculum. Or your boss. Or how you’ll feel in the last two weeks.
But you can build a system. You can show up, again and again, even when it’s hard.
Final Thoughts
So what does any of this have to do with CFA exams?
Everything.
COVID was a crash course in pressure. Resilience. Adaptation.
The same qualities you need to pass.
It taught me to stop waiting for perfect conditions.
They never come.
Start where you are.
Build something steady.
And keep going—especially when it’s hard.
That’s how you pass CFA exams.
That’s how you grow.
And that’s how you come out stronger on the other side.
Don’t forget to breathe.
