Why Being a “Good Student” Makes You a Bad TOEIC Test-Taker
(Inspired by Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad)
The Student Trap: Why Your “Good Habits” Are Hurting You
“Study hard. Get good grades. Don’t make mistakes.”
That’s what school taught you. And you listened.
You became a “good student” — quiet, diligent, always seeking approval.
But here’s the hard truth:
Those “good student habits” are exactly why you’re stuck in TOEIC score hell.
Robert Kiyosaki, in Rich Dad Poor Dad, explains how the school system rewards obedience, not creativity.
The very habits that made you a model student are the ones sabotaging you on test day.
TOEIC Isn’t School — It’s a Real-World Decision Test
The TOEIC doesn’t care how much English grammar you memorised.
It tests how fast and accurately you can solve problems under pressure.
If you’re still:
Afraid to make mistakes
Overthinking every answer
Waiting for “confirmation” before acting
…you’re playing the wrong game.
Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad taught him that success isn’t about having the “right” answer — it’s about making decisions and learning from the outcome.
That’s exactly the mindset MTC trains into every test-taker.
“Good Students” Freeze. “Good Test-Takers” Adapt.
At MTC, we see it every day.
Good students:
Panic when they’re unsure.
Waste precious seconds re-reading questions.
Spiral when they hit a difficult section.
Good test-takers, on the other hand:
Make fast, calculated guesses when needed.
Recover quickly from mistakes.
Trust their process, not their feelings.
This is the core of Kiyosaki’s philosophy:
Don’t train to be right. Train to be resilient.
How to Break Free from the Student Mentality
Stop chasing perfection.
Perfectionism is school training. TOEIC rewards speed and efficiency.Reframe mistakes as data points.
(See MTC’s Challenge Mindset article for practical drills.)Practice decision drills, not grammar drills.
Your score improves when you can make better decisions faster—not when you study more English.
Summary — Unlearn “Student Thinking” to Pass TOEIC
Good students hesitate. Good test-takers adapt.
TOEIC tests decision-making, not memorisation.
Kiyosaki’s “Rich Dad” philosophy applies: Action beats theory.
At MTC, we don’t reward you for knowing more.
We coach you to perform under pressure — even when you don’t know.
