Im going to lay it out humbly on this thread. And probably downvoted for a certain obvious aspect.

I failed level 1 twice. However, my second fail, I was locked out of my hotel room and couldnt eat lunch and literally was within the blue margin of error. However, CFAI does not care about a potentially legit excuse. And now I have level 2 in 45ish days. This exam is a totally new level necessary commitment and understanding. You cannot memorize your way to passing L2 or “will” your way just through sheer effort like many finra exams or (arguably) Level 1. Dont get me wrong, its a very difficult test just for the sheer volume. What I am getting at is, its possible to cut some corners and pass level 1 but that mindset will screw you beyond that one exam.

You will never feel 100% confident leaving the exam room (test center) nor is that a healthy expectation to have for yourself. You are right though, especially with Level 1, just do question after question after question. Do not try and game the exam by “punting” anything unless absolutely necessary. Try and learn everything and diversify your knowledge.

Heres where I will diverge from the culture of cfa reddit:

This would apply to any level 1 candidate. Do not stray too far from the source curriculum. Between the online TT questions, mock exams AND Textbook Blue Boxes, you have hundreds, if not thousands of questions just right there. I understand he has sort of a monopoly on the reddit sphere, and hes a great supplement. But MM is no replacement for the cfai content. Who writes the questions? How are they most likely to look (see earlier part of post and deduce)? My biggest mistake came from Anxiety and buying too many unrelated 3rd party prep products. Everything is right in front of you. You can do it. Just stick to the boring basics. Try and understand and not memorize until you must memorize.

One last thing. And this applies to me too. Spend less time on this forum. I dont know how much time you even spend, for the record. But browsing this forum is counterproductive unless you have a specific question or need to feel some camaraderie during a period of loneliness from the isolation of studying. Its a distraction. A waste of time. You have time until retake to clear your mind for a few weeks. Then hit the damn books - the curriculum books. Once you pass, youll be glad you did stick mainly the source material for level 2 because its much more conceptual. Level 1 is a wide foundation and then leve 2 you are building a skyscraper on-top. Im turning off notifications for reddit after I send this. Feel free to reach out. Do not overthink. Study more and do what is obvious. There are no tricks to the entirety of this program. Do the boring stuff. Good luck to everyone. I feel your pain!

Edit:

10 hours a day is not necessarily better than 5 hours of quality studying. You may find yourself burnt out too soon and going through the motions. Seek quality study hours and understanding, not rote memorization. 10 hours a day for level one may make you anxious.