ABPS exam mistakes I wish someone had warned me about

I failed my first attempt. Not by much, but enough to have to reschedule. Here's what went wrong and how I fixed it for attempt #2 (which I passed).

Mistake 1: Skimming the question
The ABPS exam is full of questions with words like "EXCEPT," "FIRST," "BEST," or "MOST important." I was answering the question I thought I saw, not the one on the screen. Slowing down and reading every word carefully picked up at least 8-10 points on my retake.

Mistake 2: Studying the wrong things deeply
I spent most of my time on ABPS - American Board of Physician Specialties Certification content because it seemed most relevant, but the exam was more balanced than I expected. The ADM - Board Certified Addiction Medicine Specialist sections caught me off guard. Use the official content outline to weight your study time proportionally.

Mistake 3: Not timing myself during practice
I ran out of time on about 12 questions on my first attempt. During my retake prep I did every practice test strictly timed and learned to flag and move on rather than getting stuck.

Mistake 4: Overthinking the answers
For medical specialties exams specifically, when two answers seem equally right, the correct one is usually the one that's safest, most conservative, or most protective of the client/patient/public. That heuristic alone is worth remembering.

Anyone else have first-attempt war stories? I want this thread to be a resource for people going into their first try.