Preparation:
*Anything on a practice test that repeatedly showed up as 50% and lower; I focused on. In my case, those areas seemed to have 3-7 questions quite frequently from PT to PT. It seemed silly to just throw away questions by ignoring weak areas with lots of questions. That might be point +/- 1 and 1/2 for a section score right there.
*In those areas, I took REALLY detailed old school hand written notes. Not transcribing, but in my words, in a way that I could teach it to someone.
*Also for those areas, I usually went to Chad (worth it) to "explain it like I'm five..."
Execution:
*On PTs, as soon as a question started making me feel uneasy, I stopped myself, asked what topic it was coming from. Wrote the question number and the topic down. If it was one that I knew I struggled with I gave it the finger, took an educated guess, and moved on. If it was one that I knew how to do but needed extra time to check my work (stoichiometry...) I circled it and then later came back to check my work. Keep. Moving. Forward.
*At the end of a PT, I checked my weak areas with the topics I jotted down to see: if that's where I got stuck, and if I learned anything.
Most importantly. Keep moving. There are points to be had. Even if it's an easy topic that you SHOULD know but it's giving you a hard time, keep moving.
Yes, MD. I carry some fairly heavy ECs, solid underdog background, and interview fairly well (I think...).