Whether to Repeat a Year After Terrible Exam Scores Comes Down to Two Simple Indicators.

The first indicator: if your future career is being arranged by your parents, and they’ve decided you should retake the exam, then go for it. Think of it like a bidding process — it’s not that “if you meet the target, something will happen.” Rather, the logic is: given that *you* are the one executing, once *you* hit the target, *then* you’ll get the reward.

The second indicator: if your family needs you to compete in the job market, and retaking the exam could land you in a 211-tier university or above — ideally with a hot, employment-friendly major — then it’s also worth it. As the supply of college graduates keeps growing, even the pool of elite university grads is expanding. In fact, even ground-level sales roles now sometimes require a 211 degree.

Keep expectations low, and always respect the market. Go out and observe supply and demand with your own eyes. If, after retaking the exam, you’re still not confident enough to rank in the top 10% of schools or majors, yet you insist on doing it anyway, then prepare for a long haul. You’ll need financial backing — your family must be able to support you through grad school, PhD programs, and ongoing investments, seeing whether you can eventually turn things around.

Society actually rewards rapid learning ability and the capacity to quickly switch tracks.

Retaking the exam is precisely the opposite of that. It means: for the same thing, you spend more time than others, yet you still manage to reach the same outcome.

But real life doesn’t work that way. In reality, when an opportunity appears, the first batch of players who perform well get rewarded. They move fast in and fast out, capturing all the upside, while later arrivals end up holding the bag. Then you see that same group of players launch a new concept and repeat the fast-in, fast-out cycle — and the next followers end up picking up the slack again.

What do professional investors actually do? They profit from timing gaps.

In spring, plant vegetables; in summer, grow tomatoes; in autumn, cultivate cabbage; in winter, plant mums. Their capital keeps rotating, and so do they. They always know when to enter, when to exit, and when you buy, you already need to know who you’re selling to, when to sell, and what to buy next.

The same goes for money and for people. The shrewdest players always know which track to enter and when, which to exit and when. They maximize both capital efficiency and personal productivity. The better the player, the more finely tuned the micro-management.

This world rewards the top player in every track — the classic “winner takes all.” The first place grabs the vast majority of profits; second and third pick up the crumbs; everyone else is largely indistinguishable.

The reason “involution” is called “内卷” (inward-rolling) rather than “外卷” is that it’s always yourself turning in on yourself — never giving others the chance to卷 (compete against) you.