Brianna Smrke achieved the perfect score of 45 for her International Baccalaureate Diploma, a feat achieved by less than one percent of IB students internationally. Here, Brianna tells students who they can maximize the return on their educational effort by cultivating three habits of mind: focus, resourcefulness and 'stacking' - approaching a task with an eye to what else it might be used for in addition to the stated purpose. These strategies directly respond to the challenges of 21st Century education, but are also crucial to future career success. A mixture of anecdotes, references to pedagogical and cognitive research, and practical strategies are perfectly woven together to convey these ideas