I am very new and try to test like I am supposed to but it occurred to me that the solution to almost every problem seems to be to do a water change so if I only have so much time, it is better spent doing a water change than testing.
Hello. This is a hard question to answer as each tank has its own personality we'll say. I think that a new hobbyist will have a tough time chasing numbers after testing. Sometimes making adjustments to correct those changes cause more issue then solving them. I would say that doing water changes is never a bad idea. As long as you use a good quality RO/DI and salt.
This challenge is something that you will need to resolve yourself trying different methods that will work for you.