Will I be able to crack the examination this time? What if I fail again? Am I not worth it enough? Well, these are some perennial questions an aspirant asks himself. And obviously, what would the “world” think of me, a failure? Is it a question an aspirant tackles every minute? But all these ruminations boil down to one question, is it worth spending your precious time on such frivolous thoughts? And if you are one of those whose actions speak louder than his words, your answer should be a big “NO”. Success is something we all crave for. Being at top of your game gives a peculiar kind of adrenaline rush, and who doesn’t like that? But, what about those who haven’t tasted success yet? What about those who haven’t experienced the feeling of being a the top? Should they quit? Definitely not. Failure doesn’t mean life has no new opportunities left for you. You just need to change your vision of looking at things; failure could be a blessing in disguise. At times self-motivation can work as a boon, you need to keep reminding yourself that you have the potential to conquer anything you desire of.
Dream it. Believe it. Achieve it. (DAB)
India’s former president and aerospace scientist APJ Abdul Kalam once said “you have to dream before your dreams can come true”, which holds so true. But we need to understand what did he mean by “dream”, dreams are not which you see at night or some people have a habit of daydreaming. Where do you see yourself? What are your goals; your aspirations? What you do to be in a better position for yourself and your family is called “Dreams”. Visualize it, whatever it may be that you expect from life, have faith that it’s going to come true one day, and then WORK towards achieving that dream of yours. There are going to be hurdles in your way but that’s just a lemon life has thrown towards you, make lemonade out of it. The best part about hitting rock bottom is that
there is no going down any further. Whatever worst was supposed to happen already happened, now there is only one path you are left with and that leads up. Do whatever it takes to get out of that situation and work towards being in a better position.
Prioritize time and people
You must have heard the proverb “Time and tide wait for none”, but to what extent you follow it? You have to understand every ticking of the clock holds value in your life, once it’s gone you will never get it back. Just look around yourself, pick five successful people in this world and you will notice one thing which is common among all of them is how efficiently they use their time. Every person on this planet gets the same 24hrs, some dig gold out of it whereas some just don’t realize where they wasted all of the time they got and then postpone their work for the upcoming day; it is a vicious cycle. The same goes for people around you, in this era of social media we get connected to random people every day and end up chatting with them anything under the sun. There are also some free souls present among us who just love to roam around the city with their pals; these are called guilty pleasures, full of regrets. A life comprising of zero regrets is definitely a life worth living. Just prioritize your time and the people around you and the best way to do this is by having a priority piggy bank where you save your time and spend it wisely. Focus on your final outcome and calculate the time it requires, now all you need to do is spend that much time only which is required, not even a second extra. Now when it comes to people, pick only those who value your and their time. You don’t need to have thousands of contacts and befriend all of them. Even if you have one or two reliable friends who are worth spending time with, it’s completely normal. You don’t need to be a social animal every day of your life because, in the end, quality matters not quantity.
Never give up
Success is a dish that requires a different variety of ingredient consistency and determination being one of them. The attitude of never giving up can make or break the deal. Many people start their journey with enthusiasm, but before they could even reach halfway, they already give up. The most common reason behind this is people lose interest or get demotivated. Just keep your goal in mind, visualize it, and work towards achieving it. The world is full of negativity, you will encounter people around you who will try to demotivate and bring negativity but you need to be thick skin, as we know every coin has two sides so does this. Focus on positivity around you, the amount could be
less but it will always be there. You just need to unleash your potential and prove to the world what you got but most importantly prove yourself. One thing that is as certain as day and night are nothing in this world is permanent for a long period of time, whatever your situation might be it is going to change one day just don’t give up, it’s always the darkest before dawn.
Let bygones be bygones
Sometimes people are just stuck in their past to the extent they completely forget their present. At times letting go becomes quite arduous for a few, it silently becomes toxic for you. What one needs to understand is the sooner they realize the reality the easier it gets for them. Acknowledge what is holding you back and figure out the solution to get out of it. Life teaches you lessons at every stage, and what better than learning from your past? If you do not take obligatory actions in the given time, your negative thoughts will remain rooted in your brain. Conditioning of mind becomes extremely prominent in adverse situations, to do so feed your mind with inspiring stories, positive thoughts, cheerful surroundings,s and all that which makes you happy. If you just hold on to something
you will never be able to step into a bright future of yours. Failing in examination doesn’t mean it is the end of your life instead life has given you this new opportunity to prove yourself. Improvement is a journey, not a destination, you need to be open to new knowledge and adapt to adverse situations. Don’t let go of the opportunities life gifts you by reminiscing your past, grab it, and make the best out of it.
Make a practical time table
Planning has paramount importance before execution. Be it life or examination, knowing the roadmap always comes in handy. Generally, what most aspirants lack behind is the “practical” time table. People do make time tables but those are not feasible in the real world, for example, if you make a time table which strictly says to study 20 hours a day all throughout the week, it is very difficult to stretch such long hours, ultimately you are harming your mind and body. Knowing your potential plays a dominant role when it comes to preparation. The best way to set a practical timetable is by giving extra hours to those topics in which you don’t have good command then divide your time for the topics in which you just need to brush up. Just revising the topics won’t help alone, you need to give weekly mock tests too. Tests play a vital role in any preparation, by giving tests on
a regular basis you will get to know where you lack behind and then focus on that weak part. Mock tests are absolutely necessary for giving your best on D-day.
Buddy up
Studying with like-minded people can boost your preparation for the next level. Reaching out for help can get difficult at times especially if you are completely reliant on self-preparation, in such times having a group can come handy. There might be a topic in which you lack behind but there are high chances your friend has mastered the same topic, you can seek his help. Friends are known as the best critics one can have, one of the perks of group study is that your friend can identify the area in which you lack behind or could be going wrong and he can guide you for the same. At times you will lack confidence but if you have the backup of the right people, they will boost you with energy and belief and bring you back on track. Discuss problems, share queries, strategies, and help each other perform better. If your group has a person who attends coaching for his preparation you can ask him to get your doubts cleared by experts. You can also take mock tests together and solve practice problems for a better understanding of the concept.
Right study material
Over the past few years, there has been an exponential rise in the competition when it comes to CAT. Everyone has something or the other to offer which creates a state of skepticism among aspirants. Since you have a plethora of options available from books, online classes, online courses, videos to eminent coaching centers in your locality, it becomes really important to choose the best option out there which suits you and your circumstances. The one thing people neglect most is their basics;
NCERT is the most underrated but it’s the savior if you want to excel at CAT. Clearing basics is extremely important during the initial phase of your preparation, it paves the path for difficulty coming on your way. Once you have completed your basics you need to give time to the technical and non-technical parts of the syllabus.
Technical Books:
1. IMS/TIMES/CL books. You can buy them from their institutes or you could get them
online.
2. The Pearson guide of VARC for CAT by Nishit Sinha.
3. For QA - Quantitative aptitude Quantum CAT by Sarvesh Verma. Another recommendation would be How to prepare for QA by Arun Sharma is good if you are done with your basics.
4. How to prepare for LRDI by Arun Sharma.
5. IMS 1000 RCs by IMS institute; this book is great to practice CAT level RCs.
6. Word power made easy by Norman Lewis.
Having prior knowledge about QA comes in handy in case you are an average candidate; you can try out the Quantitative aptitude, VARC, LRDI course from https://www.percentilers.in/
Non-Technical Books:
1. The Trachtenberg speed system of basic mathematics by Jakow Trachtenberg – If you
have a phobia of maths, this book will come in handy for you. This book will help you to do calculations with ease which will give you an edge in the QA section.
2. How to develop a brilliant memory by Dominic O’Brien – Memorizing formulae can get
really tricky for some, this book deals with that. After going through this book everything
will stay in your mind forever.
3. Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra – If you fear RCs coming from abstract topics like philosophy, psychology, mythology science, history, etc. This book covers all these topics and it is written in a manner that drives the interest of the reader towards itself.
4. Puzzles to puzzle you by Shakuntala Devi
5. The great book of puzzles, teasers by George Summers - Both numbers 4 and 5 books are recommended if you want to develop your deductive and cognitive skills.
Maintain sanity and be healthy
Career and examinations are important but not at the cost of your health. There are certain activities which not only strengthen your physic but also help you mentally. Exercise has immense benefits one of them being it helps with faster blood circulation in your brain. Meditation is quite underrated among youngsters but it is really beneficial especially if you are a student, meditation helps with concentration and retaining power. There have been numerous scientific researches regarding the relationship between physical activity and stress, every time researchers have found people who are physically fit tend to remain stress-free most of the time and have better efficiency than those who slack. Surround yourself with a positive environment and encouraging people, motivation plays an important role in uplifting an individual.
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