How to improve productivity in preparation of civil services examination.
Today’s world has become a more distracting place. Ever-increasing interruptions
impact UPSC aspirant's productivity and if remain unchecked could end up in the
catastrophic result. In this article, we will be sharing few feasible ways in which a
student can improve both his efficiency and productivity-two most important
attributes in civil services examination preparation.
1. Develop a plan/routine: Aspirants feel that they are running against the time
as they are under a constant popular belief that everything under the sun
should be known and that too in a limited amount of time. A student should
always remember that UPSC has a well-defined syllabus and it is incumbent
upon him/her to follow it religiously and sincerely. UPSC is less a platform to
evaluate your knowledge and more to show how effective one has outlined
his strategy that should preferably be weekly and executed the same for the
exam. It becomes imperative for a candidate to design an executable strategy.
An organized way of study consumes less time and increases productivity as
aspirant defines a well-demarcated boundary under which he navigates. One
must heed to the saying that, “Failing to plan is planning to fail.”
2. Revision and Mock papers: We all have heard the cliché that “practice makes
a man perfect” and certainly clichés have their own value. A timely revision is
a sine qua non for this exam especially because one has to study so many
different subjects. Revision increases our productivity as it helps us in
remembering topics, facts, concepts that we have studied and equally make
us more efficient as we become well acquainted with the subject and syllabus.
It also increases our confidence and reduces our anxiety as aspirants find their
preparation far more predictable and manageable.
A serious candidate should also join mock test papers of prestigious coaching
Institutes such as GS SCORE. Mock papers are designed in the Institute in such
a way that it covers almost every syllabus of the topic and hence solving at
least two mock papers every week will help students in getting a systematic
revision of the syllabus in a very coherent manner.
Both solving mock papers and regular revision mechanize our entire
preparation for the exam and an aspirant will find himself into a structured
rhythm. This continuous momentum would eventually increase the
productivity and efficiencies of an aspirant.
3. Relaxing and de-stressing: A student should understand that Human beings
aren’t designed to expend energy continuously. We are meant to pulse
between spending and recovering energy. The overwhelming syllabus of UPSC
mold students in such a way that he ends up living an unsustainable life which
eventually reduces his productivity during study hours. We must understand
that both time and energy are finite but energy is renewable. A student must
incorporate a healthy lifestyle like eating nutritious food, regular exercise,
Yoga, sufficient sleep and meditation to reinvigorate his body and mind which
will logically boost his productivity. Also, spending time on hobbies such as
jogging, singing, poetry, playing video-games, etc not only makes us happier
and more relaxed but also improves our productivity, focus, and creativity and
eventually it will allow a candidate to excel in the exams.
4. Minimize distractions: The technology of the internet has made us capable of
entertaining our desires and fancies so affordable and accessible but it should
for no reason affect one’s productivity especially that of a UPSC aspirant.
Incorporation of social media platforms such as Telegram, YOUTUBE has
become imperative and unavoidable for the aspirants but it must not come at
the cost of valuable and irretrievable time. The student needs a mentor who
can guide him to find lectures or shows on YOUTUBE and to participate in
which virtual community of like-minded people to share and discuss their
doubts that are important, meaningful and relevant to him. Candidate must
cultivate the ability to use the empowering tool of the internet to increase his
productivity by accessing only those resources which would add value in one’s
preparation.
MS Dhoni once said that the “process is more important than outcomes”.We all
know that UPSC is a very long drawn, rigorous and multi-level examination, so in
such case making small but significant targets which are in sync with our larger
aim of qualifying the exam are extremely helpful in increasing productivity.
Candidate should not live in the delusion that there is a commodity in the market
that will overnight increase their productivity. It will take some time. During exam
preparation, we must learn to value and cherish our long but meaningful journey
because as nature has taught us “evolution is the real revolution”. We at GS score
hope that a candidate by steadfastly following the above-suggested measures,
along with the personal guidance under our reputed faculties and being honest
with himself the aspirant would experience a positive gradation in his
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