Your Smart Strategy for UPSC Preparation

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UPSC smart preparation strategy


“The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.” – Vidal Sassoon

It has been rightly said that success comes to those who work for it.The UPSC exam is the toughest exam conducted in India, which is a dream for many. Where number of candidates competing increases every year, and a few smart working candidates make it. Want to become a civil servant? Then be ready to push your limits and work hard in a smart way. There are many who work hard for years but still could not make it, and there are others who make it in their first attempt. The difference is of only one word “smart”, you work hard and they work smart and crack it in one go.

Hard work and smart work difference

“There is a powerful driving force inside every human being that, once unleashed, can make any vision, dream, or desire a reality.” –Anthony Robbins

The above quote by Anthony Robin tells you the complete success story. Those who have that driving force to achieve something always find smart ways to do it, they do not seek shortcuts to success.

Hard work is when you put your best efforts, you study for hours and not care about anything else. While Smart work is when you use efficient study methods, do not quit completely on your normal life. This means, you are capable of learning, understanding more in less time. You look for basic concept involved not just try to solve it.

No matter how many late night studies you have done, cramming things to remember, you have all the chances to settle for less. What you need is efficient methods of learning, focusing more on concepts, understanding, revising and practicing .

When you are a UPSC apirants, you have to deal with the vast UPSC syllabus, which requires smart study strategies to cover it. So work smart, not just hard. I will share the smart strategy tips for UPSC preparation, read on to know.

Smart Strategy for UPSC Preparation

“The most successful men work smart, not hard”-  Bangambiki Habyarimana

Successful are those who work smart, not hard. Working hard isn’t enough for success, follow the below listed strategies to prepare yourself for UPSC exam. Along with the strategies, you must know the UPSC age limit, UPSC syllabus, UPSC online exam pattern and ascertain your eligibility. If you are eligible for UPSC exam, these success hacks are for you!

Analyze your skills

The first step after knowing UPSC syllabus and exam pattern is to know your skills or abilities. Read the syllabus, understand it and list out topics you are strong and weak at. This will help you make a smart study plan that will boost your chances of success.

Draw A Study Schedule

Prepare a study timetable on a weekly basis, this is important as you prepare, you work on your weak areas more, but you do not neglect the strong areas. You need to make a study plan with set deadlines for a particular topic and once your short-term weekly goals are achieved, you must update your UPSC study timetable.

Change your Learning Pattern

Do not limit yourself to one source, take help from multiple sources, while keeping NCERT as the core book for preparation. When you learn a topic, also look for videos on the same topic or refer to other books or sources of repute. The smart way of studying involves reading, listening and writing. Include these three smart study mantras in your UPSC exam prep.

Learn and relate it to real world

When you try to learn a thing by cramming, you forget it in some time. But when you learn and relate that concept to the real word, you understand the basics that saves it in your memory for longer period. Build real world examples to learn and understand.

Do not Stick to One Subject a Day Learning 

Gone are the days when learning one subject a day used to be the best strategy. We advice you to study more than one subject a day, to save yourself from boredom, to keep yourself actively engaged in study and lessen the pressure that you develop while studying. A change in subject is a fresh start for brain, which keeps it working at its best.

Keep distractions at bay

When you study, your compete focus should be on study. Keep your distractions – mobile phones, television and social media at bay. Maintain a separate study room, do not study in living room where everyone else find time to relax. Remember that even a few hours of study with complete concentration is much better than hours of study with no concentration. so, have dedicated study hours.

Make your own code to learn concepts

The best way to learn is to develop your own codes, to simplify the information to remember it with ease and for long. Make use of info-graphics or short codes to learn, this will also help you revise things faster.

Schedule Revision

Revision is important when you are preparing for UPSC exam, which has a huge syllabus to cover. Revise after completing every section or topic. The more you revise, the more you remember. Regular revision is critical to your success.

Take Mock Tests

Mock tests are important, as they help you check your progress, your learning and its effectiveness. If you think you can appear for mocks only after completing the complete syllabus, you are wrong. Take mock tests after completing a section, you will know where you are lacking and improve that area at that point of time.

Manage Your Time

Every second is important when you are making yourself ready to complete for the toughest exam of the country. Divide you time for things, take effective study breaks, and spend time with family. But you need to work on planning everything. If you planned a break of 10 mins, you should stick to it. Think only about success and your goal.

Stay Confident

You must maintain a positive attitude and stay confident throughout the UPSC exam preparation. Here, self-confidence and overconfidence are two different thinks, you have to stick to self-confidence. To keep yourself motivated and working for your target, practice meditation, yoga or include exercise in your daily schedule.

Wrapping Up

Your dream IAS can be a reality, if you follow the smart study tips and dedicate yourself to UPSC exam preparation. Your efforts matter, if you are dedicating a year for IAS exam preparation, work for it with whole heart. Keep yourself away from distractions like television, Netflix, mobile games and social media. You will come out in flying colors, if you follow these simple smart study strategy for UPSC preparation.

If you find this useful, let us know in the comments below.

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