The trick to cracking your UPSC Civil Services exam lies in preparing a winning strategy. And creating a sound strategy is an art in itself. While in most cases, students try to follow the toppers blindly or go with a preparation hack they discovered online, this may not be the right approach.
Break down your syllabus into part
Start with a thorough analysis of your UPSC Civil Services exam syllabus. As they say, ‘know your enemy’ in advance, chart out the topics you struggle with.
Make a timetable that suits you
Always remember, do not make hectic and unrealistic study plans for UPSC. It will overwhelm you in just a few weeks and drain all your enthusiasm for preparation.
Assess yourself at each step
Once you start preparing for UPSC, monitor your progress at each step. During an assessment, the key points to note are the questions you got wrong in a test, the topics you failed to answer, and the tricky questions you got wrong because you didn’t remember the details.
Don’t divide your study into Prelims and Main
If you consider Prelims and Mains as two distinct UPSC exams, stop doing it right now. This is because they are two parts of the exam with the same syllabus.
Seek guidance and support
UPSC preparation drains aspirants emotionally and physically. It can even lead to social isolation, but you need your safety net to fall back to for mental well-being. So, make sure you stay in touch with your friends and family.