It usually takes the morning after, for the Mains results to\nsink in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes, between 3 to 5 days – when you actually are\nable to fully realise the implications of what just happened when UPSC released\nthat damn PDF on their website that did not have your roll number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And then you cry<\/em>. Sometimes in the shower.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ( Not if it is the second<\/em> or third<\/em> time you\nhave NOT cracked Mains.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you are one of those, hear me out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First,<\/em> nearly everyone<\/em> in the Interview List\nor the Final List has been in your position sometime before. Some of them, will\nbe in your position in the next year. You are not unique, cursed or unlucky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Second,<\/em> If you think success will make you happy, you\nare thinking in the reverse order. When you find success, however, everyone else<\/em>\nthinks you are happy. Sometimes, some people are sad because of your success.\nAnd that is quite a Third, You alone<\/em> are fully capable of changing the\noutcomes of where you stand next year. This will however, depend on what you\nactually do<\/em>, not on what you think<\/em> you are doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It took me a while to write this, nearly a fortnight after\nthe results, so forgive me for this, but I have always had a sense of higher\nduty towards those who have not made it than those who have – because I think\nthat even If I am not capable of solving a problem, I can share some insights\nwhich have can help at least some people build their own solutions. Here are\nthey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I first met Sachin in 2016, right before his Interview. I\ngave a talk on “How not to screw up your Interview”. The talk was\norganised for a friend who had scored 140 minus in a Kilemsungla Board ( who\ngave liberal marks and made many people a Collector ). I had a sore throat, and\ncould not really take mocks or sessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A few months later, when I saw Sachin, he didn’t disclose he\nhad made it to the list. He was diligently studying for Prelims in a classroom\nin a red t shirt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then I met him again for the Interview of CSE 2017. When\nI asked him, if he knew what he felt did not work out in the first interview,\nhe was able to correctly diagnose the problem. I was elated, because if you\nknow the problem, that is half the solution. We sat for a couple of sessions,\nwe worked, and two months later he secured a Rank 3 in the CSE examination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I heard his interview in Rajya Sabha TV ( or DD ) , he\nspoke so well, and reasoned out so well, I gave him a call saying – This is\nexactly what was needed for the Interview. By then he didn’t need my inputs. He\nwas already a Rank 3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A key reason why we fail to improve in Mains \/ Prelims or\nthe whole process is because we are either not able to identify the problem\nfrom where we see it, or we refuse to acknowledge there is a problem in the\nfirst place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I mean we could both looking at the same picture and yet see\ndifferent things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So first, you will have to believe in your performance – and\nthe non-performance. Even if the numbers look random to you – you will have to\ntreat them with some sanctity at least as long as you are an aspirant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By this, I mean to say that if you are getting a score of ,\nlet us say 230 in Sociology, and you still cannot figure out where you stand in\nthe crowd – let me tell you have failed.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Most non-humanities candidates – and that number is huge,\nare not able to see a massive difference between a 70 marks and 95 marks in GS\n1, a 85 marks and 110 marks in GS Paper 2, a 87 marks and 115 marks in GS 3 or\na 82 marks vs a 115 marks score in GS Paper 4.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Or the massive gap between a score of 230 vs a 280 in your\noptional subject. Get the facts right. In humanities, even if you do know\nnothing and write nothing, you will not get a zero. And even if you do a\nwonderful job that could have won you a Nobel Prize at a podium in Stockholm\n[0], you will not get a 95%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Humanities subjects are a little, for the lack of a better\nword, – Marxist. The gaps between the top and bottom is much less compared to\nthe Sciences or Maths. In other words, the scores concentrate around a certain\nrange – all of them – the good scores, the bad scores and the ugly scores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You will have to learn to tell yourself – and as early as\npossible – that the difference between a 230 and 280 is not a small one –\nit is a binary score of pass and fail. And even if the gap looks small, you\nwill nearly have to move mountains to get there. You will also have to plan\nyour year ahead according to that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I never played Poker in my College days[1], but I invested\nin some of the people who won.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the one thing I learned ( not sure if the players did\ntoo ) is that you cannot keep investing in a lost cause just because you have\ninvested a lot of time, energy, money or youth in it. Across all walks of life.\nSometime, you have to “stop loss.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I meet candidates who have scored constantly low in an\nOptional – say Geography, I ask them what has been stopping you from changing\nit? They are two common reasons why people will-waste-five-attempts-but-not-change-optional\nsubject .<\/p>\n\n\n\n Firstly, <\/em>because they have already spent so much time\nand money and coaching fee in it that changing an optional would be waste of\nall the time and money spent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Secondly,<\/em> they usually take this decision when the\nmarks come out. By that time it is too late to study a new optional afresh.[4]<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have few things to tell you here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just because you have spent so much time in it without\nbenefits does not mean you should put more time in it. This is what people who\nlose in gambling do. You will have to take a call. Sometimes the decisions we\nmake have to be taken<\/p>\n\n\n\n You will never be in a position where you have 100% of the\ninformation, conviction, circumstances to make a right decision. We only make\ndecisions – whether they are right or wrong – only time will tell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Quick Question :<\/strong> Do you think Shri O P Chaudhary’s\ndecision to quit the IAS and join Politics was right or wrong (a) at the time\nof making the decision (b) in retrospect ? What do you think of Shah Faesal’s\ndecision to quit the IAS ? <\/p>\n\n\n\n I did not want to be wrong here, so I spoke to two people.\nThey have been my students, but I have learnt more from them, than I may have\ntaught them. Anudeep Durishetty, who secured the first Rank this year, said in\nunequivocal terms –<\/p>\n\n\n\n “I was able to get into IAS only because I left Pub Ad\nand took Anthropology and it worked for me. And if you have been scoring less\nthen 250 in two consecutive attempts, and if you feel there is nothing you can\ndo, you can consider changing your optional.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n ( I remember him say the same thing before he delivered his\nfirst public speech , and I did warn him – he would spread panic across people\nwho had already choses the Optional in their CSE Application Form. Also since\nhe is Rank 1, so most people will not fully try to understand what\nhe is saying – but will just do what he did- the easy things – take the\noptional he took, join the coaching he joined , etc. )<\/p>\n\n\n\n Suraj Patel, who has been selected for IRS, IPS, IAS and\nIAS* says that three conditions should be met before one changes optional<\/p>\n\n\n\n First<\/em>,<\/strong> he should be scoring less that 250 for two or more attempts<\/p>\n\n\n\n Second,<\/em><\/strong> he should satisfied that there is nothing at his end that the student can do to improve his preparation<\/p>\n\n\n\n Third<\/em>,<\/strong> he should have been scoring average \/ above average marks in General Studies and essay.(\u00a0 Otherwise, he warns that the candidate may be fighting on all fronts – GS , Essay and now Optionals )<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example in 2017 Mains, a score less than 410 in GS and\n145 in Essay is poor marks and there is scope for improvement there itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Both these candidates have relevant experience with the\nexamination, and have been able to replicate making it to the final list more\nthan once. Not accidental heroes. So you can trust them, even if you do not\ntrust me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #3 Its not all luck.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I spoke to nearly a dozen candidates who have been in the\nlist more than two times in the past twenty days. And nearly everyone agreed\nthat it is predictable and 100% possible to get an Interview call , which is\nnot a matter of luck. And 99% of the time, you can also assure a place in the\nlist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everyone, however, agreed that where you stand in the list\nis a matter of luck to some extent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I also realised that we all think to the point of our\ndeprivations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n People who cannot crack Prelims think Prelims is all\nabout luck. People who crack Prelims think prelims is predictable , manageable\n( but not easy ), and Mains is a matter of luck. People who appear for the\nInterview annually think making it to the list is a matter of luck and\nInterview Call is manageable with some hard work and technique , and people who\nare in the list annually think you can make it to the list if you know the\ntechnique and do some hard work, but Top Ranks are luck.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n So what looks like a matter of luck , totally depends on\nwhere you are standing. In fact, I have met some hard working, meticulous,\nstrategic planners and executers from the Forum Community itself that I am\ninclined to believe that even Top 100 Ranks are not a matter of luck, but yes\nan-under 5 Rank is matter of luck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As I said, if I see someone predictably getting a Rank 1 , I\nwill cease to believe in luck altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To be honest, I am often intimidated by such candidates,\nbecause they will execute 110% of any good advice and consume 120% of any good\nresource. In fact I nearly know they will be in Top 10 in the final list.\nAnd if they are unlucky, they will be in Top 100. It is just that they do not\nknow it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then why do some people still fail to clear the Mains more\nthan once ? What differentiates the two?<\/p>\n\n\n\n For one, a lot of people do not update their content \/ notes\nand knowledge base after the first Mains in which they worked the hardest. This\nis something I have invariably seen over the years. You are nearing thirty or\nhave perhaps crossed it . And you are banking on the notes you first made as a\ntwenty five year old in your first full prepared Mains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Secondly,<\/em> you have the feeling that\nwe-know-everything and there is no further knowledge or wisdom that can be\ngained from any new books \/ coaching notes \/ coaching classes \/ novels ( not\nrelated to UPSC but containing ideas that help you write better answers ). You\nprobably have no idea of the content updation that people \/ students \/ teachers\n\/ websites continuously do for UPSC. I can assure you that everyone who is in\nthe field of UPSC CSE – student or a teacher is constantly reading, innovating\nand growing. This is not another government examination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thirdly<\/em>, the way you think makes a lot of difference.\nWhen you miss the Interview call by 2 marks, 3 marks, 10marks, you cant be\ngiving a typical Banking \/ SSC\/ Railways Recruitment Board \/ LDC entrance exam\nexcuse that you missed the cut off by 2 marks. That is insane. It is striking\nat first to notice that a major difference between the people who are able to\nimprove radically and the people who do not is that the people who do – are\nable to see the gaps between them and the topper correctly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By this I mean, that when I meet a certain ForumIAS member\nKabira – he does not say that he has missed the IAS by 5 marks or 10 marks. He\nsays that he has missed it by 60-70 marks. Not only then he strategises well to\nbridge the gap, but also ends up with a Rank 10 next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #4 Analyse the Toppers Copy correctly. Have the patience\nto write as crisply as they do.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The key to fully understanding why we are unable to improve\nis to compare our copies with that of a candidate selected with good ranks is\nto objectively assess your copy and her copy. If you are able to pin point the\ncommonalities in the writing style of all selected candidates, you have perhaps\nhit the bull’s eye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then the second stage is to develop good writing habits \/\npractices that bring in four things –<\/p>\n\n\n\n This will not be possible without being patient with\nyourself in brining these changes over a period of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We always underestimate what we can achieve in few weeks and\nmonths and overestimate what we can do in a day. You will have to give yourself\nfew weeks before you get better at writing better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #5 Develop Fault Tolerance. You have limits.[2]<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n An aeroplane does not simply crash when one of its engine\nfails. It has a second and a third engine. A Boeing 747 has four engines. You\nwill have to admit to your self that you have some weak areas, and those may be\nyour Achilles Heel. And yet, like Achilles, you could be a great warrior for\nlong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, you do not have to be be exceptional in\neverything. If you do not have Geography Optional, you will always be weaker\nthan a Geography Optional Candidate in both the Prelims and Mains. They key to\nnot study Geography maniacally like a Geography Optional Student, but to be\nbetter at Society, Social Justice, or maybe Culture?<\/p>\n\n\n\n You will have limits, and you will have to develop\ncompetitive strength in other complimentary areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n #6 Make a Plan and Believe its impossible to fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First begin with identifying reasons what is not working out\nfor you. And if your reasons are too complicated , perhaps they are excuses. So\nbe honest with yourself. Second, if you have to follow your dreams, learn\nto say no to all the alternatives. Third , learn to Ignore all that you\ncan. It\u2019s rude, unprofessional. There are people you simply cannot have time\nfor right now. The world won\u2019t fall apart. The payoff is that you will\nget done what is important for you. Fourth, do not ever believe that hard work\nis enough. Hard work has to be in the right direction. Fifthly, the\nbiggest difference between success and failure is total time invested[3].\nSo if you think you are weak in any particular area, read new text, write some\nquestions and answers on it and get going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Make a plan, and believe its impossible<\/em> to fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And success will be yours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Until next time,<\/p>\n\n\n\n ?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Neyawn<\/p>\n\n\n\n ( With vital inputs from Anudeep Durishetty and Suraj\nPatel )<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Disclaimer : Views expressed by the author are personal and\ndo not represent the views of ForumIAS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Footnotes<\/p>\n\n\n\n [0] The Nobel Prize is the highest Civilian Award given out\nin Stockholm. The Nobel Peace<\/em> Prize is given away in Oslo, Norway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [1] Poker is cards game popularly played in several\nEngineering Colleges. It often involves betting. I do not consider the question\nof playing poker a moral ethical one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [2] Only Batman has no limits. Batman is a popular cartoon\ncharacter, who lives a double life of a masked vigilante by night and\nbillionaire called Bruce Wayne by day. Bruce Wayne is at #6 in the Forbes\nRichest 15 Fictional character. Scrooge MacDuck is at No. 1<\/p>\n\n\n\n [3] It takes an average candidate about one year or twelve\nmonths to prepare for the UPSC Mains Examination. Some people study 3 months a\nyear – between the Prelims and Mains and cover the twelve months of preparation\nover a period of four years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [4] I am appalled to notice that the candidates who start\nstudying after a 10-12 days break after the Mains for the next year are usually\nthe ones who have a sibling or parent in the All India or Allied Services!<\/p>\n\n\n\n P.S.if you could do me a favour, please share this\narticle with someone who may benefit from it. Below are the sharing links.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It usually takes the morning after, for the Mains results to sink in. Sometimes, between 3 to 5 days – when you actually are able to fully realise the implications of what just happened when UPSC released that damn PDF on their website that did not have your roll number. And then you cry. Sometimes… Continue reading Why People Fail to clear Mains? And how not to repeat it next year.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40149,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-motivation","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/Screen-Shot-2019-01-09-at-11.21.51-PM.png?fit=1032%2C455&ssl=1","views":{"total":12,"cached_at":"","cached_date":1698411554},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40101","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40101"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40101\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40101"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40101"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}joy happiness<\/del>\nconsolation too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n#1 Be Scientific in your approach. Find out what did not\nwork out.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
#2 When should one change one’s optional?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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