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CSE 2021: Plan / Strategy / Daily Routine

Hello 2021 aspirants. I thought it would be nice if we can share what we are doing and intend to do with one another here.

This could be a thread for discussing everything prep for 2021. 

No one method fits all but to see the plans and progress made by fellow aspirants might help with the finer details of preparation and also keep one on track. 

Moderator Update: This thread has crossed 1 million views and has thousands of comments slowing down the website. We are closing this and moving to the next thread

https://forumias.com/post/detail/Official-How-was-Mains-2021-Paper-Essay-and-GS-Discussion-1641542963#main_comment


jack_Sparrow,rootand121 otherslike this
1.7m views

6.6k comments

@Mauraisles NEP,ONLINE EDUCATION....


IamThat,Mauraisles
4.7k views
@Mauraisles NEP,ONLINE EDUCATION....


poor ranking in global rankings, corruption in deemed university, NEET issues, low enrollment, Govt initiatives(HEFA,GIAN, VAIBHAV SUMMIT, ETC)

IamThat,
4.7k views

13-01-2021 p-3/165,m-3/247

Target.

Geo optional---population geography

Polity 4 lesson.---state legislature

Misc..-1gs 4 qus from vision-..global ethics---10 pre qus...

IamThat,
4.5k views
@Mauraisles from where have done these topics..


Mauraisles,
4.5k views
@Mauraisles from where have done these topics..


drishtiias + Forum Brief

4.5k views
164 Down to Pre-2021 / 246 Down to Mains-21- 13/01/2021
Chapter 26 – Supreme Court:white_check_mark:
Chapter 34 - High Court:white_check_mark:
Chapter 35- Subordinate Courts:white_check_mark:
Chapter 63- Tribunals    :white_check_mark:
Chapter 38 - Panchayati Raj :white_check_mark:
Chapter 39- Municipalities:white_check_mark:

wrote mock test (Pre):white_check_mark:

Today CA + Static Quiz (yet to done)

IamThat,
4.5k views

I'll update here too. Last 2 months fully wasted. Lekin jab jago tabhi savera. So here it goes...

13/01/2021:

5 am - 8 am: sfg

9-11 am: Newspaper+ Yojana (1 article)+ 1 Research paper (not related to UPSC)

12- 4 pm: Optional

5- 9:30 pm: Economy+ ethics

Archand,IamThat
3.9k views

12.01.2021 Updates: 

DNA + Factly - :negative_squared_cross_mark:

Linear Algebra - 50 pages - :white_check_mark:

13.01.2021 Updates:

DNA + Factly (11.01.2021) - :white_check_mark:

DNA + Factly (12.01.2021) - :white_check_mark:

Linear Algebra (50 pages) - :white_check_mark: (6 chapters finished in total; last chapter - similarity of matrices started)

14.01.2021 Targets:

DNA + Factly

Finish off Linear Algebra (21 pages remaining)

Vision CA Magazine - September month resume (from pg. 37 ) - finish ~20 pages

Hitman09,
4.3k views
Couldn't study anything since last 2.5 months as my mother got severe Covid and heart complications after that for around 2 months.But would start now without loosing hope ....
GaryVee,ShinchanNoharaand2 otherslike this
3.5k views

15/1/2021:-

1) IR-USA+RUSSIA+EU

2) Polity-Panchayat chapter

3) Unacademy indian geography class

4)Sept CA-(1,2,3)

5)Vision ias June mag rev





Hitman09,
3.5k views

14/01/2021:

5:30-8 am: sfg

11am- 2pm: Newspaper etc + CA (May 20)

3pm- 5pm: Polity Re-revision as got less marks

6-10pm: Economy+ethics

IamThat,Hitman09
3.5k views

14-01-2021 p-4/164,m-4/246

Target.

Geo optional---malthus,Marxian, demographic

Ca-health sector

Misc..-1gs 4 qus from vision-..--10 pre qus--hist

Mariposa27,IamThat
3.9k views

15/01/21

1. 8:30 AM - 6:00 PM - last leg of environment, have to wind it up today

2. 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM - daily CA

3. 8:00 PM - 9:00 PM - CSAT

4. 10:00 -12:30 AM - history - the balkan peninsula

IamThat,Hitman09
3.4k views

14.01.2021 Updates:

Shankar Hindu DNA + Factly -> :white_check_mark:
Finish Linear Algebra -> :white_check_mark:
Start Numerical Analysis - (28 pages):white_check_mark:
(CA magazine postponed to Feb onwards ->Full pre preparation)


15.01.2021 Updates:

Numerical Analysis: ~ 70 pages -> :white_check_mark:

Factly + This Day in History -> :white_check_mark:
No Shankar Video on 14.01.2021 due to Pongal, Makar Sakranti Festivities. BTW, Happy Belated Pongal to people from the south, Happy belated Makar Sakranti and Happy Belated Lohri to the rest.

16.01.2021 Targets: 

Numerical Analysis Further 70 pages

Factly + This Day in History

(Increased NA target in view of Shankar resuming videos only on 17.01.2021)

Deepak802,Hitman09
3.7k views

15/01/2021:

Nothing much.

CA (May 2020) + Economy

IamThat,Hitman09
3.1k views

15-01-2021 p-5/163,m-5/245

Waste of time with procastination and fear of failure..

Need bounce back...hope for 16 jan

IamThat,
3.5k views

soch raha hun 4-5 din baad is thread ko naya ghar bana lia jaye!

my 2 cents for your mains in 2021:

  1. Dont dug your own grave by leaving mains preparation for post prelims. This year even lesser time. Often we focus before prelims just on optional. That isnotthe right strategy.
  2. Atleast paper 1,4, essay and optional. this is mostly static part.
  3. Please make notes. And then after prelims make notes ke notes. Like really short keyword notes. especially i felt this for optional. well it may also depend on the type of optional as well!
  4. Before prelims we spend too little time in studying, our speeds are also very slow. Focus on content, the faster you prepare it, the more opportunities you will have to enrich your content. I think neyawn gave this advice thatwork expands to fill time. And this is so damn true. 
  5. Be a little harsh to yourself, not too much but may be a little. If you are doing just a day's newspaper for a whole day by reading hindu by yourself and then watching dns of rau, and then also read factly of forum, and then read monthly of vision, and then probably out of FOMO read pt365 too! Its not a plan, its a disaster unfolding.Self awarenessis the word!
  6. Don't make prelims as your objective. You don't want to go to mains with a feeling oh, prelims prep was nothing.  prepare for exam in its entirety. This is really the time to toil. Baad me toh sabhi ghiste hai bhai! 
  7. The best thing that DR thread of last year taught me the value of work ethics. It's not easy to follow what you plan for. But any progress is better than perfection. Golden rule that probably yo yo sir had said is that at least have such self discipline that no day is total off or 3-4 hour day, you don't want to learn this after your 4+ attempts. 

Baki be sincere, be honest! Best wishes. Milte hai 4-5 din me!

Deepak802,GaryVeeand10 otherslike this
3.9k views

I have given two Prelims in 2019 ( just after doing coaching of 5 hours daily, Vajiram and solving no test series in exam like condition shamelessly) - result was I failed in it by a mrgin of 20 marks  . And in 2020 attempt I majorly prepared for Prelims and still I think I have missed the cutoff by 1 or 2 marks. 

After the result came in October I was completely shattered , I was not hoping it all . And in November and December I haven't prepared much for Mains ( just optional paper 1 and ancient history ) , again I have the feeling that I will prepare in haste for Prelims as time is less and may again falter or even if I clear Prelims there is just Gap of 60-70 days effectively, I may not do good in Mains. 

Will it be advisable to take a break this year and give my attempt in 2022 with full preparation?? I am 23 now and being a girl . Can someone please here suggest as you have more experiences , what to do ? 

What are other diverse things I can do like attempting state pcs or any other things ? Please help me to devise my plan ahead. I failed in previous attempts due to lack of strategy and I was preparing from home and didn't take tests in exam like condition. 

IamThat,
3.2k views
@Aparajitaa Same here. In my opinion, You can join sfg for Prelims. And as hotbloodprince said above👆, prepare atleast GS 1, 4 , Essay and Optional before Prelims. Moreover, you can always choose not to appear Prelims if not feeling confident enough.


Aparajitaa,
2.7k views
@Naadan_Parinda  have you also failed in Prelims ? Actually the problem is that I am very bad at handling failures , I have been very good in academics and hence whenever I fail it become really difficult for me and that failure with knowing that my strategy was not good or I could have done better is more difficult. 


3.2k views
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