All in one for upsc

Is UPSC not for average people ? by Sudhir Gahlot, IAS  2017 AiIR- 42

source-  www.sudhirgahlot.wordpress.com

After preparing for 2–3 years for this exam,struggling and enjoying the journey,I will answer this question as honestly as possible.I am an average 23 year old guy who has done just a BSC,with no big institute tag,no previous successes in big exams or no job experience,no known person even remotely in civil services’field,so I think I can answer this question nicely.

Trust me on one thing. Average,but honestly hardworking people clear UPSC and not geniuses.UPSC is a great leveller .It gives equal chance to candidates from all sorts of background,economic status,IQ.

“Hardwork often beats talent if the talent does not work hard.”This applies to UPSC too.

Why I say that average people crack UPSC and not geniuses because in other exams like IIT JEE , CAT etc,you need a specific set of skills,interest and inclination.But for Civil services,a generalist is required who is –

1.hardworking and consistent to wake up daily,pull yourself up and give your best effort sincerely….DAILY.

Dont practice it until you can make it right,but practice it until you cant make it wrong. This is what is required.

2.Honest and sincere. Only you can judge and assess your preparation level.Please listen to your conscience and be honest.Even if not clearing this exam,you will be a happy and contented human being.

3.Courageous and self confident This exam will present lots of hurdles,fears,insecurities.Arduous and tiring exam cycle of 1 year will need best version of you to face it.People will leave you when you dont clear this exam in two attempts be it friends,girlfriend/boyfriend or acquaintances.You will be on your own.Take your responsibility.Anddont worry about such people.Theywere not your well wishers.Focus on your life,make it best success story.

4.Patient Its said that “most of people who give up,dont realise that how close they were to success”.So,this exam will test your perseverance to extreme.You might fail straight away in four attempts and get an under 50 rank in next attempt. Just hold your ground.Wait for your opportunity .It will surely come.Grab it with both hands and strike at your hardest,then.Dont let that chance slip.Thats how you achieve success.

5.Humble You cannot be adamant that your method is foolproof and you wont change .Be humble and accept your mistakes.Constantly update and innovate yourself to stay one step ahead of UPSC .Be in attack mode than being defensive .Be courageous and take risks.You will go closer to your success.

6.Your first attempt must be your best prepared attempt……I cant emphasize its importance enough.Otherwise,you will get trapped in brutal exam cycle of UPSC .Please understand the exam process,exam requirements thoroughly.Though I achieved success in second attempt,but my first attempt was the one where I put in my heart and soul to this exam .Hard work never goes in vain and I got its rewards in my second attempt.

7.You only have to be answerable to yourself and prove yourself.When I was down and out,I said this to myself

This boosted me up that I cannot fail.I have many promises to keep to myself.I pushed myself that extra mile.Remembering my hard work and journey still brings tears sometimes that finally I made it.Now,the real work of service begins.

8.Go out of your comfort zone and mould yourself efficiently for this exam.Just remember that you only have to slog for some years.Dont just keep strengthening your strong points at cost of neglecting your weak areas.Rather, start with your weak areas first.Dont crib that my english is weak or I am bad at economics.Rather,be a doer.Remove your deficiencies……..with priority .Become an invincible force.

At last,I will just narrate a small anecdote from my life .While I was in college doing BSC,my one professor asked me “What you want to do after BSC” ? I replied “I will crack UPSC Civil services exam” .He was surprised by my confidence.He gave a sarcastic smile and said “Beta,there is cut throat competition,in UPSC, among IITians,IIM passouts,higher studies students,people with lots of job experiences.How will you,being just a BSC graduate crack it.You will lag behind”.

I replied “Sir,I promise to clear it with under 100 rank and prove you wrong and break your this notion for ever .”I took his blessings.After result,I remembered that professor and had a broad smile on my face.Remembering that moment still gives me goosebumps.I won my internal battle.

Best of luck!!

Timetable during UPSC journey

I was clear about my career that I have to go into civil services .I always felt that I belonged there . So,I never thought about IIT,B.tech or MSC as I just wanted to have minimum qualification and write this exam as quick as possible.I knew,I will make it with my hard work . So,I started preparing for this exam after I completed my BSC from Delhi University.I had no second thoughts.

I started my preparation in January 2015 for UPSC CSE 2016 . I was “underage” for 2015 attempt.Therewas noone even in my distant relative or circle who had cleared this exam.And i didnt take coaching too for GS . So,I had to make my way myself.

I will tell my timetable in 2 ways –

1. Overall study plan.
2. Daily timetable

I studied with full passion,fire and dedication for 10 months from january 2015 to october 2015.

I started with my optional Sociology in January 2015,and completed it fully till April by studying basic books and made my own comprehensive notes in 4 registers . My optional was fully done with.I really toiled day and night to fully understand the subject and extract juice out of books in my own notes.Foundation was laid strong.

Then I picked GS and started reading newspaper too diligently.I studied it incessantly for next 6 months and completed all GS syllabus thrice and made my own notes too.Simultaneously,I also started making notes for current issues from newspapers and other sources.

So till October 2015,I was nicely done with Sociology and GS with 3 readings of all syllabus.Also I had my own notes made for these.Also I had base of notes ready on almost all important current topics on Evernote and also hard copy.

I was so indulged in studies in starting 10 months that i felt each passing minute and was very productive.I felt that how much could be done even in 5 minutes,when you have 100% concentration and fire in belly . My focus was top notch which allowed me to grasp everything quickly and intricately

I made “to do plan” for everyday in the morning and maintained a diary in which i wrote daily that how much hours I put in the day . It mostly read 10–11 hours.

From November 2015 to March 2016,i refuelled my mind by refreshing a bit with a lighter study schedule of 5 hours daily.I again studied hard till Mains and put in required efforts.I reached till interview in this attempt.Did the same in 2017 attempt where I had just 4 months but I gave my best and eventually got Rank 42.

I believe that your first attempt must be your “best prepared” attempt in CSE because then you dont get trapped in Pre-Mains- Interview cycle. And it makes your base rock solid.

Daily plan

I started studying early in Morning at 6 am . I started with newspaper always by reading it for 30 minutes and making notes out of it My schedule was to study till 8 pm,in 3 sittings of 3 hours followed by 1 hour rest.Thismade around 9 hours of quality study.

Then from 8 -11.30 was my enjoyment time….I used facebook,forumIas and whatever I wanted to watch on youtube.This recharged me for the next day.

I studied 6 days in a week.I didnt touch any study related material on Sunday ,not even newspaper….I played football,cricket.This was to keep myself rejuvenated and happy during the preparation.I kept a balance time table because I was happy studying for this exam and it was never a pressure.I was always positive and had tremendous self belief becaise I was fully sincere in my efforts.

However,I too had my off days and off sessions where I didnt study straight for 7–8 days.But I made sure that when i am back to studies,I will make every second count.I was determined to clear this exam.

So I had a guilt free schedule.If I am playing,using social media,I will be indulged fully in it .And when I studied,I was fully focussed . So,I did something all the time to utilise time efficiently.I worked in interstices,using every minute . So, I felt full 24 hours of the day.Also,I took power nap in the day,setting alarm of 20 minutes when i felt that I am about to doze off.This refreshed me and saved time.I never used cooler or A.C, in my room as I felt that it hampered my concentration.I mean,you have to find your way out,whatever suits you.I had a balanced diet and exercised or played almost daily for 40 minutes atleast.I rewarded myself for studying sincerely .

So,you have to keep Civil services at core of your day and life,till you are preparing for this exam.However,rest of the things are also important but focus must be on preparation.

And I didnt cut myself off from friends or relatives.I had time for everything as perhaps I used time nicely.I believe that one must be clear that why is he preparing for civil services.Theneverything will fall in place and the journey becomes an enriching and happy experience.

Finally,no matter how great your talent or efforts are,some things do take time.Trust the timing of your life.Give your best and things will fall in place.

 

Some Learnings and advices

Having cleared UPSC by studying at home,I feel I can share my learnings to mould our lifestyle and some hacks to clear such examinations.

1.Never start a new relationship when you are starting preparation/into preparation.Because new love/crush always give good feelings for some months and then you are doomed as you will be constantly distracted , making other person happy,listening his/her bullshits . Its okay if you have an earlier,old relationship because that person will support you in your dreams.

2.Dont tell whole world that you are preparing.I come from a big big extended family and everyone is expecting since last 10 years(when i was 13) for me to become IAS.Luckily,I am a person who remains unaffected by expectations.But not everyone can handle . So,keep your business to yourself. “Work in silence,let your success make noise”.

3.Knowing why you want to clear an examination is pretty important to sustain yourself in this grinding process . It will give that self motivation and keep “fire in belly” going.

4. Be close to your family members in heart.Talk to them regularly.Let me tell you that they are the only one who truly want you to succeed.Resteveryone has some motive or secretely wants you to fail.You will be able to deal with your lows,self doubts,mood swings,procrastination in best way,then.

5.Avoid social media

You may want to use it just for 30 minutes,but 30 minutes become 3 hours,unknowingly and foreign tour vacation pics of your friend might make you sad at your state of being lost in your books in a room.

6.Embrace solitude This is the way to happiness and overcome every stress.I enjoyed my company a lot. Be your best friend.Because noone understands your mental state during preparation better than yourself

7. Keep your social circle to positive,motivated people Negativity saps out energy,self confidence from you . Be around people who believe in you and your abilities.Aspirants who met me during my preparation days always said that talking to you makes us feel empowered and that its doable.Give positive vibes,always.

8.Live a balanced life.Dont become a sanyasi . Be cheerful as “Murjhaaye hue vraksh par kabhi phal nahi lagte” (i.e withered tree never bears fruits) .Exercise,have nice diet and also follow your hobby.But have a dedicated time table.Use each second of the day in something fruitful.

9.keep reminding yourself that this is only for a limited time and then i will enjoy fruit of my success . As Muhammad Ali said , “ I hated every minute of training,but i said to myself “dont quit.Suffer now and live the rest of your life as champion” .

10.Dont try to lie to yourself. Successful people are theirselves biggest critics.Assess yourself timely and honestly.

11.Have a plan for 1 year as you will need atleast 1 year dedicated study with average of 8 quality hours.Maintain a diary for this.Alsomake daily timetable of topics to be covered .It helps you to remain focussed.

12.Having confidence because if you dont trust yourself,then you cant give your best.

13.Avoid daydreaming beyond an extent .Rather,be a doer.

14.Dont stop when you are tired,but stop when you are done with your daily plan.I pushed muself that extra mile always . But I assure you the satisfaction,happiness that you feel at night is unparalleled.Work hard and smart.

15.Reward yourself with your sincerity,hard work once in a while or at end of day.

16. Use power naps of 20 minutes in afternoon .It saves time and also rejuvenates you.

17.Focus on your weak areas first and remove any deficiency.Strengthen your strong points

18.long races are won by character,not sprint So,show character.

19.Work in interstices e.g Read one article while you are waiting for your food,travelling in metro,bus or listen news during shower.

20. And finally I believe that UPSC doesnt make you an IAS,but it selects IAS.So,make yourself worthy of it .Same applies for other exams.

My source list for UPSC CSE

Civil Services’ syllabus is well defined one and therefore one must have limited number of books.The market is flooded with ocean of books,coaching material but I found that you need to read only selective books,materials to clear this exam with a nice rank.I believe in having a defined booklist after thorough analysis and sticking to it,no matter what others say.

After being in this process for 3 years ,eventually clearing it with good rank and knowing almost every material that exists in the market,I will tell you a very comprehensive and minimum essential booklist to ace this examination

I believe that prelims and mains examinatiin preparation must be holistic and in continuum . So,here goes my must read booklist

Prelims booklist

1.Laxmikant

2.Spectrum (Modern History)

3.Shankar Ias (environment)

4.Class IX-XI Geography books

5.Oxford Atlas

6.Class XI Fine Arts NCERT + Ancient India NCERT by R.S. Sharma

7.Sriram’s Economy material

8.UPSC past years question papers

9.Newspaper and vision magazine for current affairs

10.Solve some test papers of any one test series.

Mains Source list

General Studies I

1.Spectrum(Modern History) + Bipin Chandra

2. Ancient India Old NCERT (R.S Sharma) + Fine Arts NCERT

3. Nitin Sangwan’s Art and Culture Material

4. Political Science Ncert (Politics in India since Independence) + Mrunal’s articles for land reforms

5.Arjun Dev’s Old NCERT (Story of Civilization) + Vision’s World History Printed Material

6.Class IX – XII Geography NCERT

7.Mrunal Geography videos by Rajtanil and articles for location of industries

8. GS Score’s Material for Social issues

General Studies II

1.Laxmikant

2.Vision’s Printed Notes for Polity and Governance

3.Summary of ARC report(Synergy’s)

4.Claas XI political Science NCERT (Indian Constitution at Work)

5.Websites like prsindia for bills and Acts and IDSA for International Relations

6.If your basics of IR are weak,then please read book by Rajiv Sikri.

General Studies III

1.Sriram’s Economy book (must read)+ Sanjeev Verma’s book (if you feel content deficit)

2.Class XI Economics NCERT

3.Economic Survey

4.Shankar IAS environment

5.Vision’s material for internal security and disaster management

6. IDSA website for internal Security

7. Science and Tech. from Current affairs and internet

General Studies IV

1.Lexicon

2.Solved test papers of GS Score

And your own common and logical sense.

Apart from these books,some other material for current affairs

1. Newspaper (Hindu or Indian express or both) + internet
2. Vision’s Monthly magazine
3. Insights into Editorial by Insights
4. Secure Monthly compilation(just read it,dont solve) . I read 12 months’ Secure in 12 days.

Use internet less and only purposefully.Dont watch videos unnecessarily or do P.hd on a topic.

These were my sources for the preparation which helped me sail through this exam.

Read less books but undersrand in such a way that noone knows it better than you.Undersrand it totally,then you can use your knowledge in anyway that you like.Revise and revise it until you know it in and out.Readbetween the lines.Thats how you become efficient.

Best of luck !!

 

Opinion on coaching institutes

I didnt take any coaching for GS or essay,nor any mocks for interview.I took coaching for sociology,but it was almost waste.

Infact,most of the people can increase their chances of selection by not taking a GS coaching,spanning almost 1 year. Why ?

1. They dont teach anything that you cant understand yourself
2. What they teach in 10 months,you can do it in 4 months and in far better way.Trust me on this.
3. The crowd there is super depressing and awful.People packed like objects in a classroom,listening to the teacher,with divine expectation.They will make you dependent on them.And in UPSC,you need high self confidence.
4. You have to study yourself ultimately,whether you take coaching or not
5. Cracking UPSC is not a secret recipe anymore . Everyone knows everything.
6. Its too costly to fund coaching and cost of living in delhi
7. They teach irrelevant and outdated things largely.
8. Distractions are too many,if you understand.
9. It will save you from getting trapped in cycle of exam as you will have ample of time to study.

Why people take coaching

1. Fear of lagging behind others if we dont take coaching.
2. The grand advertisements have ensured that every coaching claims every topper as their foundation course student.And pathetic toppers,dont even clarify that what coaching they took where.itmisguides freshers.
3. People are not disciplined,so they go to coaching so that they can atleast complete the syllabus.

And coaching doesnt play much role in anyone’s selection.People who clear by taking coaching are the people who would have cleared anyway.Its their own hard work.

So,take guidance of anyone who has been into this exam process or has cleared.Understand the exam ,its syllabus and its requirements.Haveself belief and courage.Its doable by self.Average people crack UPSC,not some super geniuses.But the requirement is dedication,passion and sincerity in hard work.

Atmost join some test series,thats it.

Thank you and best of luck

My Interview

I got 171 in UPSC CSE 2017 Personality Test.Here is my interview transcript.

Mine was Mr. B.S. Bassi Board.I was fourth candidate to be interviewed in the afternoon session.

Graduation – BSC Physics(Hons)

Optional – Sociology

Chairman (C) – Come in,gentleman.Take the seat

C – Showed my passport pic to me and said “Is this you” ?

C – You look pretty young.Whats your age?

C – You did BSC from DU .What did you like most about DU in general and North Campus in particular ?

C – Any life incident that specially motivated you for civil services?

C – You have quite diverse set of hobbies.Good.Tell me,how Roger federer’s game is different from that of Novak Djokovich?

C – So you read autobiographies of sportspersons….why specifically sportspersons only?

C – Ok name a few that you have read recently.

C – Tell me five life lessons that you have learnt out of them and that will help you in administration.

C – Ok u said that once we decide on something then we should not look back,but in life we ought to have an escape route….Tell me two situations from international affairs where we were firm but ultimately had to take escape route.

C – What is singlemost important quality of an adminstrator,according to you.How?

C – Where on hills have u driven?Have u driven four wheel too?

C – Tell me physics behind four wheel drive.Also tell me,difference between ascent and descent driving on hill .

M1 – So Sudhir,you are physics graduate.Tell me how will you use your knowledge in IAS

M1 – Do you know about UAVs?Tell me the all their applications in 3 minutes.Take your time to think

M1 – What’s flying range of an UAVs?Can they kill humans?

M1 – Does India have any regulations for drones?Which authority regulates their flight?What are the provisions?

M1 – Quizzing is your hobby….Tell me what is dhruva?

M1 – What is English Channel?Tell its breadth.

M2 – So,Sudhir,you took sociology as optional.Why?

M2 – Tell two biggest social problems of India and your approach as DM to resolve them.

M2 – Do you think India will ever overcome these problems?

M2 – Ok,so you do trekking too.Whatall have you done?Why you trek?

M2 – Recently one trekker died due to forest fire.Where did it happen?

M2 – You have been captain of football team.Ok,tell me what did you, as a leader, say to your teammates before the match?How did you plan and strategise ?

M3 (lady member) – Good Afternoon Sudhir.You have interest in spirituality.Tell me how you developed it and what is spirituality

M3 – Ok,very good.Now,I will ask only question to you.Give me the winning answer.Tell me,how will ,you being spiritual make you an efficient administrator ?

Nice.

M4 – So,Sudhir have you read Constitution of India?

M4 – Tell me,provisions for minorities in it.Are minorities safe in India ?

M4 – whst is secularism ?Difference between idea of seculsrism in India and USA

M4 – When was the Constitution of India adopted?

M4 – India’s foreign policy with neighbours.

M4 – You play a lot of sports.Tell me the sports policy of India.Its two main provisions.

M4 – Tell me two benefits of playing sports for school children.Should it be made mandatory?

M4 – Tell me most important reason for Haryana dominating in sports.

Chairman takes over again

C – You love watching old movies..Whats so special about them.

C – Your favourite movie?

C – Why Mughal e Azam.Tell me its five unique features.

C – If Mughal e Azam was made today,then what all controversies it could have landed in ?

C – suppose you are DM,how will you convince villagers to leave open defecation

C – You have rural background too.Tell me two biggest reasons for village areas remaining undeveloped.Your approach to develop them

C – Govt is saying they will double farmers’income.How will they do it

C – problems with fasal bima yojana

C – How will you shift farmers to alternative employment.They,surely,wont like to be meagre wage labourers.

C – Suppose you dont have any fund,nor any CSR participant,then how will you undertake development activty in village?

C – Thank you . Your interview is over,young man.

It lasted for 50 minutes.It was a nice interaction with board members