How to Maintain Continuity in UPSC Preparation

UPSC Civil Services Exam is not like other competitive exams. It cannot be cleared by mere hard work only. It also requires perseverance and dedicated preparation for about 1 year. UPSC coaching institutes in Chandigarh after experience have established this that one needs to study for 8–10 hours daily for an extended period of time (at least a year) during UPSC journey. Thus maintaining continuity in the preparation is imperative. Many students struggle with aspect. For maintaining continuity it is must to be organise, have a good daily routine, to be motivated for long hours and have capability to stay active for long hours and studying at the same time.

So let’s look at some methods and tips to maintain continuity in UPSC preparation in detail one by one:

Prioritize Well

To maintain continuity in your preparation you need to start prioritizing your subjects. You should also choose what to read and when to read in advance. For example our brain functions best 1-2 hours after waking up. So, during that time start with something lighter like Revision for an hour and a half. Then pick the subject you find most difficult or anything new. During the early hours when you are at full efficiency you should try to cover the major portion of day’s targets. Later in the day you should cover the lighter topics and leave set time for revisions.

Divide study time into slots of 1.5-2 hrs

You should not study for more than 2 hours at a stretch because after that diminishing returns set in. You should take 10 min break after each slot to rejuvenate and recuperate. After studying for two 2 hour slots you should take a longer break. In longer run this will not only help in internalizing concepts and but will also keep you refreshed for a longer time.

Don’t burn the midnight oil

Even if you are a night owl you not sleep later than 12 AM. This is crucial for maintenance of your health. You have to remember this exam is a Marathon not a 100m dash. UPSC preparation requires tremendous amounts of mental/physical resilience. Sleeping relatively early and waking up early will help you in the long run to preserve health. This in turn will aid in maintaining continuity.

Start your day early

As the day goes on we start to lose motivation as well as physical and mental strength. So you should make the most of the early hours. By starting your day early we mean starting your preparation early. If you wake up at 6am then start your preparation from 7am.

Eat healthy, Stay Healthy

You should try to eat a well balanced diet. If you are a hard core foodie and love eating deep fried, sugary foods or fast food then you can keep one day per week aside for snacking.
But on rest of the days you should eat less sugar, right quantity of salt, less fat, more of protein. Eat when you are hungry and never over-eat. Freshly cooked food with less oil and fats (butter, ghee) should be helpful here. Also remember to stay hydrated.
If you don’t maintain your health by eating well then it becomes difficult to study due to various reasons like: malnourishment (weak eyes due to vitamin deficiency), stomach infections due to unhealthy food from vendors etc.

Sleeping Routine

As young energetic people aspiring to be civil servants, we might cut down on our sleep. But we need 7-8 hours of sleep to reboot our system. Less than that, will take a toll on our health in near future. There are very few people who can sleep for a lesser amount of time and still be very active for a longer time frame. Many such people either crash during the weekend or take an extended sleep break.

Physical Exercise

Jogging or doing yoga for a couple of miles or more will help a lot in remaining physically fit. This in turn improves concentration. You should exercise for 45 mins for 3 days a week at the least. But avoid heavy gym exercises as it’ll strain and stress body.

Mental Exercise

Meditate for 30–60 min daily. Meditation is like taking your mind to a gym. It regulates mood and reduces stress and anxiety in general. Thus for CSE aspirants, it’s highly productive.
Relaxing and having fun.
You should never make your UPSC preparation monotonous and devoid any joy. Always keep one day for relaxation and social meets and greets. During that day you can watch movies, catch up on your favourite TV series and go out to have good food or sightseeing around the city with friends. If you are under pressure for eg due to approaching mains/prelims, even then take at least Sunday evening off. Recharge and come back stronger the next day.

Visualize success

Despite toiling hard for over 8 hours a day, aspirants still feel anxious and stressed and it leads to loss in continuity. It is quite natural to be a little bit nervous. While many people advise you to be confident in the efforts you have put it but that really doesn’t work at a psychological level. However, to beat your nervousness, you can start visualizing success.
Imagine yourself clearing the prelims, mains and interview. Imagining yourself being successful, overcoming all the obstacles and handling all the problems head on will boost your confidence and help you win over your fears.

Be Positive

Being positive will surely help you cope with the anxiety and stress that you would experience on some days. Positive thoughts about your preparation level, your dedication and self-belief in your hard work will help you emerge victorious in this examination.

Some Other Tips are

Don’t take part in avoidable social activities unnecessarily and too frequently,
Avoid those people who talks negatively about you and your preparation at all costs. You do not need that kind of negativity in your life during you preparation. In your free time, do not waste your precious energy on social networking apps rather sit with your family. Give them time.
Be honest to yourself. Look back if the day was worthwhile. If not then don’t repent. Make a resolve to make the next day better.
Multi-tasking is a myth. Do only one thing at a time. For eg: When you have food, eat your food. When you study only study.

We hope that these tips will help you. These were our views and opinions on how in maintain continuity during your exam preparation. What are your thoughts and inputs or queries on this topic? Comment below and share your views with us. We would be happy to assist you in your UPSC preparation battles and answer your queries.

We provide quality UPSC Coaching in Chandigarh. For all your queries regarding the class structure, material and mentorship for our programmed concerned with PCS Coaching in Chandigarh, HCS Coaching in Chandigarh , HAS Coaching in Chandigarh and similar civil services coaching in Chandigarh region and beyond, you can contact us directly at o2iasacademy to avail professional quality IAS Coaching in Chandigarh. O2iasacademy wishes you all the best for your preparation