After a test day, the evenings are usually sombre; calculations, speculations, anxiety, and what not…. But can we think of it in a little different way?
Let us understand that in an attempt to make you familiar to all types of questions, the difficulty level of a paper or the time required to solve mcqs may increase sometimes. It is an exercise to make your preparation more robust. So just learn and move on, do not get entangled in negative thoughts.
Few points to get engraved in your brains:
Believe in yourself.
Don’t let the scores of one or two tests dampen your spirit. Always remember one who keeps trying definitely improves and finally excels. If you are preparing well, it will definitely pay off. So, keep yourself motivated.
Be focused.
We are really short of time. Don’t indulge in anything unproductive.
Getting distracted, overthinking, doubting; all of it is a waste of time… fruitless labour. Just focus on studying as much as possible; try to have the mindset of a soldier, “Courage doesn’t mean you don’t get afraid, Courage means you don’t let fear stop you.” Be honest to yourself.
You can trick others but how will you delude yourself? Understand that all of this is about you and only you. Study sincerely. You shouldn’t end up with the regret that you didn’t try enough. Give your best; not for anyone else but for your self-satisfaction.
Be a realistic optimist.
Don’t let yourself drown in self-doubt and negative thoughts. Don’t speculate bad outcomes and possibilities. At the same time be realistic about your current stage of preparation, so that you can rise up from there.
Have a daily timetable.
It is IMPERATIVE that you make a schedule of self-study and have daily targets of completing particular portion.
At this stage, you should study for more than 12 hours per day.
Give mock tests:
The mock tests are the closest you can get to the final exam, in all aspects including the examination hall experience. Give the tests without fail. Solve the complete paper after you go home, with the help of answer key and solution set.
Don’t forget ever that these tests are basically to understand where one can go wrong, and to analyse mistakes so that they will not occur on the final day. Don’t get entangled in the speculations.
Stay fit:
Maintaining physical and mental fitness is absolutely essential.
Eat healthy home-made food and have adequate sleep. Do any form of exercise/outdoor activity for half hour daily. This will help you maintain good composure.
Imagine, on the evening of second Sunday from today, you will be a free bird! The whole ordeal will be a thing of the past and there will be no study cycle, no ‘To Do’ list … Nobody sitting over your head, nobody asking you to study, nobody preaching, advising or guiding….!
Feels so good to imagine; and to enjoy that feeling completely without any guilt, without any regret, we need to do something in these two weeks. That something is, giving your best and pushing your limits to the maximum.
The study schedule, the study method has been explained to you. This is the time of focused labour…. The final leap, the final act, the final push… And believe me it’s the most productive. Whatever stage of preparation you are in, hard work in this final phase will undoubtedly improve your score.
Give your best children, Miracles are nothing but consistent efforts …!!
Regards and best wishes,
Dr. Sheetal Shrigiri, Team APMA.