Topper’s Talk | Shivam Singh | AIR 73 | UPSC CSE 2024

So good morning to all of you. Today we have with us Shivam Singh, who has secured 73rd rank in this year's UPSC civil service examination. First of all, let me congratulate Shivam on his spectacular success. As part of our uh interaction with Shivam, let us try to find out uh what are uh the major challenges that he has faced in his UPSC preparation and uh how he has overcome those challenges to reach this position.

So uh Shivam uh first of all uh let me uh you know I want you to introduce yourself to our uh you know students here, your academic background.

Good morning everyone. It feels nice to be sitting here on the other side. Back in 2020, am I audible clearly at the back? Yeah. Back in 2020, when I went to Delhi, I used to sit that side and the toppers used to come and they talk, obviously anything. And uh so this is how my journey has been for the past five, six years, and I have not been just sitting at home. I have been working. I have worked in previous two services. I got selected as a sub-collector, like what you call in the South, it's called Deputy Collector there in UP in 2021. Then I was posted in a district called Gorakhpur in UP for close to 3 years. And last year, I qualified UPSC. I got into IRS Customs. I was dicey in choosing whether to go for it or not. But I applied for a 2-year lean period and I went for IRS Customs. Then I wrote prelims again. I qualified this year with 73 and hopeful to get IAS this time. So this is my journey of the last five, six years. It has been full of ups and downs. Everything whatever you guys are going through, I have gone through. Whatever, okay. So it it is very difficult, not only at the physical level, not only you just, it's not about only just giving you a number of hours. It's also about tackling your own emotions. It's very difficult to manage emotions at such a young age, at the age of 22, 23, 24. It's difficult. So all challenges will be there, all sorts of problems will be there. But if you just persist, you will come out with flying colors. So this is what has been my journey. So this is a brief introduction about myself. Thank you.

So Shivam, um, let us start with uh the first thing. How could you keep your motivation levels so high in uh uh such a long preparation? I heard that this is your sixth attempt. That means you have been preparing for the last minimum of six years. So what have you done to keep your motivation levels so high?

Sir, uh, like I think uh a few of you might be having this goal of going for civil services right from your school age or college years. Might be this was not the case with me. I was not having this dream of becoming a civil servant when I was in college, but slowly when I got introduced to the subjects like reading newspapers or NCERTs, then that interest got uh seeded in me and I pursued it. And regarding motivation, sir, I think discipline is a major factor rather than motivation. Motivation usually fizzles in 2-3 days. Suppose if you are sitting here and watching a topper talk, it will stay with you for like 2 days maybe, then on the third day, it is the discipline that will make you sit on the table. So this is how you trick your brain. And uh, regarding motivation also, the motivation factor keeps on changing. Initially, the motivation was, since I was unemployed, getting employment is a motivation. Mmm. So once you are employed, getting a better employment is a motivation. For the past 2 years, my fiance has been my motivation. So the motivation factor changes over the years. So this is how it has been.

So when did you decide to prepare for UPSC examination?

Sir, it was my final year of college. Like my father used to say from the very beginning, but uh, I personally decided from the final year of my college, like uh, what I want to do after 10 years of my life. So when I uh, just wrote my pros and cons of going to a corporate or going to a civil service, then I decided that this is the way I want to tread upon, sir.

So then, uh, let us come to the specifics of your preparation. So how did you prepare for the prelims examination? It is considered one of the most uh difficult uh phases of your preparation. Almost uh 13 lakh people will apply, around six lakh people will write, only around uh, you know, 12,000-13,000 people will be clearing the prelims. So it's a good way to just uh uh create anxiety among students by counting the numbers, but I think this is not how it works. And uh, there are limited set of people who keep on toiling year after year, and your competition is with only those who are studying on a daily basis, not with those who are there just for the fun. So I will just talk about my prelims experience, like how I failed, in which prelims I failed, and by how much margin. So I started writing this exam in 2019 after my college, and after college, usually most of us fail. So I failed 2019 in prelims. 2020, I solved like 60 mocks, I did whatever it takes for paper one, not for I failed in CSAT. 2020, I got 65.83 marks. I think 66 is a passing mark in 2020. Then uh, I got into UPPSC. So it was some sort of cover-up. Then in 2021, I cleared prelims again, but I failed in mains. Then 2022, since I was undergoing my training for sub-collector, I was enjoying fully in the best possible manner. Then I failed again in 2022. Then 2023, I qualified. 2024, again I qualified. So this is my journey of prelims. So every journey has its own like pros, cons, and weightages.

So you have mentioned that you know you could not clear CSAT. So what have you done uh to clear CSAT in the next attempts?

Sir, I didn't take any coaching per se. Okay. For CSAT, but when you go through the past year papers, there is a decent amount of weightage given to like number system, like 10 to 12 questions come from number system. So I jotted down the main chapters which are there and watched it from YouTube from multiple institutions, uh, the videos that are there, and uh, solved the previous papers only and focused more on comprehension also, because now the toughness of CSAT is like that you cannot just rely upon one section. If you rely upon maths, they will increase the toughness of math to a level that you won't be able to solve it, obviously. So you have to balance both. So this is how I managed. So still, I'm not able to get 100 marks in CSAT, but you only need 66 to pass. That's it.

And coming to paper one, how did you prepare for paper one?

So paper one, uh, it's very like uh, you have to read the basic books which are there. I think most of you are aware of it. I'm not listing the book list per se. I will write it down later on. But I think those basic books form the basic threshold of your preparation, like the NCERTs, the Spectrum, Laxmikant, everyone knows. So I think if you are, if you want to clear prelims multiple times, then you have to, you have to break that threshold. That threshold can be broken only by referring to those basic set of standard books and revising them multiple times. So I think so revision is the key, multiple, multiple time revision, like you must know on which paper this thing, which page number this thing is written in which NCERT. This sort of revision. And my my way of revising was like I used to write it down. Everything whenever I used to revise, for example, in class 12th NCERT, there is a geography NCERT, there's a concept of temperature inversion. So if I'm revising it in a library, I used to keep a rough copy on my side. I used to just read it and scribble. So, so I think this scribbling exercise imbibes everything in your brain. So this is how you do the active recalling. So, uh, sir, this is for the prelims and I've solved a lot of mocks. In 2021 attempt, around 60 mocks. By solving mocks, you get that knack of solving the random questions because now the randomness of prelims is also increasing over the years. You cannot just get the question directly from a book. So, you know, the fear of attempting a new question, all these sorts of psychological challenges can be solved by solving like a lot of number of mocks. So this is how it helped. And you have taken Vision Prelims Test Series? Yes, sir. And Abhyaas also? Yes, sir. How helpful is it for your preparation?

Uh, sir, if I could recall actively, uh, it was Vision, Abhyaas Prelims, and um, there used to be a lot of fear among students that Abhyaas Prelims is like one of the toughest, and if you score 110, 120, then you are good to go for the prelims. But I scored 75. I was like, like this is it now. Uh, but I think there are three, four sets of question papers that are there on different dates. So my marks eventually improved. I scored 120 in the last one. So I, but it's not about just marks in the prelims mock test paper. I used to analyze the mock test paper for 2 hours, close to two, two and a half hours. And how you analyze it? You consider that mock test not as a test of your knowledge, but as a medium of gaining extra knowledge. So what I used to do, I used to prepare a separate set of notebook only for the mocks, and I used to refer to that mock after writing it, or whatsoever might be my marks, but I just make the notes out of the explanation part, which I expect that these are the good concepts I did not know, not everything exactly. So I prepared fresh notes out of all the 60 mocks. It was like this much thick register. This is a very, very rich material that I had by the end of the prelims. So this is how I used the mocks for this. Okay.

Sir, my current affairs was mainly on the newspaper part. I, I made the notes out of the newspaper. That's very good. And what else you have done for your prelims?

GS paper one, sir, for the basic books that I told, that were the major source because I still believe that the static part is the king in the prelims. Current affairs, like it's a dynamic thing, it keeps on changing. You cannot chase every random question, but you can rely upon your static part. If your static part is very strong, it will bring you much closer to the cutoff. What we tend to do, we tend to just focus on the random questions that are being asked, and we tend to chase those random questions. This is how we get diverted. So I think, yeah, you have to be very strong on the basics. And for current affairs, as I told, I used to read newspapers. I read The Hindu, but now people are preferring Express also. I made the notes out of The Hindu. It took me around two hours to complete the newspaper, but I made notes for like continuously for two years. So this is how this helped me in mains also. When you read newspapers, you become an avid reader of the daily, what is happening daily, right? Because I, what, this is my belief that reading magazines is sort of a passive learning. So I believe in active learning. So this active learning can be done directly from the sources, from the government sources like PIB, from uh, this newspaper that I told, reading budget directly from the budget text, the PRS summary. So I relied more on the government sources, more on the active sources on these things.

Coming to your mains preparation, you are from an engineering background. Especially for students from an engineering background, writing descriptive answers can be a little bit difficult. So how did you prepare yourself for this?

I, I don't think it's a challenge, sir, because uh, most of the English medium students who are there, who might be here also, we have this tendency of expressing a single line into a full page. Okay. So I think you should have this, you should have this thing of, if you, if you know a little bit of any topic, you have this ability of writing a two-pager for it. I think this comes from your academic background. So I had such sort of academic background, it helped me. And uh, I personally didn't feel any challenge. And with the writing practice, with the answer practice, with the guidance from the mentor, it improves eventually. So I think that's not a hurdle per se for me. Okay.

Coming specifically and especially for GS Paper 1 in mains, how did you prepare for, you know, these topics like culture or world history or social issues?

Sir, uh, in paper one, mostly the topics are static. Yeah. And uh, the sources that we refer for prelims, like does for 60% of the paper one. But for the remaining part, like world history, I read the Tamil Nadu NCERT for the world history. It's very, very good. And uh, questions are rarely asked from world history, but the questions that are asked are also direct. So you can attempt that. And for art and culture, I read the prelims material only, like the fine arts NCERT and also the questions that are asked in the mocks, previous papers, and all. So I used to compile them and answer them. For society, I referred to the NCERTs. So my basic source was always NCERTs. I didn't refer to any high standard books, and I never read any thick book. I was only, I was very much scared about the thickness of the books. So I referred only the NCERTs. And what subject, what is, then this, society and uh, uh, geography. Geography. Geography is my favorite because it's more of a scientific subject. Uh, every concept of geography can be explained in a scientific way. So it's very, very good for an engineering background student, more than history. That's it. So geography, I referred to the four NCERTs of class 12th, the 11th, 11th and 12th. And I also referred to GC Leong. GC Leong is good for mains part. And prelims, they usually ask directly from the NCERTs, but for mains, you have to be thorough with the GC Leong also. And for world geography, the mapping part is very important. This is how you score marks. Like suppose if a question comes regarding the, like fossil fuel sources across the world, so you have to draw the map, you have to show the locations, you should know the location's name. So that can be remembered only by doing the mapping exercise. Like I, I remember in 2023, there was one question regarding the, these local winds. So you have to be thorough with that local wind diagram which is there in NCERT also and GC Leong also. So that can be imprinted in your brain after multiple revisions only. So I think these sources, multiple revisions, answer writing, that's it.

And between GS Paper 1, 2, 3, 4, which one did you give more focus, more importance in terms of your preparation?

Sir, all are important, all are equally important. And uh, I'm not able to decide, but I think GS4. Okay. Uh, GS4 because what I did, since I worked in service also, all my examples flow from my own field experience. I remember last year, there was this year only, there was one case study that was asked. Suppose if you are an officer and you get surrounded by a tribal women and there was some issue. And this, this is what actually happened with me, okay, when I was posted in a subdivision, not tribal women, but women of a village. So how I tackled the situation there, I wrote in the exam. So this is, this is the edge that I had because of the experience, obviously. So I, I think in ethics, I made more application part. All my definitions were also applied. Not the rote learning, but I think applied. So I think I found ethics more, more happy to do. For the ethics, I made more extra efforts for ethics also.

I think you got good marks in ethics also this year.

Decent, amongst decent. Yeah.

And what about GS Paper 2, Polity, Governance, Social Issues and IR?

Uh, sir, for polity, we have the one book, Laxmikant. Laxmikant does well for the base of your polity because in every question, whether it's applied or not, you have to start with an introduction, starting with an article or something like uh, but you have to prepare a repository of Supreme Court judgments also. Suppose if a question comes on right to privacy, you have to start in sources that are there. 365 is also there, that is there in the magazine also. And then, sir, for GS2, uh, there is also one section of IR. IR is there. So IR, read from a magazine only, like I would be taking the names, but from a magazine compilation. So I think what, what you should do in mains, you should prepare everything theme-wise. We often overlook it. We directly see these 20 questions, but if you break down those 20 questions, every theme has two or three questions. Yeah. If you prepare every theme properly, like I prepared society separately, wrote five to 10 questions of society separately. I prepared internal security separately. I wrote 10 questions separately. So if you just complete these themes per se, you will be able to answer those questions more promptly in the exam. It will take less time. Also, the sections which we often overlook. We feel like we will write disaster anyway. Disaster is very close to us. We will write disaster. Vulnerability plus hazard is a disaster. But that's not how it works. You have to save your time also. For that, you need practice. So you can prepare everything theme-wise, like prepare disaster as a separate theme, write 10 questions. So this is how I done.

And GS Paper 3, people are always finding it difficult, and UPSC is also not giving marks in the last few years. Yes. So what have you done for GS Paper 3, especially economy?

Sir, like I have been on both sides. Like last year also, last year I got marks in 70s, this time in 90s. But I think the one thing that made the difference is the introduction part in GS. I think GS3, I think they are looking more for the right factual information in the answer, and not just blabbering around which we generally do in other GS papers. GS3 is more of a factual. You have to be more direct. So I think uh, prep the topic-wise which are there in GS. You have to prepare uh, the every, the facts, one-pager for every topic. So this is how I done the GS3 first.

And what about this uh, internal security or disaster management or even uh, environment, science and technology in GS Paper 3?

Sir, I referred to a material. Okay. And it was a compilation material of every GS paper. Okay. And I solved the theme series. That's good. Yes, sir. Okay.

Then, uh, in an essay, is always a big uh, factor in ultimate selection. So what have you done for essays?

Sir, in essay, last year I wrote average, I got 117. This time I wrote good, I got 98. Good. So I think uh, I wouldn't be making much strong statements because I'm not eligible for it. But I think what happens in essay, they are asking more of a philosophical. For past, still, I would suggest something. You should do one thing. We generally open the dimensions in a very traditional way, like political dimension, economic dimension. This is, this is, I think it's our old age now. What I did last year, what I did is, I referred to the dimensions which are very close to us. Like you should just, for example, there was a topic, "Not all who wander are lost." Last year's essay. So I started with the story of Odysseus and then I referred to my own self. Like if we, if we look within, we are also wandering in our life. Like I didn't know what I had to do previously. I came here, I became IRS, I became IAS, I didn't know. So I'm just wandering. I'm taking what, what life is giving me. So this is, this is an individual level example. Then you jump to a family level example. Then you jump to a societal level example. So this is how you keep essay very personal. I hope you are getting, not just a political, economical, traditional dimensions that are there, but more of a social dimension, more of an individualistic dimension, and then talking about society, talking about India, talking about world. This is how I opened. And one thing that I differentiate in essay, I always wrote a counter dimension for an essay. For example, "Not all who wander are lost." There are many who already got lost. So this is, this is a counter dimension. So what it requires? It requires right guidance. Suppose if you are coming here for preparation, if you're not mentored properly, not guided properly, there is a high probability that these young minds might get lost in the preparation. So you are wandering, but with the support of institutions, with the support of mentors, you might reach to a proper destination. But without that support, your wandering might not be fruitful. So this is the counter dimension that I wrote. So I always wrote the counter dimension, and this is how I differentiated my essay.

And optional continues to play a very important role in final selection. And uh, you have opted for Anthropology. And this year you're also the top scorer in Anthro. Some of our students have Anthropology optional also. So you can guide them uh, with uh, your preparation for both Paper 1 and Paper 2.

Uh, sir, this time I got 297 in Anthro. And I was expecting to get good marks. But I think the key factor that helps in Anthro now is, you have to be very good at presentation. Because everyone is writing good in Anthro. There is high competition in Anthro. For presentation, you have to draw multiple maps, flowcharts, diagrams, especially the, the archaeological anthropology part, in which you have to draw maps. I even drew the potteries, the tools, and everything I drew. So see, these things are not just obvious. You have to draw it on paper. It reflects good when the examiner is checking. Even if you are going through a book without any diagrams, you won't be liking it. So this is how the NCERTs are also made. NCERT is very strategically made. It's made for students of class 9, 10th, not for graduates, but they draw a very good diagram. They keep the people engaged in the NCERT. So this is how the government is also doing. So you do what the government is doing in the paper, in the government exam. So this is how we do. And sir, in Anthro, if you go to more minute details, then for every topic, there is a definition of an anthropologist. So I think in exam writing, an anthropologist's definition, even for silly things like culture, you define it by Malinowski's definition. You can define by your own definition, but that's not how you get marks. You get marks by writing a definition given by an anthropologist. Third thing is what differentiated it from the last time. I got 270, this time 297, is writing case studies in every answer. I would take an example. There was one question regarding tribes in Jharkhand. So I wrote a case study also, like their eating habits, how their malnutrition, a particular tribe. So prepare case studies for every topic that is given in the Anthropology syllabus. Answer for all this, I had only one source. Okay. I didn't refer to any standard books. I didn't refer to any topper materials. I didn't go for any coaching for Anthropology. I didn't solve any test series for Anthropology. Oh, I had this writing habit. I am good. I'm good at expressing thoughts. I wrote a lot of, a lot of answers for GS. So I think the speed part and paper completion part was already covered. Presentation was also covered. I also, I only had to focus on content part. So there was one source. I will be sharing later on. There's there is one source on YouTube, and a section of videos are there, but they have their own Google Drive material, that's very bulky material. But I think that that is the one source that I only relied upon. It's, uh, it's, they made it out of many standard books. I think they have done their homework. So we all, we just need to read them, read it properly. They have good diagrams. They have good flowcharts. They have good case studies. Everything you want, they have it. I think I used only that source. I will be sharing that link with you, sir, or later on, you can connect. I think, sir, to be honest, I this only. Okay. Yes. Because you got very good marks. Yes. I think, sir, the the answer writing and presentation part, maybe I think originality is there. Yes, originality.

Now coming back to personality test. Uh, how did you prepare uh, differently for this personality test? Anything uh, too fast? Like, are we, like, am I talking too fast? No, everyone is getting it at the back. I used to be at the, because I used to be late. I, I in Delhi, there is a long queue before. I think how many of you have been to Delhi coaching centers? I don't think so. No. So there, sir, you must be knowing, there is a long queue before entering the coaching. Like for 2 hours, you used to be there. Whenever you used to be very early, I used to read newspaper in those 2 hours. I had to enter into the classroom itself, it will take hours. I had like one, two very good friends in 2020. It's an informal discussion part. So there used to, we used to just read the newspaper, then we used to sit in the class, we used to ask questions like, have you read this news? Like for the whole day, we used to just cross-questioning, okay, each other. So I think that embodied a very good habit of reading and retaining things in mind because you have this fear of my friend will ask and I would won't be able to answer it. So this was the fear. So, so all these silly things help. We, we laugh easily. This is not, this is not, this is all these, this helps. If you have good friends, you discuss with them. They will point out your fault. Then you build upon it. So like this, preparation is not to be done in very siloization. If you just sit in your room and prepare for like 7, 8 hours, you will get bored. You, you, you must have something, someone who is always checking upon you, who's always questioning you, questioning your ability, even demotivating you at times. You require that person. So, uh, this is the informal. You mean to say that it is better they have a peer group among themselves? Only two, three people, not a big group. And because big groups often go to a tea stall. And they should also be serious. They should also be serious also. They should be serious. So this is how this is now, this discussion comes to how you find those friends. Exactly. This is a different question because you often attract your own self. If you are serious about your preparation, you will attract someone who is also serious about your preparation. So we were talking about personality today. Yeah. So, uh, I gave two interviews for UPSC. And last year I got 182. This time I got 193. So personality, per, I think the most important factor is the confidence. You should have the confidence. Even if you know nothing, that should not be reflected on your face. Like I'm feeling anxious, but it's, it's okay. I am feeling anxious, but it might not be reflected the way I'm talking to you. I am anxious because this is the first time interacting with the students. So this is how you trick your old self because it's, it's humanly not possible to not feel anxious. Whenever we go to a big place, whenever we uh, sit in front of a UPSC board, there are so many experienced people sitting after 30, 35 years of service experience, senior is senior IPS. It's, you are bound to be anxious. And also you have to answer them, and your preparation of 2, 3 years depends upon those 30 minutes. So a lot of things are at stake. Many students after scoring 800 marks in mains, they get 130 in interview. So everything is dusted there only. So I think, sir, confidence is the one thing. Then preparing, giving a lot of mocks. Last year I gave around 15, 17 mocks because I was free. This time I was under, I'm presently undergoing training. I attended only four or five mocks. Preparing your background very well, your hometown very well. If you are coming from any corporate service, your previous experience very well. Focus more on the applied part, like how your background can be applied in several services. How your previous service or corporate service can be applied in civil services. Your learnings there are more focused on, they are more focused on listening your applied part, not just the learned part. Which, so I think the confidence, the application part, the, your uh, hometown explanation, and all situational based questions, be more uh, articulated. I think don't take a pause, take articulation, frame answer in mind, and then speak. Because whenever they ask any question in which you have to give your opinion, if you all of a sudden speak, that means you have not thought well. So they don't want an officer who is not able to think well. I think being more patient, being more humble, showing gratitude that you reached to that level. So all these things, don't be arrogant. So I think there are many minute things that help. I think that interview guidance program usually generates a personality. Once you reach to that level.

Coming to, you know, some generic questions. Does academic background really matter?

Sir, like I already mentioned that I come from a background that provided me a good vocabulary. So if you come from such a background, it definitely gives an edge. But that's not a disadvantage for the other section because I have friends who are from the Hindi medium, they scored under 50 rank. So things can be done in every case. Depends upon how much hours, how much effort you are ready to put in. If you create it as a hurdle in your mind that you come from such a background, you don't know how to speak good English, you don't know how to express your opinions, so everything can be challenged with a lot of hard work. But if you keep complaining, there are no solutions. So you should not believe on these stories that are created outside. This exam is a very, very good process. This exam is a very transparent exam. You just need to put in what it takes. You will get the result.

And how to overcome the insecurities and fears in the entire preparation process? Because this is a very long drawn process.

Insecurities will always be there. After selection, there will always be insecurity. Insecurities are of different kinds. Presently, we have the insecurity of getting to a Home Guard or not. Uh, some have the insecurity of getting to IAS or IPS. So after selection, there is a lot of overthinking. Before selection, there is a lot of overthinking. So don't think that these insecurities are going to end once you enter into service or get selected. So if you, if you frame these insecurities as a normal part of your life, it will become easy to manipulate, to maneuver. But like, don't let the insecurities get into your head. It's very normal to feel in a particular day. It's very normal to not study one day. It's very normal to just uh, roam around for one day. It's okay. But I think not getting bogged down because of the insecurities. That's what I want to say.

And uh, you know, the basic uh, question that really bothers the minds of students is, uh, how many hours should they study every day? Per maybe, sir, I always did target-based study because I have been in service from 2021, in a service in which you don't get time. I conducted elections. I was AR for another Panchayat election. I was AR for Lok Sabha elections. So I had a lot of work to do. I think number of hours doesn't matter. It is the targets that matter. If you have the target, like in a week, you want to finish this much section of a GS3 paper. If you achieve that in 2-3 days, you can ease upon for the rest 2-3 days. So I think I did target-based study for that. I mean, there is no fixed uh, uh, sir, if I count number of hours, then at some times it might have reached to 14 hours, it might have reached to 4 hours. So there is no, uh, constant number of hours that I studied.

And should they be preparing simultaneously for both the prelims and mains, or should they be segregating?

No, no, no. Uh, I think you have to select the main subjects that you must complete before prelims. One is optional, you should complete before prelims. Other is ethics. These two, if you prepare before prelims, you will give after prelims time for answer writing for these. And rest of the GS1, GS123 can be prepared after prelims also because you anywhere you are referring to the prelims notebooks, and these are the basics for mains also. So I think you should prepare optional beforehand and ethics beforehand. Rest can be prepared after prelims.

Yes, in prelims, in a GS paper one, out of 100 questions, how many questions you have targeted as such?

Sir, again, it's a very relative question because I never went inside an examination center with a mindset that I have to attempt 90 questions. That was, that was never in my mind because it depends upon the toughness of the paper on that day. I remember in 2021, I got 12 something in prelims. I attempted only 74 questions. So I think you have to find your own flavor, and that can be found only after solving mocks. Suppose if you solve 50 mocks, you will come to a conclusion that your hit ratio is more better if you solve 85 questions. Your hit ratio is more better if you solve just 70 questions. So you have to find your own strategy, and it also depends upon the toughness of the exam on the given day. So it's very variable. Last year the cutoff was only around 76 marks. So how many questions did you? I attempted 73. 73, 73, and I think I got 51 correct. 50, 51 correct. Okay. This year also the cutoff is around 87 marks, 80. This time, sir, since I didn't prepare well, I attempted 90 versions. Okay. And also prelims was better as compared to last year. Okay.

And, uh, you know, in prelims, you know, there are so many subjects there, polity, economy, history, geography. So what are the ones which you have focused most?

There is a huge weightage for polity and economics, and also the questions can be solved very easily if you are calm. So I think you should not, you should not uh, mark incorrectly those questions which others are marking correctly. So this is how you be in a competition. Suppose if a question comes on Article 19, and if you, if you mark incorrectly, then the person next to you is marking correctly, you are already out of the competition. So I focused more on huge weightage questions like polity, economics, and less on questions like uh, science and tech, because science and tech is more of applied questions. Mostly the answer is "all of the above," but not now. So it can be, it can be answered that way. More like, keep your mind open, just think like in a real life, can this be happen? Because in UPSC, options are set in that way. If you keep your mind open, keep it applied, not just focusing on what you have learned in the preparation, but also the applied part. So you can solve many questions with common sense also.

And all of them are preparing for the first time. So what kind of advice can you give to them so that they can clear this examination in their first attempt?

It's, it's good to clear in the first attempt. All the best. People have cleared every year. People clear. I don't know how, but they do clear. And so the one advice that I want to give, um, I come from engineering background. I studied in IIT. I had, I have seen all the glimmers in life. But I went to Delhi. When I went to Delhi, I stayed in a very small room. My day started at 6:00 a.m. I went to coaching. I went to library. I returned from library by 10 or 11 at night. I used to get my food packed from a roadside vendor. I just go inside my room. So what I want to say for those 2-3 years of your preparation, you have to be cut from the rest of your life. Like I never used WhatsApp for 2 years, from 2021 to 2022 maybe. So you cannot, you cannot give your time to everything. You have to find out your preferences. This time, your priority should be the exam. All everything, your friends, your family, your close ones will wait. They will post your status when you select, once you are selected. So this is how life is. People value only if you are selected. So you have to gain that value once you are selected. Then rest of things can be followed upon. Rest of things, your WhatsApp, your Instagram status can be updated daily. But I think social media is one thing that I stayed away from. That's very important. Okay.

And uh, for answer writing, you know, did you write many answers or did you focus on writing quality answers?

Sir, this time I focused a lot on answer writing. And sir, fortunately, I got a very good mentor this time. And if you want, I can share the contact. Okay. So I was his one and only student. Mhm. And fortunately, fortunately for me also, fortunately for him also, I got this rank. And sir, um, I solved around, I think 350 to 400 questions, theme-based, only 10 questions for IAD, everything like this only. Then FLTs for that question. That mentor. And sir, there are many institutions like this also which organize the offline mocks, the simulation part. So I solved around three major coaching simulators offline. I gave one in Gorakhpur, I gave two in Delhi. So I think if you do a dry run before prelims, your body gets used to of that stress that you're going to face for 5 to 10 days of mains examination because it's, it's very physically challenging also, writing 3 years in 3 hours in the morning, 3 hours in the evening. You have to get your thoughts, your uh, knowledge flow continuously because if you are stuck in one question, you will leave two or three questions in the end, and that will put you out of the competition. So I think, sir, this is how I practiced. I saw a lot of mocks individually also, and the simulators also. Okay.

Now, I think let us take questions from the students. What do AIR 2 Harsha Goyal and AIR 3 Dongre Archett Parag have in common? Apart from securing top ranks in UPSC CSE 2024, they both began their journey with the general studies foundation course at Vision. They didn't wait to feel ready. They built readiness step by step with structure, strategy, and support. If you are feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or unsure where to begin, that's not a flaw. It's a signal. A signal that what you need isn't more hours. It's a better direction. And that's exactly what the Vision is GS Foundation course is built for. Here's how we guide you from day one. Structured step-by-step learning, prelims, mains, CSAT, and essay. All taught in a way that's easy to absorb and hard to forget. No fluff current affairs. PT365 and Mains 365 filter out the noise so you focus only on what matters. Mentorship that adapts to you. Real one-on-one support to fix your weak spots, refine your strengths, and build your confidence. Test plus feedback loop. Not just marks, but meaningful feedback that helps you grow with each attempt. So don't just prepare harder, prepare smarter with the same foundation that built toppers. [Music] You know, whatever the doubts you have regarding uh, the preparation, you can uh, uh, ask him. Uh, this is a good question. And I think everyone has their individual uh, way of doing it. My way of doing it, like I told you, I used to scribble everything. In the five days of gap that I had before Anthro, I filled two rough copies of this much thickness. I have this habit of reading and writing everything. So once you read and write everything continuously, it gets into your subconscious. So this is how I remembered everything by writing everything. I cannot just close the book after reading. I have to write. This is how I gain confidence also. So this is my way out. You can find your own way out. This is one way out. I think that means you prepared a synopsis of everything that you have studied.

Sir, for NCERT, I didn't prepare a synopsis. I read directly from the NCERT. But after multiple, multiple readings of NCERT, every page was by heart. Okay. Yeah. And for the for other topics, for example, newspapers. Hmmm. Newspaper, I prepared notes. No, you prepared notes. Okay. Every day you prepared the notes, and before the examination, you revise that notes. Yeah. Yeah. Every day I prepared notes. I added it with an institution's daily current affairs so that if anything is left out, that can be covered. And before exam, I used to revise it intermittently also. Once in a week, I used to revise. And then after, like I revise, I think 20, 30 times maybe. So everything got imbibed. It used to come automatically. This is how you become Baba.

And, uh, what are the government sources that you have referred?

Uh, sir, for every bill, I refer to PRS summary. Okay. Like suppose if any bill comes today, you can by the evening, you can take the PRS bill summary. One, one-page summary. And similarly for budget, you can take PRS bill summary, sorry, budget summary. For Economic Survey also, they will have a summary. I referred all the government sources that are available online.

Any, uh, ministry reports?

No, sir. Uh, people usually read this Yojna, Kurukshetra, and all. I didn't refer to it because I think I was in service also. So I think what I am thinking, that must also have been written in the book also. Okay. So I used to write what I used to think right, and I hope that it is also written in the Yojna, Kurukshetra report.

This is, so did you read this India Year Book?

No. No, you don't get time also. Yeah. Okay. So time was the most challenging for for me. So I was not able to refer to all the materials, but whatever I had in my hand, I revised it incessantly. I think revision, confidence is the key. So any other questions? Yeah. [Music] I didn't stay calm for two attempts. I failed in CSAT. So this is the evidence of not staying calm in prelims. Once you're failing CSAT, how many of you have given attempts, UPSC attempts? Anyone? You can raise. It's okay to fail. I think one person. Okay. Yeah. So, uh, what happened on that day? My paper one went well, but it was a very random paper. So you should not start calculating marks after paper one. This is one thing. You should not start googling things. I have marked this in paper one, and I got this wrong. So you should not do this. You should just focus upon giving the next CSAT paper. I, people usually falter in CSAT because once you don't solve four or five questions of maths, you start panicking. So this is how I improved myself in the further attempts. And for staying calm, you should have a nice sleep before the exam. You should eat and drink well on the exam day. Usually it's in the summers. So it's very important. Stay at a very comfortable place. Whenever you go for an exam to a center, spend money to stay at a very good place. So what, this is what I did for mains also. I spent a lot in for a hotel. I stayed in a very good hotel because the ambiance also impacts you. Suppose if you are going for a main paper, and the receptionist uh, talks rudely to you, it will get into your head. So don't allow anything to get into your head before the exam. This is how you cut the clutter. You cut the clutter by staying away from your phone. You cut the clutter by staying away from negative people before the exam. So this is how you stay calm. You can follow meditation also. I didn't follow. You can follow. This is how people suggest. Uh, did you do any meditation or yoga? No, no, no. I tried.

You tried? I tried but I failed. Okay. Sometimes failure is also a good thing. Yeah. And now you can say it's a good thing. Yeah. Any other questions? Yeah. Uh, there are certain uh, I think bullet points that I will state.

Once one is, if you are able to complete a paper, that is one thing because completing paper in mains is the most, it's the most important thing. Second is, if you are able to write all the questions above averagely, not best answers, because in, in the actual exam, nobody's writing the best answer. It's a game of relativeness, okay? You have to be in the above average slot. That is the second thing. Third thing is, you have completed all these sections of the GS papers syllabus. These are the three things. First is all the, every part of the syllabus. Second is completing all the papers. Once you achieve this, this level, you can, you can be ready for writing the mains exam.

It happens in prelims also to. Whenever you set for a prelims, you hardly know, I think, 25, 30, 35 questions, but you have to attempt 80 questions. So, how you do that? I will tell separately for prelims and mains. For prelims, you do that by solving lot of mocks. When you solve mocks, in mocks also, they have many bouncer questions. So, for every bouncer question, see, this is a game. Prelims is a game. You consider this as a computer game. There are four options. So, you have to find the right one. So, that can be done one by the knowledge, by a lot of practice. Once you do a lot of practice, you subconsciously generate the knack of finding the right option. That right option will eventually start blinking after you write. This, this much you solve the mocks. So, I think some mocks are the key for prelims.

For mains, I think everything is coming from a point of a syllabus. Be it a random question, but its root are from the syllabus. You have to identify that root. You have to address the question what has been asked in a very simpler language. And even if you don't know, write something. Okay. Don't leave the answer. Write something. Like in the paper one, there was one question regarding uh, twister this time. Yeah. So, I was blank. I was like, something which twists must be twister. What twist in geography? The tornadoes and cyclones twist. So, I, I wrote about tornado. I drew, there was Gulf of America or something. So, I drew the map of Gulf of America. I was very good at mapping. I drew a tornado doing clockwise something in the map, and it was true. It was correct. So, this is how you interpret the questions from the terms. So, stay calm. If you are finding any random question in mains, that means everyone is finding that random question in mains. That is not something which is the scoring ground for everyone. You just need to survive that question. So, this is how you survive, but not leaving it blank, but writing something. You have an evaluator. My mentor used to evaluate continuously. Initially, I, I never had a problem with speed per se, never had a problem with language per se, but content-wise, I had a problem. I used to write like six, seven, eight line of introduction. That's not good. Uh, so eventually, once you get poor marks in mocks, you improve. Then your mentor, your teacher suggests you to improve further. You read more material because content is also very important. Once you, once you get an edge on the content, your expression also improves. So, this is a very slow process. It's an ongoing process that you have to go through. Evaluation is very important. You cannot just write and set it. You have to get it evaluated.

How many of you have chosen your optional? I am here to talk about anthropology. Four or five of you might take anthropology. So, this is how the downward filtration theory works. So, this is how I chose anthropology and I have been, I have been very true to it also. Like after two, three attempts, people think that now it's time to change the optional, but I think anthro has a very good blend of biology and good blend of diagrams. If you are good at drawing, it's very good. And if you are good at uh, science, it's very good. If you are good at understanding human society, tribal society, it's very good. So, it has everything what, what you, what you may like. Because every optional will have a certain section which people don't like. So, it's not like one optional, you will like everything about optional. You have to survive with that optional. You have to love that optional. And once you give a decent amount of time, it will give it back to you. That's it. That's how it works. Every optional is good. Sure.

How to analyze previous questions? See, what I used to do? I, I used to sit with the all the previous questions. I used to sit with the syllabus. Then I used to sit with a blank A4 sheet. Then I wrote, key, this section of a syllabus has been asked in four questions. I used to write this. This section of the syllabus has been asked in two questions for the past this much year. Now, you are also getting the uh, previous question analysis printed also. I think many institutions are doing that. I did actively. So, this is how you find out which section of syllabus is more important over the year. So, you prioritize those sections. Suppose internal security is important because it gives you three questions, 215 marker, 110 marker. So, this is how you set the preference for your preparation. So, this is how the previous question helps. Once you prepare that theme, you write those previous questions. So, this is the way out. This is how previous question helps.

You have to, you have to do a guesswork in prelims because the odds are always against you. So, uh, if you solve four questions and uh, you mark three incorrect, one correct, scores are level. But what if out of four, you got two correct and two incorrect? That adds to your total score. This is how the maths of prelims work. So, you have to do guesswork. That guesswork should not be blindly. It should not be like 1, 2, 3, 4, C. It should not be like this. It must be you. The guesswork, guesswork works once you start eliminating the options. So, prelims is about finding the right option. How you do that? Do that by eliminating the wrong options. So, the guesswork comes from knowledge. It's not random. That's how we call it knowledgeable guesswork. It's a guesswork. But knowledgeable guesswork by doing, by elimination technique, you eliminate the options. You see the options, then you further eliminate, you come down to two options, then you take a guess work. High probability of getting the questions correct. It comes with the practice. So, there is always a concept in philosophy, in quality, because if, if they are asking a philosophical question, there is a concept that emanates from a particular section or particular judgment and all. So, I think uh, those would be classified as a tough questions under quality, but that can also be answered if your basics are strong. So, I think you should make your basics so much strong that you are able to link every question to its source. Because questions are never out of syllabus. And even if the question is tough, you can leave. No one is asking you to see, solve the 100 questions. You can, you can, you can easily succeed after solving 75, 80 questions. You have to frame your mind that way. People are solving 100 questions, but I think that's highly risky. So, you need not to be 100% uh, learned for the prelims part. You just have to qualify the cut-off. So, you can use Google also. Now, you can, for example, if any term is very tough, you can do the Google. You can read the background part of it, then write it in the book itself. This term means this. So, you have to do this work for first time only, then for multiple revision, it will be easy.

Answer one important thing I want to add. This time, I use Chat Jeopardy also a lot for mains. I will give you example. Since I had less time, so I had, I didn't have time for referring to this ancient notes, medieval history notes for mains. I, there was one day I was sitting in office. I, I just wrote, key, this time Palawa's questions can be asked in mains. I wrote it. Chola is also important. I wrote it. Then I went back to home. I did Chat GPT of 10, 10 points for all these things. And Palava was asked for 10 marks. Chola was asked for 15 marks. Mhm. So, this can be your intuition also. This can be your luck also. But this is how you use technology for your benefit. Similarly, there was one question for anthropology. The, that applied section of anthropology, forensic anthropology. There is a one topic in paper one, forensic anthropology. So, I was not having notes for it. For forensic anthropology, the, the very last night before exam, I was lying on a bed for sleeping and I took my laptop. I did the Chat GPT for forensic anthropology. I just had a single go of reading and that question came for 20 marks. So, uh, this is how you, uh, give less pain to your brain and get lot of content and knowledge by using technology. I think Chat GPT is one thing that can help. Adding to what all I said, you have to make a timetable, not in a form like, you will wake up at 6, you will drink coffee at 6:15, not like this, but a, but a like a brief schedule. You will read anthro for two, two hours in a day. So, because you have to give time for everything. And for more important things, you have to give time more repeatedly. For less important things, you have to give time weekly or monthly. So, this is how you prioritize things depending upon what is being asked previously. This is how, this is how you come to a conclusion after analyzing the previous questions. So, you have to give time to everything. As you rightly said, uh, and it is up to you to set the number of hours that you want to. But everything is important.

No questions from this side. In college. Sorry. Not enjoying in college. [Music] It's too early. [Music] Mine was also to clear in first attempt. Yes. Yes. So, I think I have some extra time. Yes. As a fresher, you should prepare your basics now. You should, you should not read current affairs because I think after 4 years, current affairs will not be current anymore. So, you should focus only on the basics. Read only NCERTs. Have the habit of sitting for longer number of hours. Have the habit of reading books because I think how many of you have the habit this hobby of reading uh novels and magazines? Like I never read any single novel because I was not having this habit of reading books. So, if you have it's good. If you don't have, you generate the habit of reading at this level and read NCERTs. Enjoy life. That's it. Things will eventually become difficult over.

Okay. So, how to make notes on uh, it's uh, initially I used to make very long notes, but uh, steadily, once you are well aware of the syllabus of UPSC, once everything, it starts clicking to your mind while reading a topic. Suppose, for example, in a newspaper, there is a new species of frog that has been discovered. Then how you do it? You Google that species. You find the IOC status of that species. You find the endemicity of that species, whether it's endemic to India, South Asia, Southeast Asia. Then you find any initiative that is going on to protect that species. So, this is how you prepare for prelims. So, this comes only after when you are well-versed with what is being asked in prelims. That can be done previous questions, mock test papers, because it will not come from day one of reading newspaper. On day one, you will be reading anything, anything. So, this is not going to help. But over the time, your uh, reading habit will get filtered. Your notes will get filtered. You have to be just patient and just stick to that. It will come. It will come on its own. But be thorough with the syllabus part. Anything else on anything apart from preparation also, like how to, how to challenge, how to tackle when you are not feeling like studying? What to do when you don't feel like studying? What to do when you feel the guilt that you have not studied for a day? And uh, what to do when you score very less marks in mocks? All these things, you know. Let me ask one uh, uncomfortable question. What are the specific mistakes that you have committed in your preparation which you don't want them to commit? Sir, first thing is, don't consider CSAT lightly. It has costed me two attempts. Because even the IAs are failing these days, like me. Okay. So, so my friends have also failed. So, I think don't consider CSAT easy paper. It's good to spend more time on paper one, but also do the needful for CSAT. So, this is one thing. I forgot the question. It was this was only, yeah. You know what are the mistakes? And other, another mistake that I did is not, not doing the answer writing. That's how I got very low rank last year. I didn't do the answer writing. You can do the answer writing once you have sufficient content. Not enough content. If you have the sufficient content, you can start your expressions, your thoughts to flow on paper. It may be a very bad answer on the day one, but at least, at least start writing. This is how you generate this habit of completing the paper. Completing the paper is most important. So, I think this is one mistake that I did. And uh, other mistakes that we all do at this age, that's one mistake. So, this is, these are the mistakes.

Did you ever feel overconfident, sir? Uh, overconfident, I won't say, but I was confident for the personality test part. Okay. That's nice. And I was feeling most challenged during mains because in mains, you have to keep your, keep your, effort continuously for 9, 10 days. And even if the first paper goes bad, according to you, that's also important because there are many candidates who felt that their paper went bad and their marks are good. So, it's not, it's not important that if you are feeling your paper went bad, it will result in bad marks. And the vice versa is also true. If you feel that you have done very well in exam, your marks might be below average. So, this is the uncertainty that you have to live with it. Because what happens, we often feel short of our efforts. We don't do what it actually takes. We consider that whatever we know that is sufficient, but that's not sufficient. So, that results in a poor results that is eventually reflected in your mark sheet also. So, I think uh, this is, this is what needs to be done.

And which part of the examination, prelims or mains or interview, which you find it very challenging or difficult, sir? Once you don't qualify prelims, prelims feels the most challenging part. Once you qualify prelims, mains becomes the most challenging part. Okay. And once you reach to the interview, then you start feeling that, oh, I have qualified mains, I did this much. What if in those 30 minutes are not for me? Because it's highly subjective. So, you start feeling anxious for the interview part. So, I think it depends upon the position, the place in which you are in this exam process.

Since 2021 onwards, you have been in services. Uh, does this feeling of being in services help you to know overcome your uh, insecurities and fears? It helps because you have the option. And that option is a good option. I, I think in South, the state service is very well rewarded. So, does in UP also. So, the state services are very good. And many of you can give it as option also, your state service. I had this backup in my mind also. Okay. I have a very good service. Eventually, if things don't go well, I, I am already at a good place. So, it helps. So, you suggest them that they should also be preparing simultaneously for? Yes, sir. Because I gave state PCS and UPSC together. What people tend to do, they, they often do away with four or five attempts of UPSC and then go back to it, state service. So, it's better to start early. It's better to give both the exams. It's not that if you are giving UPSC, you won't be able to qualify your state service. Most, I think most of the exams are on the same pattern, just that the regional language gets added up. So, the Hindi got added up in UP and likewise in other states. I think both the exams are good. Sir, and sir, being in service also helped me in this personality test. Like, I would like to discuss two, three questions that I was in personality test. I was working in Gorakhpur. I was the sub-collector there. I, I conducted elections also. I conducted many VIP visits also. They asked many questions that are applied. They asked me the application of anthropology and civil services. So, that can be answered in a very, very formal way also. How the toppers are talking, how the content is being given in the institutions. But what I said, I said that when I was working in a subdivision, I got this issue from a village regarding a dominant caste. We were not able to find the underlying cause. Then we used this X concept of anthropology for solving that problem, and this is how I solved this issue. So, by doing the service for two, three years, your answers become more analytical, more applied, more close to the ground reality. So, this helped me for increasing my marks from 182 to 193. So, I think this helped also.

NCERT preparation is not a separate preparation. These are your bread and butter in these days. You have to read NCERTs only at this stage and you have to be thorough with the NCERTs. And how you read NCERT? You read it for the first go. You have to read it line by line. Then you go to the previous questions for like 8 to 10 years. Then you will find out, okay, this section of the NCERT is more important. This is less important. After second reading, you will focus more on the important areas. After third reading, you will start to learn those areas. Then after further readings, it will get solidified in your brain. This is, this is a, this is ongoing process which you filter it along with the previous questions and the question papers.

So, what is this significance of PQS, previous year questions, in both prelims and mains? Sir, it provides a trend which is going on for the examination. For example, if the, in, in mains per se, if the world history questions are hardly there. So, you get the, thought that it's not that important if you compare it to the society, because there are five, six questions from society. So, from previous questions, as I already mentioned, you can set the preferences of the most important things that you have to do first. And so, this is how previous questions help to get the taste of UPSC and also get the preference of list that you have to prepare.

So, you are interviewing me now. Uh, you took mechanical as optional. Graduation. You can take other options also. Like, because mechanical engineering, if I being honest, because syllabus is very huge in mechanical engineering. It has both the, theory. I am from mechanical engineering. It has both the theory part, the applied part, the, strength of material, design of material, or numericals, heavy numericals are there. So, I think it's better to take optional for which material is easily available, guidance is easily available, and it's scorable also. And you don't, because you have to give lot of time for GS also, so you have to trade very strategically in this exam, not emotionally in this exam. If you are emotional for mechanical engineering, you should go for engineering services. Because, because there are nine papers in mains examination, you have to give equal weightage to everything. If you give more time for mechanical engineering and less time for GS, eventually it will reflect in your scores. So, I think think strategically. If you are very good at mechanical, you can take mechanical. People have cleared with top ranks. But then it is, it is you who have to decide your own position in mechanical engineering and then whether to take it or not. My suggestion is this. So, any other questions?

Paper two is more, more related to Indian society. It's more of applied part, more section. Comfortable in Hindi. Okay. So, uh, for paper two, as I referred to, I referred to only one source that I mentioned. And in that source only, there are, descriptive notes for every topic in paper two also. So, I prepared it. And for tribal part, you have to refer to the government, this, reports. Like we have Jada report, then we have, Diwal committee report. All these reports, if you quote in an answer, they will give you good marks. So, this is how you prepare for paper two. One is the basic source. The other is the government report for tribal part.

Do you have any reason for giving this exam? This can be any reason. Do you have any reason? I'm not asking the reason. Do you have any reason for giving this exam? You have a reason. So, you think about that reason why you started. And it's okay to not study eight hours every day because there, there will be time when you feel like not studying the whole day. And what you do on those days, you revise things. Don't study new things. Just revise your notes. You do the newspaper leisurely. Don't, don't just waste your day completely because it will, it will lead to piling of guilt the next day. Do something. Just do the normal revision. Solve four, five time questions. Read the newspaper. That's it. Don't leave your day completely. And the next day, the day further, you can add up to the what have you left in the previous days. So, no, like it's not a constant study schedule which is there because it has been with every top, with every person. No one feels it's not a very happening thing. Okay. So, it's not like you will feel very happy, now I have to study 8 hours. So, you have to do, you have to sit, you have to, you have to like trap your mind for sitting for 8 to 10 hours. So, it's very normal to feel like that. It never, it never happens. The guilt is always there in preparation. The day you are going for exam, you'll have this guilt that, oh, have I should have studied this also. I have this guilt that I should have got more marks in essay. My rank would have been under 50. So, you have this guilt. It's very human nature. See, think these things as a very normal thing. It happens with everyone. Anxiety, guilt, fear, frustration, not, not achieving your goals and targets. It's very normal. All it takes is the consistency, discipline. Every day you have to train yourself because if you leave your study table for 2, 3 days, it will be like starting from zero. It's better to just keep crawling on some days, moving fast on some days, eventually things will work.

I think I have mentioned that you have to be uh, thorough with the syllabus part per se, then make notes which you think can be as an exam based upon the syllabus. I made notes only for the current affairs. I didn't make notes out of NCERT because I think every page of NCERT is important. So, NCERT itself is a note. I separate books for spectrum and all. No, I didn't make notes. I was thorough with every page of a spectrum. So, this is how you prepare for prelims. You have to be very thorough because I think I had this habit of keeping the old edition only because the new edition was very bulky. My friend said, let's purchase the new edition, but I was sticking to that red color old edition that because that was thick, that was a little bit thin. So, after multiple times revising, highlighting everything, writing everything in the, book, the book becomes very close to you. Don't feel like preparing a separate note out of it because I feel everything is important. So, if you are good with preparing notes for everything, then it's up to you, but I think you should stick with the NCERTs and standard books with the book per se. Everything is important in that those books.

Sacrifice, did you make to clear this week? How to change the main? Something sacrifice? Yes, sir. Like what are the people, what are sacrifices you have made to prepare for this examination? Yeah, one which I told that you have to stay away from the social media. If you call it a sacrifice, then it is a sacrifice. I don't think it's a sacrifice. All these are the, all these are the contributions that you are making for your own life. These are not sacrifice. All these are not going to vanish from the world. They will be there. Okay. Once you become IA or IPS, all these will be there to praise you. And if you don't, they will be there to curse you. Okay. So, I don't think there is anything we call it a sacrifice. All are contributions. If you are staying away from your friends, it's a contribution for your own better self. It's not for, it's you are not doing charity for someone else. You are doing, uh, you are contributing for your own success. So, don't think it as a sacrifice. It's a contribution for your own better life.

Sir, I referred to a material by an institution and those materials were very, like if you meet me offline, I will tell you. Okay. So, I think, uh, because see, the, the dynamic part in all the GS papers, you cannot refer to standard books for everything. That's very given. Everyone refers to certain material. So, it is up to you to which material you are more comfortable with, to which material you are more easily able to imbibe. So, you have to study, you have to read a particular material. That material I can communicate to you. You can, you can, uh, take it from any other topper also. And if you meet me outside, I will tell you.

Sir, see the mark trend on a, on a formal side. See the marks, 10, how it has been because you have to clear this exam. You, you need not to do PhD in a particular subject. So, select three, four optionals first, like anthropology, PSI, sociology for an example, and geography. Suppose you have prepared. Now, see what has been the marking trend in the past years. See how the sources are available for these optionals. So, you do these five, six points of work beforehand to come to a particular optional. And the moment you will start reading an optional, this thought will continuously come to your mind that, no, no, this is not good, let's shift to our next optional. But that, these are the testing times. If you are sticking to one subject for a long time, it will yield results. You have to do it the right way, that's very obvious, but you have to stick to a particular subject. So, as already said, that every option is good. Every option is bad if you don't do it. So, like, I won't say take this optional, and if anyone says to you, that's wrong thing to do. Because ultimately, you have to choose an optional depending upon your own, own interest, and you have to be honest throughout that optional. So, this is how you choose the optional. Understood. Understood.

See, uh, there is nothing, there is nothing in this examination called engineering versus arts group students or engineering versus BSC students. It's about individuality. See, I have seen very brilliant students from arts background and I have seen very below average students from engineering background. So, it is up to you how you have, how you have made your own personality over the four years of engineering or three years of graduation. Regarding assistance in UPSC, I think it's the most leveler exam, if I would call. Yes, it has a clear set of this eligibility mark, and if you have that eligibility, you can sit in an exam. There is nothing called an edge for an engineering because if you have not garnered that edge by your hard work and efforts, there is nothing, there is no edge given. If you are from engineering, if you are from an arts background, so you have to groom your own self irrespective of the background you come. You have to be honest.

Ethics exam is very dynamically placed because if you have seen this year of question paper 2024, they have asked two, three questions in one question. Question questions itself were four, five, six lines. Exactly. All the 10 questions initially, and the case studies followed by. In fact, the question itself is 200 words, and you have to write answer in 150 words. Yeah. So, sir, by that thing, uh, do we have a board? Like, can I write something on this? Yeah, you can write it. Okay. So, uh, one thing that, that I think fortunately for you guys also, it happened, it helped me also. There is a certain, certain art of incorporating diagrams in every answer, in every question, especially in ethics. What I did, I will be explaining here also. For ethics, you have to be very true to yourself. Examples should not be just about rote learning from XY Z sources. They must be very real. The language must be very simple. You have to address every part of the question because if you miss a single part of the question, they will cut marks. You have to address every part of the question. You have to complete papers. So, all these things are very basic for, like, any GS papers and GS4. Yeah, you can write it.

[Music] Uh, sir, in GS3, if I could recall, the first question they asked that after this LPG reforms in 1999, uh, how the, how the policy have worked over the years for the social and economic development of the country, and what are the challenges that still persist. So, if you are writing it for a 10 marker, you don't have the time of writing it from 1991, this happened, then 2000, this happened, all. So, what I did, I drew a diagram. I drew a graph like this, and I did 1990. Okay. Then 2000, then 10, 20, and this is forward. Okay. Bear with this. Okay. Then I drew like this. I wrote the key schemes that were there in this phase, all the social and economical schemes, then in this phase, in this phase, and here it was like the evolution of social and economical schemes over the years. So, this is how you make the interpretation very, very precise. On the very first paper, the examiner is able to see this. That means he has the knowledge of expression. Similarly, there will be time when you won't be able to complete a question. And if I could recall, in ethics only, there was a question regarding the evolution of bureaucracy. How the bureaucracy has evolved? The bureaucracy of new India. What you foresee in a bureaucracy of new India? So, there was less time also. I think 1 minute was left. So, I just drew this. So, I drew this like this. This I wrote as a traditional bureaucracy. Okay. This is the bureaucracy of New India. What are the gaps? Flexibility, accountability, responsiveness, and this. So, this is how your bureaucracy has to move, something like this. So, I have a very good link of this diagrams. This is done by Animesh Pradhan sir of Lakia, rank 2. So, I went through his video and it helped. I think if you could incorporate these diagrams and all the GS papers, it's very good. I will, I will share the link. Yeah.

Online resources like, like if you, like there is a syllabus, syllabus can be not the syllabus which is given by UPSC, but syllabus from past year papers. Like number system is asked heavily, like 13, 14 questions are there, then series, while question, aptitude based questions. You prepare a syllabus, then you go to YouTube, search for any institute, sit there for 2, 3 hours, prepare a particular section, solve the previous papers. This is how you keep on. I won't be able to take names. I will tell you outside. I have. You want to become a follower? I will share you after. See, that that channel is just for sharing my notes. I will be sharing my notes there because it's easier way. This is how you use technology. Similarly, how you used. So, this is a way of sharing your notes. Anything else, question, you can ask because I have seen everything. Past 5 years, I have seen everything. So, you can ask anything. I'm not someone who has cleared in first attempt. Okay. So, you can ask anything. I can relate to everything also. It's very rich. Like working in a field is very rich. It makes you more confident. It may makes your risk-taking ability very good. So, I think this has been my added advantage. I would say I was fortunate to clear my state PCS in first attempt. So, I worked there for close to 3 years, and it helped me in mains, helped me in ethics, helped me in personality test. So, it's very good specific experience. If you want to know, I think that's not the purpose of this class, but overall, it has been very good. None. So, any other question?

[Music] Okay. So, I used to play computer games in my college. After that, I didn't get time, but I wrote computer games in DAFF. And now this domain of computer game has evolved a lot in India. We have esports, we have fantasy games, we have regulations coming every day. And now. So, I think that was one good thing, good hobby that I put in the, DAV. You have to be very strategic and calculative before putting a hobby in a DAFF because your whole interview might revolve around that hobby. Okay. So, discuss with many people before putting anything in that. And helping a hobby in preparation. I think if you have, if you have a hobby which you have been following for like 8, 10 years, it's very good. I never had such hobby, so I won't be able to comment on that. And, um, the next thing, sir, in DAFF, which I made a strategic call is that I, there is in convent schools, there is uh, one Model UN conference which is organized very frequently. So, my conference was very random, but I, in DAFF, I put the conferences on a small island nations. So, I narrowed the zone of asking questions. So, I prepared small island and developing states because my, the country that I got allotted was also a small and developing state. And it's very, very fascinating to study about SIDS also because they have their own challenges, their unique way of tackling it, their unique resources. So, I think if, if someone reads a DAFF and sees that the SID is written, then the questions will be asked obviously. So, this is how you use your experience, use what you have done properly for answering questions. So, this is, this is what you would do in your DAFF analysis and all. I mean, do they need to develop any kind of hobbies to clear this examination? No need to develop. If you have, you can continue. No need to develop a separate hobby because this exam itself is a taxing process. Don't develop a new hobby, otherwise you will be following that hobby only. Okay. Your main focus should be to clear this exam. That's it. Yeah.

For current affairs, I didn't refer to any magazine, a government magazine. No, no, I didn't refer to Yojana also. Everything gets covered in newspaper if you read it properly. Questions are also from newspaper because, because it has to be everything that is happening around is coming in newspaper. Don't add resources. Try to avoid resources and stick to particular resource. Be honest. If you're not honest with your friends, be honest with this preparation. Anything else? It's good to be selfish in this preparation phase. Seriously. If, if your friend is saying, let's go for a movie, it's okay to say no. Because that friendship won't help. Nothing will help. Only the value addition that you are making to your preparation is going to help. So, it's okay to sit idle for 2 years. Then you can go for a movie with a full VIP entry thing.

Did you have initially? When I was in coaching, I, I was there for just before COVID for 8 to 9 months. I was in Delhi. I had one only one, two friends. They were also good, and both of them were also selected in some of the other service. So, if it comes natural to you, like if you naturally attract one person, I hope you're understanding. If you're naturally attracting, suppose him as your preparation partner, that's okay. But don't force it. Okay. You have to be with someone for studying. It's not a compulsion. It must come naturally. If that person is adding value to you, that means it's organic. If not adding value to you, that means it's it's on compulsion. That should not be there. So, any other questions? I hope I was making sense. I have failed at, I have failed every attempt of this exam process. Failed at prelims, failed at mains. Not failed at interview per se, but both the positions are failed. You can ask anything regarding anything, like how to cope up the failures, anything. It's very important to know about failures also. We should not overlook them. We often think that we won't be able to, we won't be facing such situation. But what if it falls upon you? It can be anyone. What if it comes to you? You have to be, you have to be mentally prepared. Yeah.

In 2019, I started preparing and in 2019, UPSE prelims, I qualified. December. It happened on 15th of December. So, fortunately, I went into service very early in my preparation. So, that's how I wasted UPSC attempts initially because once you get into a service, I was very young back then. So, uh, you get lot of attention from people, start getting lot of attention from people, then you become complacent. Okay. So, that this all happened with me. But eventually, I realized that lot of big things can be done in life. When once you, once you go to a district as a sub-collector, you see many, you see many senior IAS officers, see IPS officers, then you think how much time you will take to reach to that place, whether you will be able to make it or not. So, it's better to do things well if you have age and time because after that, the only thing that will come to my mind that, so that should not be there. I think it's good to crack in the early years, but uh, if you're not able to, you should just stick to it and always have a plan B. I had the state service as a plan B. Many times, I think on daily basis, sometimes it is like this, and I think it must be happening with all of you. It is happening now. It happens, but it's a momentary thought, I would say. And um, I still remember 2020 summers when I used to sit in library, I like after lunch, I used to just sleep. And u, I feel like, why have, why have I chosen this field? I used to see different job openings and online. So, there will be days then what I used to do, I used to, I used to write my emotions. So, this is how you channelize them. This is, I used to write what I'm feeling, how, why I'm feeling this, what if I leave my study table at this point. So, you write four or five points. You write what you are feeling. If you keep a diary, a track like what you are feeling, just write it down. It will lower the burden from your brain and you will be able to focus more. But it's okay to give 20% on Sunday, someday, 50% on another day, 80% another day. It's very, it's very normal. Very normal to feel like that. Before results, nobody knows. Even uh, on results came, I think 2 p.m. on 22nd, and on 21st, I was hoping key, at least IPS. So, I was not hoping of getting a double-digit rank. I was hoping to get a good rank, but obviously not double digit. If someone says that he or she was hoping he will get under 50, I most of the time I think the person is lying because it is like that. You have written, you have done your part. Because not everything is in your hand. You have to be dependent upon luck. And how you, you, how you garner luck also, there's also a technique. People say now, you are very lucky. So, how you become lucky? You will, you become lucky by doing good for others. Okay. Like for four, five years, I have been in such positions where, uh, I had this opportunity of doing good for others. I did lot of, I'm not taking credit, but I did what is my service, but I did that very honestly because I believe a lot in good karma. So, you should always focus, you should not hurt someone intentionally. So, all these things eventually make your luck. And that luck will help you qualify a CSAT by one mark. Okay. Everything is linked. The universe is linked. Everything comes back. This is my philosophy. You might be feeling different, but I, this is my philosophy. Your confidence will fall upon you. You wouldn't be able to answer good questions. And similarly, if you go to a board, they ask questions from your DAFF, from your hobby, from your background, from your service, you feel very confident. So, this is also upon luck. So, I think luck plays a very important role in this exam. You should feel happy after writing your papers. That's it. Rest you leave on destiny. Then you will be able to complete only 10 questions. There is no time in mains. Like literally no time. I used to just keep my watch and the moment I get my paper, I used to just scribble like anything. You have to do that because if you spend one more minute in a one question, it will reflect on your last question. Okay? So, you don't have time to analyze the psychology of the examiner. You should not do that, but you should not also neglect that because it's a subjectivity of this exam. Leave it on destiny. Do your part. Leave rest things on destiny.

[Music] So, I think all your questions are answered and uh, I sincerely thank uh, Shivam sir for giving us this uh, his invaluable time to answer all your queries. I hope all of you have benefited immensely through this session and uh, follow his uh, suggestions regarding your preparation. Best of luck and thank you once again, Shiva, for your time, precious time, right? Thank you.