How to Stay Motivated During IAS Preparation

The civil services or IAS exam is one of the toughest exams in the world, not only because of the syllabus but also because of the examination cycle. It takes a lot for an aspirant to clear the exam and get selected.

How to Stay Motivated During IAS Preparation?

The civil services or IAS exam is one of the toughest exams in the world, not only because of the syllabus but also because of the examination cycle. It takes a lot for an aspirant to clear the exam and get selected. One should be highly motivated throughout the whole process. Along with the preparations it is quite challenging to keep yourself motivated at every stage of the exam. Throughout the journey of almost 15 months and different levels, one may feel depressed and stressed. But before you doubt your abilities and question yourself about setting a challenging goal. We are here with few tips to stay motivated during IAS preparations.

• Do what makes you happy: Enjoy what you do or do what you enjoy that will make you happy and will keep you motivated. If studying makes you happy you will enjoy it. And that will make you less stressed. Choose the subjects you truly interested in. Don’t take studies as a burden but take it as an opportunity to learn new things. Be curious about new things and generate interest that will make you happy.
• Get leisure time for yourself: Between all the routine life of exam preparation always find some leisure time for yourself. Watch movies, play your favorite sport, develop a hobby. Be innovative to engage yourself in different aspects of your personality. This “me time” will boost you and charge you for the challenges of IAS preparations at a different level.
• Be your own motivator: There is a famous saying “Push yourself because no one else is going to do it for you”. This saying is so true as you only have to make efforts to make your dream come true. This is your goal, so you have to make efforts to achieve it. Never rely on or wait for others to motivate you or remind you about your goals. Set your goals high and work hard to achieve them.
• Know your strengths: During the process of civil service preparation, you may doubt your strengths. You may feel you are not made for this or you are no up to it. It is natural to feel this during the long process of studying and preparing. Remind yourself about your strengths that will motivate you.
• Make a chart of your achievements: Make a chart and record your achievements no matter how small it is. If anytime you are feeling low this achievement chart will boost you and make you feel worthy of the process. Do it regularly and remind yourself that you have achieved a lot and further also you can do it.
• Surround yourself with positive people: Surround yourself with positive people and prefer making friends who motivate you no matter what. Make sure you have someone to talk to whenever you feel low or demotivated. A good conversation with positive people will always boost you and energize you for the real challenges.
• Know about great personalities: You may have less time to learn new things other than your syllabus while you prepare for IAS. But do learn and know about the great personalities and their struggles. That will definitely motivate you and will make you understand nothing comes easy. There will be challenges in many forms but don’t ever negotiate on your goals and aspirations.
• Be Thankful: Whenever you feel demotivated count your blessings. This will instantly make you feel happy and motivated. Be thankful for what you have and promise yourself to achieve for more.
• Regular evaluation: Evaluate yourself regularly. Take out time to evaluate yourself on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. This will make you realize where are you in terms of preparation and learn from your mistakes. When you know your growth process you will feel motivated.
• Be in present: Try not to be lost in your thoughts of “what will happen”. This is an endless cycle and you will always feel demotivated and stressed. Always be in present. Thinking about the past will make you feel depressed and thinking about the future will bring anxiety. So always think about now and prepare yourself for tomorrow.