The burden of Satyam Gandhi’s father borrowing money to finance his expenses at an exorbitant interest rate from a local moneylender, Battukdev, haunted Satyam persistently. Fuelled by this financial challenge, he resolved to expedite his journey to scale Mount UPSC in the final year of his graduation. Starting his serious preparations in April 2019 for the CSE Prelims-2020, he enrolled in a popular coaching academy in Karol Bagh. However, the daily commute from Lajpat Nagar consumed precious time, prompting Satyam to bid farewell to his modest barsati.
His search for accommodation culminated in a small room in Regar Pura. This minuscule 10-ft by 5-ft space in a four-storeyed building, barely accommodated a single bed, a small study table and a chair. With no almirah, Satyam resorted to stacking his books on the floor and bed. Apart from the comparatively lower rent, the room’s greatest advantage lay in its proximity to his coaching centre.
Due to the precarious financial situation of his family, Satyam had capped his monthly budget at Rs 12,000, including the room rent of Rs 8000. It severely constrained his food budget, compelling him to opt for a modest tiffin service of two daily meals at Rs 65 per meal.
With coaching classes scheduled from 5.30 pm to 7.30 pm, Satyam initially attempted to balance college in the morning and coaching in the evening. However, the taxing routine left him with minimal time for CSE preparations. The expense of commuting to college added to his financial strain, too. So, he made the tough decision to attend college only for tests and submission of assignments.
Satyam’s approach earned the ire of many of his teachers who disapproved of his sporadic attendance. Their taunts, such as calling him “collector sahab” when he did attend, aimed to embarrass Satyam. Some faculty members attempted to humiliate him by asking particularly difficult questions in class and mocking him when he couldn’t answer.
However, these humiliations only strengthened Satyam’s resolve. He redoubled his efforts, studied harder and sequestered himself in his room to focus entirely on his studies.
Satyam’s approach to time management became a defining feature of his exam preparations. Each night, before retiring, he meticulously scrutinized the day, logging every minute spent on various activities. He would document this analysis on a sheet of paper, enabling him to assess time wastage, and gradually instilling a greater sense of discipline. Within two months, this practice became second nature to him, resulting in an increase in the duration devoted to his studies.
Even during his commute to college, Satyam utilized his time fruitfully by carrying reading material, studying in the metro rail and during classes. He arrived early for coaching classes to secure a spot in the front row. Though other aspirants engaged in casual conversations while standing in line, Satyam utilised this time to study his notes.
Satyam astutely recognised that many classes at the coaching academy were not productive, and he could cover these topics one-third of the time in self-study. Despite having paid a substantial fee of Rs 1.6 lakh, equating to Rs 500 per class, he courageously prioritised his time over monetary considerations. So, he attended only the sessions covering the topics he found to be challenging.
Understanding the time-consuming allure of social media, reels and short videos, Satyam deactivated all his social media accounts. These included his beloved Instagram, where he showcased his photography skills. This allowed him to maintain a sharp focus on his studies.
Satyam made a deliberate choice to distance himself from most of his friends, recognizing the significant time commitment involved. Upholding the principle of not squandering time at any cost, he believed that true friends would understand a temporary disconnection.
He maintained contact with only two friends, Harsh and Natansh. While Natansh was his college friend, Satyam had met Harsh at the coaching centre. He could reach out to Harsh even at odd hours to clarify doubts and grasp economic concepts.
Before embarking on his preparation journey, Satyam conducted extensive research, watched videos of IAS toppers and read their blogs and answer sheets. One crucial lesson he learnt was the importance of multiple revisions of books and notes. Additionally, he realised the significance of selectively reading from an optimum number of resources.
Satyam demonstrated a remarkable ability to plan the trajectory of his preparations over a six-month period. He broke down his targets into weekly and daily goals, encompassing the number of pages or chapters to be covered. He firmly believed that mere hours of study without specific targets would not lead to success. Instead, one must strive to achieve daily objectives.
During the initial few months, Satyam covered all subjects daily, making a concerted effort to meet his everyday targets before going to bed. In the event of any lapses, he reserved Sunday as a strategic day to bridge any gaps. Adherence to this rigorous strategy and hard work enabled him to revise each subject multiple times before the Prelims.
Moreover, Satyam carefully analysed topics to discern which ones carried a higher likelihood of featuring in the exam. He observed that some aspirants invested substantial time and effort for subjects like world history or post-independence history, which yielded disproportionately low returns. In contrast, focusing on subjects like polity, medieval history, economics and geography, known for easier and a higher question frequency, offered a more strategic use of limited study time.
Another key element of his strategy was the segregation of coaching study and self-study. Satyam believed that reviewing the day’s coaching material at home was counterproductive. Instead, he adopted an inverse approach, studying the upcoming coaching topics in advance. This allowed him to clarify doubts and gain a deeper understanding during the coaching sessions.
To stay updated with current affairs, Satyam followed a routine of reading The Hindu in the morning and the Indian Express before bedtime. While he initially read the entire newspapers, he later became more selective in his approach. Recognising the approaching mental exhaustion during the Mains exam period, Satyam stressed the importance of pushing one’s comfort zone well in advance.
Implementing what he referred to as the “adaptation formula” or “prepare-test-identify-weaknesses-prepare”, Satyam systematically worked on removing his weaknesses. He concentrated on the areas where he had scored lower. For topics where mistakes were recurrent, he delved into the basics to pinpoint and rectify the root causes of his errors.
However, he wisely avoided a common mistake made by many aspirants – taking mock tests too early in their preparation journey. Instead, he focused on building a solid foundation of knowledge before testing himself Satyam followed an integrated approach and carefully blended his Prelims and Mains preparation. He believed that a robust Prelims groundwork forms the cornerstone for Mains success.
For Mains, the basic books don’t suffice. Understanding this limitation, Satyam read supplementary materials such as the Yellow Book from Vajiram and the Value Added Material from Vision IAS. To enhance the quality of his notes, he simultaneously read from two books, placing one on each side and crafting integrated notes for each topic. Although time-consuming, this technique significantly enriched the depth of his study.
In September 2020, Satyam took a careful look at the UPSC Mains syllabus. He transcribed it onto A-4 sheets and pasted them prominently in front of his study table. This gave him a comprehensive overview of the topics and helped him in studying only the relevant topics.
Initially, he used bound registers for taking notes. However, Satyam soon recognized the impracticality of adding notes to them as his preparations advanced. Consequently, he transitioned to creating notes on loose A-4 sheets. It gave him more flexibility in accommodating notes from the evolving nature of study material from newspapers and magazines.
Excerpted with permission from Scaling Mount UPSC: Inspiring Stories of Young IAS Officers, Sajjan Yadav, Penguin India.
