Don’t let a small leak sink your Ship
Just like Life has its own Ups and Downs, CAT preparation is also a series of Good Days and Bad Days, and success belongs to those who know how to rise up from that bad day. The Preparation takes a hit when some other work is prioritized over the preparation. The CAT preparation goes back and forth when a CAT aspirant identifies gaps in their performance. Preparation keeps piling up on one side and on the other we try to reduce our workload and focus on preparing well.
What exactly is a BAD Day in a CAT Preparation?
In very simple words, a day when you could not achieve what you planned for and some other work/thing takes priority over your planned preparation schedule is a BAD Day in CAT Preparation. Be it your Boss calling in to take up extra work, end-semester exams, day-to-day chores, household emergencies, the pandemic situation or merely Laziness, many, if not all factors have sometime or the other taken priority over our CAT Preparation and hence, contribute to a BAD Day in CAT prep. Been there, Done that! You tend to finish your prioritized work by consuming on the hours you saved your CAT preparation and, in the end, you are either left with no time to prepare or you are too grumpy and dissatisfied with your time management that you do not want to prepare.
The journey till now was easy. Your priorities for the day changed and you steered through the day anyhow. But what is tougher and more important to focus upon is HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF WHATEVER IS LEFT? You can either pump up yourself and dive into your CAT Preparation or you can relax for the day and prepare well for the next day so that you can cover up the missed part on the next day.
Read on to find six useful tips that’ll help you to salvage your BAD Prep Day and give you kickstart for the next day. These few tips are just a subset of a lot of things that can be done, some might work for you, some might not! See what works for you and use that to leverage your day.
1. Do simple things.
Opt in for doing simpler and mundane things, things that you would have otherwise skipped convincing yourself that you clearly do not have time for it. Do not stress yourself out by taking on a heavy assignment. If you do not want to lose touch with your CAT prep for even one single day, then try to skip the difficult problems and solve simpler, easier questions. Take up a few Drill level tests within the 2IIM test dojo on your favorite topic (which you know you will get right for sure). If you have had a heavily-loaded work day, there are times when you still want to continue working and not sit with CAT prep. Do that. Get a portion of the next day’s work done so that you will have some extra hours to prepare when tomorrow begins.
2. Distract yourself from the monotony: Exercise or Take a Walk!
Do not get sucked in the monotony of the day. Break the loop of constant putting yourself down and go outside, take a walk or exercise. Distract yourself from the day that is already sunk and prepare for the upcoming day. Remember, it is impossible to build one’s own happiness on account of an unrewarding ONE day.
3. R.E.A.D.
As they say, reading transports you to another world. Pick up a book that you like or something that you’ve always wanted to read and dive deep in. It is not necessary that you are fueled by VARC Preparation Need to read a book. A taxing day can also be a good day to read. Just don’t pick up a huge or difficult piece, which you cannot complete and it makes you even more anxious. Keep it light, pick something that makes you feel-good. You can even pick up a genre from “Bharath’s Reading List” and start reading. You’ll be amazed on how much one person can read in a day!
If you are indeed in a mood to read a book and searching for good books to read, your search ends here! Watch this video where we have listed lots of fantastic books. Pick any one and get going!
4. PUZZLE Up!
Throw yourself in and solve a few easy puzzles. It will give you a sense of achievement without really taxing your brain. Solving an easy puzzle will help you end the day on a winning note. Your motive should be to end the day on a higher note so that you can have a better start to the next day.
5. BUCKLE UP for the Next Day.
This could keep you busy and yet prepare you for a power packed routine for the next day. It will also give you a sense of preparedness and accomplishment and you can have a great head start on your preparation which is to be done the next day.
Make a list of the things you need to wrap up, and allocate time to these topics. This could also include something as simple as organizing your books or study table, something which you have been postponing from God knows when!
6. Go to S.L.E.E.P.
Some days all you need is a Good Night Sleep. Kickstart the next day after giving ample rest to your body and mind. Switch off from all your electric gadgets and any thoughts about the Bad day from your mind and rest peacefully.
Do not just sit there with a book in your hand forcing yourself to finish a topic or two. To salvage the next day, it is important to have at least a 7–8-hour sleep. A good sleep routine is very underrated.
Plan on your schedule for the next day. Jot down the things you need to do and then go-off to sleep. With a good sleep you’ll wake up fresh and with a mindset and enthusiasm to take on the preparation rigorously.
If one or more work for you, its great! If it doesn’t, there will be a lot more things that you can do to turnaround your Bad CAT Prep Day! Find yours and dive deep into some serious CAT preparation. Remember, the only thing that will sail your boat is PERSISTENCE, PERSEVERANCE, and a POSITIVE ATTITUDE.
Cheers and All the Best for your CAT Preparation.
Vibhuti Sharma works with 2IIM as a Product head.
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