NEW INITIATIVE: Think Learn Perform (TLP) -2016

Think, Learn and Perform (TLP)- 2016

Hello Friends,

Hope your preparation is on track!

The dust of Mains must have settled by now. Are you sure of making through?

At least for the first timers this Main examination must have some lessons to take. Did you feel that despite deep preparation, your mind was choked in the examination hall?

Don’t you think UPSC has been unjust in selecting you based on mere 200 words presentation?

When you prepared and accumulated hell of knowledge, how is it justified to write content in the range of 200 words when you knew nothing less than 5000 words for the same question?

Many of you would have slogged for months doing writing practice and in the end the real experience came out to be completely different. Is it?

So what do you think your chances are? What do you think you lacked? What lessons have you learnt?

UPSC Mains syllabus is like an ocean. Its depth and length is unending. True! But there is always a way to sail through.

All of you must be aware that answer writing is an inherent and most important part of second stage of UPSC examination i.e MAINS. With the change in format since 2013, the shift is towards basic understanding, analytical approach and opinion based issues. These attributes will not come from endless reading or coverage of numerous books. It requires understanding of issues and analysis of the same.

When you prepare any issue or portion of Mains, you tend to follow traditional ways of doing it. And it is to cover everything you come across from static to dynamic from this note to that note & from this book to that book.

This exercise gives nothing but mere satisfaction that you are prepared and have left no stone unturned in covering the required stuff. But in real sense, most of you would have failed to understand the demand of UPSC.

UPSC will bowl a googly by asking a well know issue in a deceptive manner and you will be put to write within 200 words. Now the problem with many of you is to answer the question as per demand and that too within word limit. How can you maintain the consistency throughout the paper?

So, how to prepare according to the demand and need of this phase-Mains? Should I write and write and write to improve?

Definitely not!

Writing is very important but writing uselessly without having a proper understanding of the issue is like trying to cross the ocean via swimming when other alternatives like Boating & flying is available 🙂

Pause for a moment and think-

This examination tests your fundamentals. And the beauty of this examination lies in integration of thoughts, understanding of any subject in a broad perspective. It won’t come by following unidirectional study just to complete the subjects and sources.

You need to think and analyze more than simply studying.

Answer this-

If you are clear with any concept or issue then who will stop you to present it in the form of writing?

But in case your clarity is opaque then beating around the bush is imminent. And this is where your whole year’s hard work will perish in no time.

IASbaba’s Think, Learn & Perform (TLP) is a step towards developing set of skills required to improve your answer writing ability. We focus more on enhancing your thought process and analytical perspective. This can only be done through less reading (effective reading) and more thinking!

We started TLP-2015 with a segment known as High Order Thinking (HOT) where analytical questions were asked based on interconnected issues. Many of you who wrote Mains 2015 must have understood the importance of HOT by now.

When you are given 7 minutes to answer a question, there is every chance that deviation will happen. To organize your thoughts within 7 minutes is a gigantic task and nothing but “Thought Process” will come to rescue you.

Many of you complained that we do not provide references for the questions. Reason being- we do not want you to restrict your thought process and originality. When you see a question and then a reference for it, you rush to go through the link and confine your thoughts. Then while answering the question, the content will be nothing but a summary of the reference provided.

You need to understand the hidden talent in you. Try to explore your mind’s potential. It may take some time for you to realize that but once you do there is no stopping. Your strength lies in your unexplored potential. Try to explore yourself!

Even UPSC says “Your answer should be such that a layman can understand it as well. We do not want scholarly answers”

When thousands of aspirants are writing answer for the same question, how will you stand out? A simple fact is- everyone reads more or less from the same source 🙂

Carrying forward the same philosophy and importance of HOT questions, we are glad to announce TLP-2016 to be started from 5^th February 2016.

Every day 3-5 HOT questions will be posted (not exactly from the same day current affairs). Questions will be a mix of static and dynamic nature so that you prepare the whole issue there itself.

You can refer to previous segment of TLP 2015 to understand the importance of HOT questions and how did miracle to our Super -100.

http://iasbaba.com/2015/12/iasbaba-tlp-current-affairs-and-upsc-mains-hit-ratio-of-80/

IASbaba Team will surely be participating in timely reviews and synopsis as before. But in the end its you, who has to learn and improve. Just because synopsis will be provided many will rely on cramming from them. This is nearly delusional. You won’t be undergoing the required training then. And in the end “suffering”. So we would request each one of you to actively participate, get the reviews from IASbaba and also motivate each other by reviewing other’s answers.

All the Best !! Happy Journey 🙂

Team IASbaba