The remarkable increase in the number of candidates attending the IBPS exam reveals the growing popularity of the exams conducted to fill up posts of specialist officer, PO, and clerk in the various nationalised banks of India.

Only a small percentage of the candidates manage to score high and get selected. This is mainly due to lack of proper preparation. Inadequate preparation increases stress prior to and during the exam, making you perform below your capacity. From procrastination to unfavourable circumstances, there are several reasons that can prevent you from performing well.

The level of difficulty of the questions makes the exam tough to crack for newbies as well as for those who already wrote it before. Here are some tips to help you prepare well and avoid stress on the exam day.

Motivation – The Key to Success

When you show interest in the preparation and motivate yourself to perform well, it is possible to succeed. To keep you motivated, the first step to take is avoid putting off things needlessly. Procrastination leaves you very little time for practice, resulting in unnecessary stress and anxiety during the exam. Delaying preparation leads to:

• False sense of security - you skip the study plan and lessons, later on, leading to inadequate practice
• Idleness leads to repeat of the same behaviour and you will not be able to spend time routinely for the preparation, which is must for scoring well

Once you have embarked on taking up a career in banking, you need to stay focused and adhere to a proper study plan. Disciplined and consistent approach is necessary. Motivation helps you achieve this.

Strategy Matters

Set appropriate milestones and long and short term objectives. Form a precise study plan that focuses on each section individually.

• For instance, as a short term objective, you can strive to grasp the data interpretation concept and score above 80% in the mock tests. For the long-term objective, you can resolve to score 90% in the numerical ability section.
• Create a practical study plan for every section and staunchly adhere to it.
• Try to achieve your milestone and when you do not do it in time, you will know your weaknesses and strengths, and work on them accordingly.
• Most important part is making the plan a realistic one, so you can achieve it effectively.

Take Criticisms Positively

While preparing, it is common for friends and family to put pressure on you. The best way to handle criticism is to stop objectifying negative comments targeted at you and instead channelize your energy on positive efforts. When you use the criticisms as a chance to excel, you can further boost your preparation level.

Last-minute Tips

• Avoid learning new topics towards the end. Instead, concentrate on the notes and topics you have already covered.
• Practice the hard questions and note down the errors you make.
• Pointers, tips, tricks, and formulas help in easy revision.

During the exam, make sure you read all the questions carefully before you choose the answer. Attempt the questions first you are confident about and move on to the difficult ones later. This will help you save precious time and leave you with more time to solve the hard questions. When you have prepared well and planned a good strategy on answering the questions, you will be calmer and relaxed. All the very best!