The Cat Chronicles
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Onefinedayoutofnowheretikurecieve sanemailfromamysteriousguycalledk ehsihbatheemailcontainsthesocalleds ecretstobeingabletodoingwellintheca The CAT Chronicles tandthesesecretsarenowforalltoshare A journey into the last month of CAT thesesimppleinsightshelptikudoextre melywellinhisexamandhencecrackcat afterwhichhegoesontoiimbandbecom esastudentwhoisverysuccessfulincorr ecttimethoughherememberstosharet hesamesecretsthatwerepassedontohi mbykehsihbaandwantstheseideastos peradfarandwidereadthisbookandap plywhatitsaysfullyandatthesametime passitontothoseyouthinkwillbenefito utofthisnowinsteadofreadingthisyou betterbereadingthebookrighthehehio 1
The CAT Chronicles
Abhishek Thakore
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The CAT Chronicles A journey in the last month of CAT Dedicated to You for undertaking this brave journey towards actualizing your dreams The CAT Chronicles Version 1.0 E-‐Book (c) Abhishek Thakore, 2009 as original author. Copyright Lisence -‐ (cc)(sa)(nc) This book is under a Creative Commons licence. You may freely distribute this book for non commercial purposes. If you do modify it or make derivative works, they too should be under the same licence.
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Preface I’d love to write a long preface to this book but I will just get to the point. Read this book. Then apply it. Then read it again. Then apply it even more. The entire idea of ‘gyaan’ is that it needs to be applied for results. Else its just a sheer waste of your time. And that time, in this last one month of CAT is precious. Thats it. Abhishek Thakore Mumbai November 2009
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Contents Preface................................................................................................................................................... 3 Ch 1: The end......................................................................................................................................... 5 Ch 2: The checklist ................................................................................................................................. 6 Ch 3 : The Mail ....................................................................................................................................... 7 Ch 4 : The Chat....................................................................................................................................... 8 Ch 5 : Take what applies ...................................................................................................................... 10 Ch 6 – Its not only in the head ............................................................................................................. 11 Ch 7 : The ‘game’ changes now ........................................................................................................... 12 Ch 8 : Push v/s acceptance .................................................................................................................. 13 Ch 8 : The strategy ahead .................................................................................................................... 14 Ch 9 : On the day tips........................................................................................................................... 16 Ch 10 : You can do it!........................................................................................................................... 17 Ch 11: The beginning ........................................................................................................................... 18 About the book.................................................................................................................................... 19 Epilogue ............................................................................................................................................... 20 The Inner Game of CAT.................................................................................................................... 20 About Abhishek Thakore ..................................................................................................................... 24 About The Learning Company ............................................................................................................. 25
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Ch 1: The end As he walked out of the exam hall, Tiku gave a satisfying look back at the center. There was a smile on his face. The CAT was over – at last! The effort that he had put in for a long year had at last fructified. Life was good again. His hands reached his pocket. ‘Gotta pick up the mobile phone and call up Kutty’ he said Moving out of his center at Jai Hind, he started to walk towards his favourite marine drive. The afternoon sun shone mercilessly on the stretch. The wind was cooling. Phone unavailable. Tiku’s thoughts raced back... He was on track to preparation – like any other typical student. He opened his journal to the first page – he had started to record progress only after Kehsihba had come into his life.
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Ch 2: The checklist Nov 1st The challenges I face: -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐
Fluctuating marks make me tensed up I don’t feel motivated enough I waste my time away doing other things I don’t feel that my prep is enough The pressure is just increasing I don’t know whose advice to listen I am not doing well at Quant but well in Verbal
He was like a typical student. But this was now only a month before CAT – and that meant that he needed to do something urgently to solve these issues! Actually he already knew most of his issues. But he was doing this because his elder sister Aku had asked him to do it. She said that someone called Kehsihba will mail him.
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Ch 3 : The Mail Dear Tiku, This is Kehsihba. You don’t know me but I am related to you by a chain. This chain is a chain of people who have passed on some very important ideas to each other. These ideas are called the CAT Chronicles. I know you through your sister who is a good friend. But before I start a little bit about me. I am a first year student at IIM Bangalore. Did my commerce at NM College in Mumbai and took CAT right after that. It was almost the same time as you are in now...just a month before my preparations...when I was contacted by someone by the name of Thakur. He, at that time was a first year IIM A student. And he too found me through a strange connection. At that very critical stage he passed me what he called the CAT Chronicles. Its a collection of very simple ideas – and yet they are as profound as they are simple. Add me as a friend on Gtalk and we shall chat about this. My email id is [email protected] Cheers! Keh
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Ch 4 : The Chat Tiku : Hey hi Keh : Hey hi Tikku, good to see you! So whats up? Tiku : Prep going on. But before anything ahead, tell me how did you spot me – or rather how did you select me to speak about the CAT Chronicles? I am really curious to know.... Keh : Heheh....actually this is like a kind of a tradition. These are ideas that were penned down years ago by some one from IIM A. It is rumoured that it was from the first batch of IIM A....I’d like to believe it was CK Prahlad who wrote these in his days there... Tiku : WOW! So whats the deal here? Keh : Well ever since then, these ideas have been passed. There is nothing new or exclusive about these ideas. Yet the way they are expressed in the Chronicles is unique. And every year they are passed onto someone who is preparing for CAT.... Tiku : So how do you choose who that person is? Keh : Well the way it is instructed in the Chronicles – you acquaint yourself with a circle of people who are taking the CAT attempt. Get some idea about them, and how they are performing. From those, pass it onto any one person who your gut feel points out to. Tiku : Hmm....life changing secrets hyped as ‘Chronicles’ huh? What if I tell you that I don’t need them – either ways if i am going to make it i will and if i am not going to make it i wont... Keh : Sure, suit yourself. I am forbidden to offer it to anyone else – so if it doesn’t get passed it dies. For every year since these started out these were passed – and were graciously accepted too. You don’t need to take them though. But remember at the same time that these are not some secret formula that will transform you overnight into a CAT champion. In fact the Chronicles themselves say that change doesn’t happen overnight. However what these will do is to help you – right now. Tiku : A month before the exams!! Keh : Yes. A month before. Thats when they are meant to be passed on. Anything earlier doesn’t work and anything later is pointless Tiku : So why create this hype of Chronicles and stuff? Why not just write a newspaper article and get done with it?
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9 Keh : Maybe because CKP believed in branding and exclusivity! Well seriously speaking these ideas do not resonate with everybody – coz not all are responsible enough to handle the ideas it speaks about. You are totally free to speak about these ideas to others – knowledge is to be shared. They are shared as chronicles and passed on to someone deserving (or who I believe is deserving!) is so that they are preserved and passed on.... Tiku : Okay kewl I get it. So whats the deal now? Keh : Nothing much. I pass you the Chronicles. You read them. You apply what makes sense to you. You discard the rest. You speak to people about it. And when you make it next year to your dream business school, choose a worthy suitor and pass it onto him. Tiku : Ah! So the secret formula to make it to IIM B? Keh : Not really! Not necessary that you get into the best B School in the country...but you will surely get into what you truly deserve – these Chronicles will streamline your attempt and give you that push which you need. I believe in you. And hence this knowledge is yours to keep Tiku : Hmmm...great! So that makes sense....I have made a list of my issues – do you want me to share them with you? Keh: No that was for your own reference... keep it with you and see how these chronicles work on those Tiku : Well thanks – so how will you pass it to me Keh : I will send it to you by email – as an attachment with a password. You will receive the password by SMS. Tiku : well you are making it sound totally mumbo jumbo cryptic Keh : Well thats how its meant to be done Tiku : Great! Keh : So cool then...stay in touch by email...and apply them! Tiku: Yeah cheers!
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Ch 5 : Take what applies Tiku unzipped the attachment he received. It opened into multiple word documents. He opened the one marked 01.doc “As you come closer to CAT, the amount of advice thrown at you will increase...dramatically... There will be news articles, friends, family members, teachers, siblings, b school grads and everyone around.... And then your situation actually makes sure that you will try and act on each one of them. Advice however is quite a retrospective insight. People do what they do and then try to provide explanations for what happened – that’s what advice boils down to. So the basic idea is to be very careful with what you apply. If you keep listening to and trying out different suggestions, you will keep swinging like a pendulum. By this time you should have had a fair idea of what works for you and what doesn’t. And what works for you will not be a long list – it will only be one or two things, and those things only you know. Its useful to read ‘topper speak’ – what people who cracked CAT did. But what they did worked for them. Its totally not necessary that it should work for you at all. Its like this. Someone could say that ‘I scratched my nose with my left hand each time I took the paper’. The cause effect relationship may appear but may not be true at all. Atleast, you scratching your nose with your left hand will not work! There are two ways you can try to understand what is working for you – one is using your gut feel. Ask yourself what you feel comfortable with. What strategy seems to be working. The other way is to go by data – look at your actual performance to understand what is happening. Remember to filter all that you hear, see and read from the lens of common sense”
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Ch 6 – Its not only in the head CAT is not what happens in your head alone. It is what happens in your gut. The motivation for CAT will keep moving – it will keep dwindling and rising. But what will retain it is the constant desire to make it there. If your motivation is fluctuating it only means that your vision for yourself is not clear. Instead of beating yourself up, try and find out why your motivation has dwindled. Refocus on what is your vision for yourself. What will move you? What will move you to wake up every day in the morning with an unstoppable desire to make it happen? What will make sure that you are at the best of your performance in the exam? Its not your thoughts, your intellectualization. It is your emotions. So also, be very careful of the emotions that you experience closer to CAT. Jelously guard your brain, your psyche from negative and unwanted emotions. No fights with girlfriend / boyfriend. No arguments with friends. No disturbing movies. No irritating conversations. Handle your emotions with kid gloves so that you are in the peak emotional state when you appear for the exam. Remember, as important as thinking and intellect is your heart and gut. Often that differentiates people who make the difference from those who don’t.
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Ch 7 : The ‘game’ changes now Its the last month of CAT – and this is when the game changes. The old rules no longer apply. The same principles do not make any sense. Its time to revise strategy. It is now too late to learn anything new. If you expect to learn something dramatic in the last one month, forget it. That time has gone. Now is the time to consolidate. To be certain about what you know and what you don’t. There will be some topics that you are absolutely certain about. You are totally clear on these concepts and you can mostly tackle any question in this subject. Mark those topics out. On the other hand there will be topics that you are absolutely dismal at. Maybe you missed the concept classes. Maybe you could never figure out what the whole thing really meant. Either ways there is no time now to work on this. Just revise your basic concepts to make sure that you don’t miss any sitters in the subject. But beyond that any further investment is a waste of time and energy. A lot of research in self development shows that we must focus on our strengths. So focus on your strengths to make it happen for you. This is time for revision and test taking. You also need to be careful not to over practice. We will talk about this in the coming chapters. But one thing is certain – the rules of the game have changed and wont remain the same. What you have been doing so far is not a great idea to do in the last one month.
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Ch 8 : Push v/s acceptance Over the last months you have been very hard on yourself. You have shouted at yourself for not performing. You have tried to push yourself to do more and more. Now is time to stop being harsh on yourself. It is time to accept. If your performance / preparation for CAT right now stands at 6, you have been aiming for 10. But now its time to be realistic. Aiming for 10 will only add pressure, tension and frustration to you. Instead, aim for a 7 or an 8. It is now realistic. Very often, and typically achievers tend to push themselves very hard to achieve – and do really well for themselves. However coming very close to the exams, too much pushing can actually have a counter effect. The challenge thus is to balance the pushing with acceptance. When you accept your limitations, suddenly you are free to focus on your strengths. An entire branch of psychology called Acceptance Commitment Therapy is based on mindful acceptance of limitations – so its scientifically proven to work. Mentally tell yourself ‘I accept myself as I am – and I will give my best’ The mere act of giving your best will transform you – you will be able to look at yourself in the eye, when you look into the mirror. You will respect yourself. You will have no regrets – all because you gave your best to the situation, to whatever existed. The first step to giving your best is to stop being overly harsh on yourself.
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Ch 8 : The strategy ahead People spend overnights studying for CAT. Thats a great idea – but not closer to the exam. Look at this last month as a ‘net practice’ to the exams. Think about it as something that will get you prepared for the real exams. Having said that, you don’t want to burn out or injure yourself on the nets. So the actual CAT practice needs to come down – maybe a test + analysis every day + a little bit of touching on concepts. Typically 6 hours a day should suffice. What do you do in the rest of the time? Do not let your mind rest for sure – let it be active. Read newspaper editorials. Solve Sudokus and puzzles. Do anything that relaxes you. Also then avoid anything thats too much of an eyestrain like using the computer or TV. These will automatically affect your energy level and hence the energy that you bring into the test. It is important that you give yourself physical exercise as well – so make sure you take brisk walks for atleast 30 mins each in the morning and evening. Another practice that will do you really good is to meditate – just close your eyes and sit at a relaxed place. Be very still and concentrate on your breath. If your mind deviates, gently bring it back to the breath. The time of the meditation every day should be just before your actual test taking time. So for eg. If you plan to take a test in the 10 am slot, you should meditate 9 30 every day. Sleep is also important – you will have to take care of sleeping patterns. Typically on the day of the exam people tend to wake up nervous and too early. Others might still be groggy because they are used to waking up late. So fix up a set time to sleep, and ideally not after 11pm. Wake up at a set time – ideally targeting 8 hours of sleep, but customized depending on your sleep requirement. Finally take care of your diet – you need to make sure that you stay away from junk food, refined flour and basically ‘anything that comes in a packet’. These are difficult for your body to digest. Instead, try and eat dry fruit, greens and raw foods as well as fruits. These are healthy. Drink plenty of water. Finally do not discount the power of prayer. So regularly pray for strength and faith. Now thats a lot of suggestions already – so instead of reading them, please actually apply them.
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Ch 9 : On the day tips On the day of the CAT you need to wake up early in the morning. Be in a relaxed frame of mind, and have a nice long bath and a good breakfast. Reach the center early enough to familiarize yourself with it. Take some time to get centered – a little bit of breathing meditation will help. Get into the frame of looking forward to the test – being ready to ‘crack’ it. In the actual test always make sure to give a few minutes to go through the entire paper and mentally formulate your strategy. Start with taking those topic questions where both your accuracy and attempts are high. Pick the easy ones first and get done with them. Once you jump into a question, remember to follow through till the end – try and finish the question because you have already invested time in it. Having said that, its also important to maintain accuracy – the challenge again is to keep getting questions right and avoiding negatives. CAT is an exam that clearly rewards accuracy. So instead of going all out and attempting, be careful to only attempt that what you are sure to get correct. Hence the next set of questions you will attempt are those where your accuracy is high and the attempts are relatively lower. You should keep a watch for sitters – if there are any that is Again I also recommend taking an assessment of where you are every half an hour – that will make sure you don’t get lost in the paper and keep on track. Give your best to the test, and on God leave the rest.”
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Ch 10 : You can do it! CAT is a game. Thats what it is. And you play a game just to enjoy it. When you are playing the game you give your best to it. You try to give it all you have. But at the same time you remember that its only a game. Whatever you want in life, you will get if you believe you can – sooner or later. CAT or no CAT. But don’t let that affect your motivation for the exam. Instead, look at CAT like a game – a game that you are playing. Enjoy the game. Give it your best. Ultimately this is a great way to test yourself – to test how you react to pressure. To test where you are good and what you are bad at. CAT is a wonderful exam. It is an exam where you are not forced to answer everything – you have a choice. It is also an exam with limited time. To that extent its pretty much like life. You have loads of choices. And then you have limited time. The challenge is to make the right choices and follow through to make the most out of them. There is no guarantee about CAT. There are so many factors that govern your performance – most of them are out of your control. But you will focus on whats in your control – and that is your own effort. When you give complete effort to it, you will be surprised at the kind of effect it has on you. No one can tell what the CAT paper will be like. No one can tell which B School you will get into and what percentile you will get. But one thing is for sure – that when you give your best, YOU CAN DO IT!
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Ch 11: The beginning As he walked out of the exam hall, Tiku gave a satisfying look back at the center. There was a smile on his face. The CAT was over – at last! He mentally thanked Kehsihba for choosing him to pass on the Chronicles. It was now time to start preparing for the GD PI. As expected, Tiku got all six calls. He converted B, L, I and K. He was waitlisted for C. He took up IIM Bangalore and had a great time. It was around November next year that he remembered the Chronicles – almost accidentially. He decided to put them all in one book – The CAT Chronicles. It was time to pass them to someone worthy. Someone who would apply the knowledge and also share it with others. Tiku decided that its been too long that this knowledge has been exclusive. It should now go to as many people. I trust that these Chronicles will reach the person who needs it – and will apply it too. Right now, that person is YOU.
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About the book The CAT Chronicles was born out of seeing the stress and tension of the last one month of CAT. I often say that CAT is a great excuse to talk to youngsters about more important issues in life. This is true for this book too. Instead of trying to publish the book through a publisher and wait for it to hit the markets, I decided to make this a ‘post-‐paid ebook’ I trust you to apply all that is outlined in this book – and if you do, this book will benefit you for sure. Once it does, you can pay it back / pay it forward. There are various ways in which you can do this: -‐
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Forward this book to people who you think will find it useful (I’d love to say that forward this to 10 people and your CAT percentile will improve by 1% but I won’t). Drop in a mail to me at [email protected] to tell me how it helped you, your feedback and anything else you’d like to see added to this book. Pay for the book. Or donate (if you like to call it that). You paying for this book will let me do more of this kind of writing – which in turn will mean we can together help more people. You can do this in multiple ways – simplest would be to courier cash to my home address. 302 A/B Sonakiran, Kanderpada, Dahisar (West), Mumbai – 400068. Join into a workshop that I am running. That will also ensure that we meet face to face and can work together. Organize a talk at your college or organisation by TLC.
We are trying to experiment with a new economic model that moves away from the ‘rational human being’ assumption to put trust in people. The belief is that given enough value, people will contribute back to the same system, and together create a thriving ecosystem where knowledge is freely shared. We hope you join us in this experiment, in which ever way you can.
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Epilogue Tiku also authored an article to share ideas around soft skills – none of this was in the Chronicles, because it was more to do with preparation before the last one month. None the less, he decided to attach the article to the Chronicles.
The Inner Game of CAT Its interesting that a majority of factors for CAT aspirants are similar. They are all graduating (though from different streams). They all have access to CAT coaching classes. And to the Mock tests. They have equal time to prepare. And there are thousands with a similar ‘IQ’ – intelligence level. What then, makes the difference between those who make it to the business schools of their dreams v/s those who don’t? It’s their mindset. The external, visible part of the CAT preparation is what we may call the ‘Hard’ side of CAT. It’s same for most, and it’s measurable and visible. Hence it is also every easy to work on it. The invisible side is however, the mindset. This comprises if everything intangible that affects the CAT prep. It is the attitude, the beliefs, the motivation levels, the discipline etc. This is the ‘Softer side of CAT’. It is that part which is most unaddressed, and yet the one that makes the greatest difference to the actual performance. In fact, it is the greatest differentiator of mediocrity v/s excellence. With the clock ticking, and CAT coming closer, it is even more important to manage oneself. This is typically the time of ups and downs in motivation, slips in discipline and lousy feelings. And this is where the mindset really counts.
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21 So lets talk about what constitutes the CAT mindset, and how we can apply it in our preparation, starting now. 1. Managing feelings Managing your performance is in a large part, managing how you ‘feel’. There are times when you feel lazy and a lot of us are not able to break out of this feeling. Similarly feeling tired, demotivated or not being able to concentrate are also ‘states’ i.e. feelings. Essentially, a ‘state’ is created by multiple factors – facial expressions, posture, voice, physical movement etc. It is widely believed that our feelings affect these factors, which is true. However research has also proven that it is true the other way round as well i.e. changes in these factors can change how we feel. Similarly what we focus on, in a large part makes a big difference in how we feel. Hence, instead of focussing on your failures and misses, it is important to focus on successes and achievements – this will again help you feel better. Feeling lazy can for example, be overcome by thinking of times when you were actually active. Similarly if you go for a jog or exercise, your feeling of being lazy will pass away. 2. Managing Stress The entire CAT exam is about maintaining a cool head in face of immense pressure. The way to do this is learning to manage stress. A certain level of stress is actually conductive to the preparation and performance. However this becomes dysfunctional when the stress exceeds its optimal level. Managing stress essentially is about learning to relax. A good way to do this is to sit in a quiet secluded place with closed eyes. You may use some relaxing music, and then pay attention to each part of your body and relax it consciously. You can maintain the state of
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22 relaxation by holding a beautiful picture in your head – of a beach or a mountain. Having done this for a few minutes, come out slowly of it, and get back to your surroundings. Deep breathing is also a great way to relax. The idea is to be able to generate the ‘relaxation response’ at will and use it to our advantage 3. Visioning A lot of times, the motivation to make it to our dream B School dwindles. Often, while there is intent to get into a business school, it simply feels unreal. To work on this, we must use the power of visioning. To be able to do this, firstly, you need a few pictures of the dream B school you want to be in. These are freely available on websites – download these, and if possible print them in color for you to see. A typical visioning exercise will be where you completely relax yourself first. You then see yourself entering the business school of your dreams – through your own eyes, in full color, motion and with sound. Create the feelings that you would have, when you would actually be entering the B School. Let those feeling stay and magnify them. You can also make a ‘treasure map’ – a graffiti of pictures that show you in the dream B School. The idea is to make it real for the mind – with the principle that ‘what your mind can believe, you can achieve’ 4. Beliefs A belief is a feeling of certainty about something. Its an unquestioned command that compels us to act in a certain manner. The interesting bit is that beliefs can be formed through experiences that are both real and imagined.
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23 A disempowering belief like “I am bad at quant” can hamper your performance. Conversely, a belief like “I can always give my best and keep improving on it” is an empowering belief. So how do you work on your beliefs? The first step is to list down your beliefs. Typical beliefs begin with “I am…”, “I can..”, “CAT is…” etc. After listing these down circle the disempowering ones. The way to break through these is through questioning. When a belief is questioned enough number of times, it begins to become weak. So for example, the belief is “I am lazy”. You need to ask piercing questions. Have I always been lazy? Was there any time when I was not lazy at all? What will having this belief cost me in the future? Magnify the negative as you imagine the outcome of having the disempowering belief – because the mind will respond to pain much faster. When you take on a new belief, do atleast one action that is congruent to your new belief before you leave the site and time of changing the belief. With empowering beliefs, surprisingly, the effort you put into the preparation will become effortless. Doing well in CAT begins with a decision. And you need to make that decision now – to give your best and only your best. Once you have done this, there is nothing that can stop you from achieving your dream.
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About Abhishek Thakore Abhishek Thakore is a gold medallist from IIM Bangalore. He is currently pursuing his PhD from IIT Bombay. Abhishek is the CEO of The Learning Company, an enterprise in education and self development. He is passionate about helping youngsters find their inner calling and actualize their potential. He is the Chief Catalyst of Blue Ribbon Movement, a youth NGO based in Mumbai. He is the author of three bestselling books which have together sold over 50,000 copies. He has worked with organisations like Deutsche Bank and BCG. His training and consulting assignments span various sectors including cement, textiles, telecom, heavy engineering and auto ancillaries. He was the Zonal Rotaract Representative of Dist.3140 in Rotaract. He has also won over 50 different competitions including Mr. Malhar and Mr. Umang. He was the best outgoing student for NM College. He loves to write on spiritual humor, poetry and self development. He is into trekking and is an avid reader. He experiments with improvisational theatre. To know even more about Abhishek, google for “Abhishek Thakore” ! You can mail him at [email protected]
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About The Learning Company The Learning Company exists to help individuals and organisations actualize their potential. It is into a broad range of activities related to self and organisational development. TLC conducts training seminars and talks on various personal growth and management topics. Its consulting division provides training and consulting for various corporate organisations. We have also initiated the ‘Million Super Students’ program to take effective studies to one million students by end of 2011. Apart from this TLC does school syllabus consulting and is planning to enter into a chain of self development centers. We’re ‘happy to help’ – get in touch with us with your issues and we will do our best to help you with them!
Mail : [email protected]
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About PaGaLGuY.com PaGaLGuY.com is India’s biggest and most trusted MBA preparatory resources website, used by over 500,000 MBA applicants every month to: 1. Seek help to prepare for MBA entrance exams such as the CAT, XAT, SNAP, JMET, CET (India) and GMAT, TOEFL, IELTS (International) and related admission interviews. 2. Make smart and informed decisions about joining business school in India and abroad. Since it started in 2002, PaGaLGuY.com follows an online community approach to create smart and useful products to make MBA applicants’ lives easier. You might have heard people say: ‘PaGaLGuY.com is among the handful of websites that pioneered true and robust online communities in India.’ We started with the PaGaLGuY.com MBA Forums in 2002, which now have 1.57 million discussion posts written by over 320,000 users solely on MBA preparation and admissions. We have also built trend-‐setting services for MBA aspirants that combine technology and community to empower the MBA aspirant community. MBA perspectives and analysis: http://www.pagalguy.com MBA forums: http://www.pagalguy.com/forum B-‐school Rankings: http://rankings.pagalguy.com Prep for CAT/XAT/MAT: http://www.pagalguy.com/prep
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About CPLC A number of ideas of this book have been inspired by Prof. Parag Chitale from CPLC. CPLC is a test prep institute located in Mumbai. It has branches all over the city. CPLC is founded on the basis of value education, personalized for each individual. “ We, at CPLC are committed to help students achieve their goals and thus our all activities are student centric. We are proud of our students' achievements and remain committed to building a long term career platform for each one of them. Our core team is called the Nucleus and consists of best professionals from the industry with huge experience of preparing students for the kind of examinations one is aiming for. Founded in December 2002, it has trained over 3000 students for various competitive business school entrance exams and within 6 years of its personalised and dedicated training to students, CPLC has established itself as one of the leading training institutes. Why is CPLC better than any other institute? What brings students here despite being bombarded by the biggies competing in the same field? "The kind of attention every student enjoys here is unmatched", says Ankur from NM College, who's currently studying at CPLC. "Parag sir knows every single student personally. You can approach him any time, and he willingly takes on the role of a mentor, and a very able one at that", adds Pooja, another CPLC student.” You can visit CPLC at www.cplc.net.in or contact Prof. Parag Chitale on 9 702 702 000
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I wish you all the best for your exams – and hope that you will apply all that you know to the fullest. Do share your CAT story with me – I’ll be happy to hear, and to help you out with any issues that you might have Till then, just GO FOR IT! Cheers! Abhishek
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The CAT Chronicles
Abhishek Thakore
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The CAT Chronicles A journey in the last month of CAT Dedicated to You for undertaking this brave journey towards actualizing your dreams The CAT Chronicles Version 1.0 E-‐Book (c) Abhishek Thakore, 2009 as original author. Copyright Lisence -‐ (cc)(sa)(nc) This book is under a Creative Commons licence. You may freely distribute this book for non commercial purposes. If you do modify it or make derivative works, they too should be under the same licence.
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Preface I’d love to write a long preface to this book but I will just get to the point. Read this book. Then apply it. Then read it again. Then apply it even more. The entire idea of ‘gyaan’ is that it needs to be applied for results. Else its just a sheer waste of your time. And that time, in this last one month of CAT is precious. Thats it. Abhishek Thakore Mumbai November 2009
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Contents Preface................................................................................................................................................... 3 Ch 1: The end......................................................................................................................................... 5 Ch 2: The checklist ................................................................................................................................. 6 Ch 3 : The Mail ....................................................................................................................................... 7 Ch 4 : The Chat....................................................................................................................................... 8 Ch 5 : Take what applies ...................................................................................................................... 10 Ch 6 – Its not only in the head ............................................................................................................. 11 Ch 7 : The ‘game’ changes now ........................................................................................................... 12 Ch 8 : Push v/s acceptance .................................................................................................................. 13 Ch 8 : The strategy ahead .................................................................................................................... 14 Ch 9 : On the day tips........................................................................................................................... 16 Ch 10 : You can do it!........................................................................................................................... 17 Ch 11: The beginning ........................................................................................................................... 18 About the book.................................................................................................................................... 19 Epilogue ............................................................................................................................................... 20 The Inner Game of CAT.................................................................................................................... 20 About Abhishek Thakore ..................................................................................................................... 24 About The Learning Company ............................................................................................................. 25
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Ch 1: The end As he walked out of the exam hall, Tiku gave a satisfying look back at the center. There was a smile on his face. The CAT was over – at last! The effort that he had put in for a long year had at last fructified. Life was good again. His hands reached his pocket. ‘Gotta pick up the mobile phone and call up Kutty’ he said Moving out of his center at Jai Hind, he started to walk towards his favourite marine drive. The afternoon sun shone mercilessly on the stretch. The wind was cooling. Phone unavailable. Tiku’s thoughts raced back... He was on track to preparation – like any other typical student. He opened his journal to the first page – he had started to record progress only after Kehsihba had come into his life.
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Ch 2: The checklist Nov 1st The challenges I face: -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐ -‐
Fluctuating marks make me tensed up I don’t feel motivated enough I waste my time away doing other things I don’t feel that my prep is enough The pressure is just increasing I don’t know whose advice to listen I am not doing well at Quant but well in Verbal
He was like a typical student. But this was now only a month before CAT – and that meant that he needed to do something urgently to solve these issues! Actually he already knew most of his issues. But he was doing this because his elder sister Aku had asked him to do it. She said that someone called Kehsihba will mail him.
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Ch 3 : The Mail Dear Tiku, This is Kehsihba. You don’t know me but I am related to you by a chain. This chain is a chain of people who have passed on some very important ideas to each other. These ideas are called the CAT Chronicles. I know you through your sister who is a good friend. But before I start a little bit about me. I am a first year student at IIM Bangalore. Did my commerce at NM College in Mumbai and took CAT right after that. It was almost the same time as you are in now...just a month before my preparations...when I was contacted by someone by the name of Thakur. He, at that time was a first year IIM A student. And he too found me through a strange connection. At that very critical stage he passed me what he called the CAT Chronicles. Its a collection of very simple ideas – and yet they are as profound as they are simple. Add me as a friend on Gtalk and we shall chat about this. My email id is [email protected] Cheers! Keh
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Ch 4 : The Chat Tiku : Hey hi Keh : Hey hi Tikku, good to see you! So whats up? Tiku : Prep going on. But before anything ahead, tell me how did you spot me – or rather how did you select me to speak about the CAT Chronicles? I am really curious to know.... Keh : Heheh....actually this is like a kind of a tradition. These are ideas that were penned down years ago by some one from IIM A. It is rumoured that it was from the first batch of IIM A....I’d like to believe it was CK Prahlad who wrote these in his days there... Tiku : WOW! So whats the deal here? Keh : Well ever since then, these ideas have been passed. There is nothing new or exclusive about these ideas. Yet the way they are expressed in the Chronicles is unique. And every year they are passed onto someone who is preparing for CAT.... Tiku : So how do you choose who that person is? Keh : Well the way it is instructed in the Chronicles – you acquaint yourself with a circle of people who are taking the CAT attempt. Get some idea about them, and how they are performing. From those, pass it onto any one person who your gut feel points out to. Tiku : Hmm....life changing secrets hyped as ‘Chronicles’ huh? What if I tell you that I don’t need them – either ways if i am going to make it i will and if i am not going to make it i wont... Keh : Sure, suit yourself. I am forbidden to offer it to anyone else – so if it doesn’t get passed it dies. For every year since these started out these were passed – and were graciously accepted too. You don’t need to take them though. But remember at the same time that these are not some secret formula that will transform you overnight into a CAT champion. In fact the Chronicles themselves say that change doesn’t happen overnight. However what these will do is to help you – right now. Tiku : A month before the exams!! Keh : Yes. A month before. Thats when they are meant to be passed on. Anything earlier doesn’t work and anything later is pointless Tiku : So why create this hype of Chronicles and stuff? Why not just write a newspaper article and get done with it?
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9 Keh : Maybe because CKP believed in branding and exclusivity! Well seriously speaking these ideas do not resonate with everybody – coz not all are responsible enough to handle the ideas it speaks about. You are totally free to speak about these ideas to others – knowledge is to be shared. They are shared as chronicles and passed on to someone deserving (or who I believe is deserving!) is so that they are preserved and passed on.... Tiku : Okay kewl I get it. So whats the deal now? Keh : Nothing much. I pass you the Chronicles. You read them. You apply what makes sense to you. You discard the rest. You speak to people about it. And when you make it next year to your dream business school, choose a worthy suitor and pass it onto him. Tiku : Ah! So the secret formula to make it to IIM B? Keh : Not really! Not necessary that you get into the best B School in the country...but you will surely get into what you truly deserve – these Chronicles will streamline your attempt and give you that push which you need. I believe in you. And hence this knowledge is yours to keep Tiku : Hmmm...great! So that makes sense....I have made a list of my issues – do you want me to share them with you? Keh: No that was for your own reference... keep it with you and see how these chronicles work on those Tiku : Well thanks – so how will you pass it to me Keh : I will send it to you by email – as an attachment with a password. You will receive the password by SMS. Tiku : well you are making it sound totally mumbo jumbo cryptic Keh : Well thats how its meant to be done Tiku : Great! Keh : So cool then...stay in touch by email...and apply them! Tiku: Yeah cheers!
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Ch 5 : Take what applies Tiku unzipped the attachment he received. It opened into multiple word documents. He opened the one marked 01.doc “As you come closer to CAT, the amount of advice thrown at you will increase...dramatically... There will be news articles, friends, family members, teachers, siblings, b school grads and everyone around.... And then your situation actually makes sure that you will try and act on each one of them. Advice however is quite a retrospective insight. People do what they do and then try to provide explanations for what happened – that’s what advice boils down to. So the basic idea is to be very careful with what you apply. If you keep listening to and trying out different suggestions, you will keep swinging like a pendulum. By this time you should have had a fair idea of what works for you and what doesn’t. And what works for you will not be a long list – it will only be one or two things, and those things only you know. Its useful to read ‘topper speak’ – what people who cracked CAT did. But what they did worked for them. Its totally not necessary that it should work for you at all. Its like this. Someone could say that ‘I scratched my nose with my left hand each time I took the paper’. The cause effect relationship may appear but may not be true at all. Atleast, you scratching your nose with your left hand will not work! There are two ways you can try to understand what is working for you – one is using your gut feel. Ask yourself what you feel comfortable with. What strategy seems to be working. The other way is to go by data – look at your actual performance to understand what is happening. Remember to filter all that you hear, see and read from the lens of common sense”
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Ch 6 – Its not only in the head CAT is not what happens in your head alone. It is what happens in your gut. The motivation for CAT will keep moving – it will keep dwindling and rising. But what will retain it is the constant desire to make it there. If your motivation is fluctuating it only means that your vision for yourself is not clear. Instead of beating yourself up, try and find out why your motivation has dwindled. Refocus on what is your vision for yourself. What will move you? What will move you to wake up every day in the morning with an unstoppable desire to make it happen? What will make sure that you are at the best of your performance in the exam? Its not your thoughts, your intellectualization. It is your emotions. So also, be very careful of the emotions that you experience closer to CAT. Jelously guard your brain, your psyche from negative and unwanted emotions. No fights with girlfriend / boyfriend. No arguments with friends. No disturbing movies. No irritating conversations. Handle your emotions with kid gloves so that you are in the peak emotional state when you appear for the exam. Remember, as important as thinking and intellect is your heart and gut. Often that differentiates people who make the difference from those who don’t.
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Ch 7 : The ‘game’ changes now Its the last month of CAT – and this is when the game changes. The old rules no longer apply. The same principles do not make any sense. Its time to revise strategy. It is now too late to learn anything new. If you expect to learn something dramatic in the last one month, forget it. That time has gone. Now is the time to consolidate. To be certain about what you know and what you don’t. There will be some topics that you are absolutely certain about. You are totally clear on these concepts and you can mostly tackle any question in this subject. Mark those topics out. On the other hand there will be topics that you are absolutely dismal at. Maybe you missed the concept classes. Maybe you could never figure out what the whole thing really meant. Either ways there is no time now to work on this. Just revise your basic concepts to make sure that you don’t miss any sitters in the subject. But beyond that any further investment is a waste of time and energy. A lot of research in self development shows that we must focus on our strengths. So focus on your strengths to make it happen for you. This is time for revision and test taking. You also need to be careful not to over practice. We will talk about this in the coming chapters. But one thing is certain – the rules of the game have changed and wont remain the same. What you have been doing so far is not a great idea to do in the last one month.
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Ch 8 : Push v/s acceptance Over the last months you have been very hard on yourself. You have shouted at yourself for not performing. You have tried to push yourself to do more and more. Now is time to stop being harsh on yourself. It is time to accept. If your performance / preparation for CAT right now stands at 6, you have been aiming for 10. But now its time to be realistic. Aiming for 10 will only add pressure, tension and frustration to you. Instead, aim for a 7 or an 8. It is now realistic. Very often, and typically achievers tend to push themselves very hard to achieve – and do really well for themselves. However coming very close to the exams, too much pushing can actually have a counter effect. The challenge thus is to balance the pushing with acceptance. When you accept your limitations, suddenly you are free to focus on your strengths. An entire branch of psychology called Acceptance Commitment Therapy is based on mindful acceptance of limitations – so its scientifically proven to work. Mentally tell yourself ‘I accept myself as I am – and I will give my best’ The mere act of giving your best will transform you – you will be able to look at yourself in the eye, when you look into the mirror. You will respect yourself. You will have no regrets – all because you gave your best to the situation, to whatever existed. The first step to giving your best is to stop being overly harsh on yourself.
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Ch 8 : The strategy ahead People spend overnights studying for CAT. Thats a great idea – but not closer to the exam. Look at this last month as a ‘net practice’ to the exams. Think about it as something that will get you prepared for the real exams. Having said that, you don’t want to burn out or injure yourself on the nets. So the actual CAT practice needs to come down – maybe a test + analysis every day + a little bit of touching on concepts. Typically 6 hours a day should suffice. What do you do in the rest of the time? Do not let your mind rest for sure – let it be active. Read newspaper editorials. Solve Sudokus and puzzles. Do anything that relaxes you. Also then avoid anything thats too much of an eyestrain like using the computer or TV. These will automatically affect your energy level and hence the energy that you bring into the test. It is important that you give yourself physical exercise as well – so make sure you take brisk walks for atleast 30 mins each in the morning and evening. Another practice that will do you really good is to meditate – just close your eyes and sit at a relaxed place. Be very still and concentrate on your breath. If your mind deviates, gently bring it back to the breath. The time of the meditation every day should be just before your actual test taking time. So for eg. If you plan to take a test in the 10 am slot, you should meditate 9 30 every day. Sleep is also important – you will have to take care of sleeping patterns. Typically on the day of the exam people tend to wake up nervous and too early. Others might still be groggy because they are used to waking up late. So fix up a set time to sleep, and ideally not after 11pm. Wake up at a set time – ideally targeting 8 hours of sleep, but customized depending on your sleep requirement. Finally take care of your diet – you need to make sure that you stay away from junk food, refined flour and basically ‘anything that comes in a packet’. These are difficult for your body to digest. Instead, try and eat dry fruit, greens and raw foods as well as fruits. These are healthy. Drink plenty of water. Finally do not discount the power of prayer. So regularly pray for strength and faith. Now thats a lot of suggestions already – so instead of reading them, please actually apply them.
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Ch 9 : On the day tips On the day of the CAT you need to wake up early in the morning. Be in a relaxed frame of mind, and have a nice long bath and a good breakfast. Reach the center early enough to familiarize yourself with it. Take some time to get centered – a little bit of breathing meditation will help. Get into the frame of looking forward to the test – being ready to ‘crack’ it. In the actual test always make sure to give a few minutes to go through the entire paper and mentally formulate your strategy. Start with taking those topic questions where both your accuracy and attempts are high. Pick the easy ones first and get done with them. Once you jump into a question, remember to follow through till the end – try and finish the question because you have already invested time in it. Having said that, its also important to maintain accuracy – the challenge again is to keep getting questions right and avoiding negatives. CAT is an exam that clearly rewards accuracy. So instead of going all out and attempting, be careful to only attempt that what you are sure to get correct. Hence the next set of questions you will attempt are those where your accuracy is high and the attempts are relatively lower. You should keep a watch for sitters – if there are any that is Again I also recommend taking an assessment of where you are every half an hour – that will make sure you don’t get lost in the paper and keep on track. Give your best to the test, and on God leave the rest.”
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Ch 10 : You can do it! CAT is a game. Thats what it is. And you play a game just to enjoy it. When you are playing the game you give your best to it. You try to give it all you have. But at the same time you remember that its only a game. Whatever you want in life, you will get if you believe you can – sooner or later. CAT or no CAT. But don’t let that affect your motivation for the exam. Instead, look at CAT like a game – a game that you are playing. Enjoy the game. Give it your best. Ultimately this is a great way to test yourself – to test how you react to pressure. To test where you are good and what you are bad at. CAT is a wonderful exam. It is an exam where you are not forced to answer everything – you have a choice. It is also an exam with limited time. To that extent its pretty much like life. You have loads of choices. And then you have limited time. The challenge is to make the right choices and follow through to make the most out of them. There is no guarantee about CAT. There are so many factors that govern your performance – most of them are out of your control. But you will focus on whats in your control – and that is your own effort. When you give complete effort to it, you will be surprised at the kind of effect it has on you. No one can tell what the CAT paper will be like. No one can tell which B School you will get into and what percentile you will get. But one thing is for sure – that when you give your best, YOU CAN DO IT!
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Ch 11: The beginning As he walked out of the exam hall, Tiku gave a satisfying look back at the center. There was a smile on his face. The CAT was over – at last! He mentally thanked Kehsihba for choosing him to pass on the Chronicles. It was now time to start preparing for the GD PI. As expected, Tiku got all six calls. He converted B, L, I and K. He was waitlisted for C. He took up IIM Bangalore and had a great time. It was around November next year that he remembered the Chronicles – almost accidentially. He decided to put them all in one book – The CAT Chronicles. It was time to pass them to someone worthy. Someone who would apply the knowledge and also share it with others. Tiku decided that its been too long that this knowledge has been exclusive. It should now go to as many people. I trust that these Chronicles will reach the person who needs it – and will apply it too. Right now, that person is YOU.
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About the book The CAT Chronicles was born out of seeing the stress and tension of the last one month of CAT. I often say that CAT is a great excuse to talk to youngsters about more important issues in life. This is true for this book too. Instead of trying to publish the book through a publisher and wait for it to hit the markets, I decided to make this a ‘post-‐paid ebook’ I trust you to apply all that is outlined in this book – and if you do, this book will benefit you for sure. Once it does, you can pay it back / pay it forward. There are various ways in which you can do this: -‐
-‐
-‐
-‐
-‐
Forward this book to people who you think will find it useful (I’d love to say that forward this to 10 people and your CAT percentile will improve by 1% but I won’t). Drop in a mail to me at [email protected] to tell me how it helped you, your feedback and anything else you’d like to see added to this book. Pay for the book. Or donate (if you like to call it that). You paying for this book will let me do more of this kind of writing – which in turn will mean we can together help more people. You can do this in multiple ways – simplest would be to courier cash to my home address. 302 A/B Sonakiran, Kanderpada, Dahisar (West), Mumbai – 400068. Join into a workshop that I am running. That will also ensure that we meet face to face and can work together. Organize a talk at your college or organisation by TLC.
We are trying to experiment with a new economic model that moves away from the ‘rational human being’ assumption to put trust in people. The belief is that given enough value, people will contribute back to the same system, and together create a thriving ecosystem where knowledge is freely shared. We hope you join us in this experiment, in which ever way you can.
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Epilogue Tiku also authored an article to share ideas around soft skills – none of this was in the Chronicles, because it was more to do with preparation before the last one month. None the less, he decided to attach the article to the Chronicles.
The Inner Game of CAT Its interesting that a majority of factors for CAT aspirants are similar. They are all graduating (though from different streams). They all have access to CAT coaching classes. And to the Mock tests. They have equal time to prepare. And there are thousands with a similar ‘IQ’ – intelligence level. What then, makes the difference between those who make it to the business schools of their dreams v/s those who don’t? It’s their mindset. The external, visible part of the CAT preparation is what we may call the ‘Hard’ side of CAT. It’s same for most, and it’s measurable and visible. Hence it is also every easy to work on it. The invisible side is however, the mindset. This comprises if everything intangible that affects the CAT prep. It is the attitude, the beliefs, the motivation levels, the discipline etc. This is the ‘Softer side of CAT’. It is that part which is most unaddressed, and yet the one that makes the greatest difference to the actual performance. In fact, it is the greatest differentiator of mediocrity v/s excellence. With the clock ticking, and CAT coming closer, it is even more important to manage oneself. This is typically the time of ups and downs in motivation, slips in discipline and lousy feelings. And this is where the mindset really counts.
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21 So lets talk about what constitutes the CAT mindset, and how we can apply it in our preparation, starting now. 1. Managing feelings Managing your performance is in a large part, managing how you ‘feel’. There are times when you feel lazy and a lot of us are not able to break out of this feeling. Similarly feeling tired, demotivated or not being able to concentrate are also ‘states’ i.e. feelings. Essentially, a ‘state’ is created by multiple factors – facial expressions, posture, voice, physical movement etc. It is widely believed that our feelings affect these factors, which is true. However research has also proven that it is true the other way round as well i.e. changes in these factors can change how we feel. Similarly what we focus on, in a large part makes a big difference in how we feel. Hence, instead of focussing on your failures and misses, it is important to focus on successes and achievements – this will again help you feel better. Feeling lazy can for example, be overcome by thinking of times when you were actually active. Similarly if you go for a jog or exercise, your feeling of being lazy will pass away. 2. Managing Stress The entire CAT exam is about maintaining a cool head in face of immense pressure. The way to do this is learning to manage stress. A certain level of stress is actually conductive to the preparation and performance. However this becomes dysfunctional when the stress exceeds its optimal level. Managing stress essentially is about learning to relax. A good way to do this is to sit in a quiet secluded place with closed eyes. You may use some relaxing music, and then pay attention to each part of your body and relax it consciously. You can maintain the state of
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22 relaxation by holding a beautiful picture in your head – of a beach or a mountain. Having done this for a few minutes, come out slowly of it, and get back to your surroundings. Deep breathing is also a great way to relax. The idea is to be able to generate the ‘relaxation response’ at will and use it to our advantage 3. Visioning A lot of times, the motivation to make it to our dream B School dwindles. Often, while there is intent to get into a business school, it simply feels unreal. To work on this, we must use the power of visioning. To be able to do this, firstly, you need a few pictures of the dream B school you want to be in. These are freely available on websites – download these, and if possible print them in color for you to see. A typical visioning exercise will be where you completely relax yourself first. You then see yourself entering the business school of your dreams – through your own eyes, in full color, motion and with sound. Create the feelings that you would have, when you would actually be entering the B School. Let those feeling stay and magnify them. You can also make a ‘treasure map’ – a graffiti of pictures that show you in the dream B School. The idea is to make it real for the mind – with the principle that ‘what your mind can believe, you can achieve’ 4. Beliefs A belief is a feeling of certainty about something. Its an unquestioned command that compels us to act in a certain manner. The interesting bit is that beliefs can be formed through experiences that are both real and imagined.
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23 A disempowering belief like “I am bad at quant” can hamper your performance. Conversely, a belief like “I can always give my best and keep improving on it” is an empowering belief. So how do you work on your beliefs? The first step is to list down your beliefs. Typical beliefs begin with “I am…”, “I can..”, “CAT is…” etc. After listing these down circle the disempowering ones. The way to break through these is through questioning. When a belief is questioned enough number of times, it begins to become weak. So for example, the belief is “I am lazy”. You need to ask piercing questions. Have I always been lazy? Was there any time when I was not lazy at all? What will having this belief cost me in the future? Magnify the negative as you imagine the outcome of having the disempowering belief – because the mind will respond to pain much faster. When you take on a new belief, do atleast one action that is congruent to your new belief before you leave the site and time of changing the belief. With empowering beliefs, surprisingly, the effort you put into the preparation will become effortless. Doing well in CAT begins with a decision. And you need to make that decision now – to give your best and only your best. Once you have done this, there is nothing that can stop you from achieving your dream.
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About Abhishek Thakore Abhishek Thakore is a gold medallist from IIM Bangalore. He is currently pursuing his PhD from IIT Bombay. Abhishek is the CEO of The Learning Company, an enterprise in education and self development. He is passionate about helping youngsters find their inner calling and actualize their potential. He is the Chief Catalyst of Blue Ribbon Movement, a youth NGO based in Mumbai. He is the author of three bestselling books which have together sold over 50,000 copies. He has worked with organisations like Deutsche Bank and BCG. His training and consulting assignments span various sectors including cement, textiles, telecom, heavy engineering and auto ancillaries. He was the Zonal Rotaract Representative of Dist.3140 in Rotaract. He has also won over 50 different competitions including Mr. Malhar and Mr. Umang. He was the best outgoing student for NM College. He loves to write on spiritual humor, poetry and self development. He is into trekking and is an avid reader. He experiments with improvisational theatre. To know even more about Abhishek, google for “Abhishek Thakore” ! You can mail him at [email protected]
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About The Learning Company The Learning Company exists to help individuals and organisations actualize their potential. It is into a broad range of activities related to self and organisational development. TLC conducts training seminars and talks on various personal growth and management topics. Its consulting division provides training and consulting for various corporate organisations. We have also initiated the ‘Million Super Students’ program to take effective studies to one million students by end of 2011. Apart from this TLC does school syllabus consulting and is planning to enter into a chain of self development centers. We’re ‘happy to help’ – get in touch with us with your issues and we will do our best to help you with them!
Mail : [email protected]
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About PaGaLGuY.com PaGaLGuY.com is India’s biggest and most trusted MBA preparatory resources website, used by over 500,000 MBA applicants every month to: 1. Seek help to prepare for MBA entrance exams such as the CAT, XAT, SNAP, JMET, CET (India) and GMAT, TOEFL, IELTS (International) and related admission interviews. 2. Make smart and informed decisions about joining business school in India and abroad. Since it started in 2002, PaGaLGuY.com follows an online community approach to create smart and useful products to make MBA applicants’ lives easier. You might have heard people say: ‘PaGaLGuY.com is among the handful of websites that pioneered true and robust online communities in India.’ We started with the PaGaLGuY.com MBA Forums in 2002, which now have 1.57 million discussion posts written by over 320,000 users solely on MBA preparation and admissions. We have also built trend-‐setting services for MBA aspirants that combine technology and community to empower the MBA aspirant community. MBA perspectives and analysis: http://www.pagalguy.com MBA forums: http://www.pagalguy.com/forum B-‐school Rankings: http://rankings.pagalguy.com Prep for CAT/XAT/MAT: http://www.pagalguy.com/prep
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About CPLC A number of ideas of this book have been inspired by Prof. Parag Chitale from CPLC. CPLC is a test prep institute located in Mumbai. It has branches all over the city. CPLC is founded on the basis of value education, personalized for each individual. “ We, at CPLC are committed to help students achieve their goals and thus our all activities are student centric. We are proud of our students' achievements and remain committed to building a long term career platform for each one of them. Our core team is called the Nucleus and consists of best professionals from the industry with huge experience of preparing students for the kind of examinations one is aiming for. Founded in December 2002, it has trained over 3000 students for various competitive business school entrance exams and within 6 years of its personalised and dedicated training to students, CPLC has established itself as one of the leading training institutes. Why is CPLC better than any other institute? What brings students here despite being bombarded by the biggies competing in the same field? "The kind of attention every student enjoys here is unmatched", says Ankur from NM College, who's currently studying at CPLC. "Parag sir knows every single student personally. You can approach him any time, and he willingly takes on the role of a mentor, and a very able one at that", adds Pooja, another CPLC student.” You can visit CPLC at www.cplc.net.in or contact Prof. Parag Chitale on 9 702 702 000
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I wish you all the best for your exams – and hope that you will apply all that you know to the fullest. Do share your CAT story with me – I’ll be happy to hear, and to help you out with any issues that you might have Till then, just GO FOR IT! Cheers! Abhishek
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