Tips to keep you calm and motivated during JEE Main preparations

By Ajay Singh

The rule of thumb is to stay calm, focused and not to panic. Students often make a lot of silly mistakes when they are anxious during the examination. Controlling your anxiety and channeling your energy in the right direction will help you steer through this exam. If you inculcate these habits in your routine right from the beginning of preparation, cracking the exam would become manifold easier.

JEE Main examination is the first step of your ladder towards the pinnacle. Everyone appearing for JEE Main sits in the examination hall with the hope of getting to appear in JEE Advanced and getting into premier colleges like IITs and NITs. The number of candidates appearing in the exam is over 10 lakh every year, but the seats are limited. Hence, apart from working hard, you need to work smart as well.

Adequate study material, dedication and passion are indispensable, but there are specific tips you should keep in mind while preparing and while sitting in the examination hall. These will help you to score good and boost your rank among the many aspirants.

So, here are some tips and tricks which I have compiled based on my experience:

• Don't be anxious and meditate: This is helpful in managing your stress levels. You can perform up to your utmost potential only when you have a moderate amount of stress. No stress also deteriorates your performance and so does excessive stress. Eat healthy, especially when the exam is around the corner, no one would welcome falling ill when they have the final battle for which they were preparing. Thus, stay calm and focused, meditate if you feel stressed, and stick to your schedule religiously. Keep revising your notes and formulae in your mind to help you stay focused. It also assists you in boosting your confidence in your preparation.
• Give mock tests: Mock tests and test series courses help you in knowing your weak points and your strength. Sit in a closed room in your home, set the timer to three hours and then give the exam. It will also help you in learning to manage your time. Write down the number of questions you were able to attend and which questions you attempted wrong. Analyse your paper on your own to know which type of questions are challenging for you and which questions can be solved with ease. Also, practice skipping those questions in which you are not confident, or you think will consume your extra time. Don't skip them entirely, leave them for the last and if possible, solve them but don't sacrifice the time of other questions for a few questions.
• Time management: Time management is the most crucial element of determining your achievement in the exam. No matter how much you've studied and how proficient you are in solving the most arduous questions, if you don't manage your time efficiently in the exam, all your efforts would go in vain. Time management is a skill which you learn over time by practicing. Always remember during the exam that a tough question has an equal weightage of marks as that of an easy question. So never get stuck on one question, rather skip it if you think it will consume excess time. Stay motivated and don't let your confidence dwindle in such a situation. It is not necessary to give equal time to physics, chemistry and mathematics. Considering which subject is your strong point, you have to decide beforehand how much time you will give to one portion. If you complete it earlier than expected, it will strengthen your enthusiasm because you will have extra time in hand to dedicate to those questions you left considering time-consuming.
• Know the syllabus and paper pattern thoroughly: You should be well versed with the syllabus of your exam and know the paper pattern. Certain amendments are made in the examination, and you should regularly visit their website to know the latest trends. The exam is now conducted online which exempts you from making mistakes you would otherwise do while marking circles in OMR sheets physically.
• Read NCERT books religiously: NCERT books are considered to be the Bible for JEE Main. If you are confident and have a stronghold on the concepts of NCERT books, it will increase your probability of passing the exam with an excellent rank. NCERT holds unsurpassable importance because it is the recommended book by the government for your curriculum. Hence, skipping NCERT should never be an option. Solve all the questions multiple times, and since the books are not bulky, you can revise them over and again. It will always strengthen your concepts each time you go through the book. NCERT should not necessarily be the only book you read, but the one you must read and get well versed with if you aim for good results.
• Keep revising your notes: Studying by self-prepared handwritten notes is by far the most efficient form of studying you'll ever encounter. Notes should be prepared simultaneously when you read a chapter for the first time and keep making further modifications in them as you gain additional knowledge or any new concept from that particular topic. If you revise from your notes, you wouldn't realize how feasible it is to go through the entire syllabus. Keep reviewing them whenever you have time in hand. Before the exam, you should be in such a situation that all these formulas you mentioned in your notes must be on your tips. This will not only help you in solving the questions quickly and accurately but will also boost your self-esteem. The result will definitely reflect positively in your result.
• Keep taking breaks: You do not need to study 16 hours a day continuously. This will have an antagonistic effect on your performance. The best and the most efficient way to learn is to study and take breaks in between. Your brain works most effectively for 90 minutes continuously, and then if you keep exploiting it continually, the performance would be degraded. So, keep taking breaks and do something that can relax you in between like listening to music, taking a walk, or any hobby you possess. But don't take such long breaks that it becomes difficult for you to continue your focus from where you left. 15-20 minutes are sufficient to give your brain mild relaxation.

Exam Day Tips

When the day of your exam finally arrives, you should first and foremost stay calm.

• Don't read anything from your book, in fact, don't pick up your book on the day just before the exam. Revise a few formulas and key points if you wish to but don't read any new topic. It would fetch you nothing but a distraction.
• Eat healthily and sleep early the night before. You may not be able to sleep because of anxiety, but don't focus on it. Relax and do some meditation if necessary but have a sound sleep of up to eight hours.
• Double-check if you have taken all the required documents like your admit card.
• Reach the examination hall well in time and go through all the instructions provided at the centre.
• Don't carry any extra or unnecessary stuff while going for the exam. Dress soberly and don't wear any accessories.
• Don't think about the result while writing the exam, just focus on doing your best and utilising the three hours you have in the best possible way.

About the Author:

Ajay Singh completed BTech in Information Technology from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi in 2010. He began his career by coaching Class 11-12 students for Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Biology. He later qualified GATE in 2011 and started a career in the field of Electronics and Communication. However, his passion towards the Software industry took him to service industry and now he works as a Software Application Support Engineer (L3) at IRCTC.