I feel sorry that a young and successful individual like you is contemplating life from a

jaundiced eye, turning every strength into a weakness.

Let me tell you why I feel so 1. You are 28. This is a great plus. You are neither too fresh to be immature, nor
too old to be jaded and useless.
2. You are a software engineer, a dream for many. You passed the engineering
course (does not matter with what 'marks')
3. You work with a leading MNC earning 1 lac INR per month. How many Indians
earn that much? (don't look at those above you, look below - you will find an
ocean of humanity struggling to just get along)
4. You cracked Prelims and reached Mains. How many do it, as a percentage of
test-takers? Just 3%? So 97% fail.
So what should you really do now? If I were you, this is what I would do:
Take a break for 10 or 15 days, and without any burden on my heart and mind,
would think of every thing good about myself
Remind me of every happy moment in the past 10 years, thereby building my
confidence
Think of all moments when I felt like a failure, analysing why I felt that way
Think of everything that's wonderful about life that I can start enjoying RIGHT
NOW - simple pleasures of daily life, family relations, intellectual enjoyment,
friendships etc.
Think about what I REALLY WANT from life, going forward
Think about my good health, and thank God for keeping me that way
This process would lead to a mental catharsis (cleansing) where all mixed-up emotions
would straighten out, and a clear path would be visible.
Now that path can possibly be one of these
1. Drop everything, concentrate on job, get married, have a family, be happy
2. Drop the job, throw myself into the IAS prep, and make 1 or 2 more attempts
thoroughly
3. Continue with the job, and simultaneously take one final serious try at IAS
4. Sit and brood, and cry and lose all hope
I would shortlist one or two of these possible paths, and sit with myself, or my family, and
take a final call. No matter what - I would finally decide.
And I would stop punishing myself any more. My life is just too precious for that.
Wish you great luck. Be positive. There's nothing to be gained otherwise. God
bless!
......................
I'll be happy to help. Message me on quora with your contact details (mobile etc.) and my
team will get in touch with you for counselling and support. Some useful links - UPSC Civil
Services Exams (Prelim + Mains) Preparation Course , our Youtube channel - PT
education HQ , Entire exams analyses, here - PT's IAS Academy - UPSC Exam Analyses
Written Nov 10 View Upvotes

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How hard is UPSC for a very regular student?

Sandeep Manudhane, PT's IAS Academy | Teach across UPSC IAS subjects in English &
Hindi in parallel
20.1k Views Sandeep is a Most Viewed Writer in Indian Administrative Service (IAS) Preparation.

Consider me your mentor, and read with an open mind. It will help you immensely.
.....
Hello friend! You seem to be angry or upset while framing this question. Perhaps you are
tired of hearing the same nonsense again and again - work hard you'll make it OR work
smart and you'll make it OR work diligently over some years and you'll make it.
And you don't believe a word of it. Probably because you've never known someone who
made it (from your friend circle) or you've never seen pretty regular and ordinary people
gunning for it, and doing it. It's sad, because even a single example like this would have
totally changed your perspective. But it's never too late.
Let me start with 3 simple truths 1. Cracking the UPSC IAS exam is very hard
2. Anyone who has cracked it has put in many years of effort
3. No one does it in a fluke, in a very limited time, or by being ordinary
Before you get even more angry and upset, please read on :)
The first truth. Competitive exams are not meant for the ordinary. If you walk into the
exam hall with an ordinary preparation, the only result you'll fetch is known beforehand.
This is true for every single competitive exam held in India, at any respectable scale. The
bigger is the scale, the tougher it gets. Does that not sound logical to you? Is that not how it
should be? Is it not what you would have done as an examiner (test-paper setter)?
The second truth. The more important is the position you will occupy after getting
selected in a particular exam, the more stringent the selection parameters will be, and the
more rigorous the preparation required will be. Come on, these guys are supposed to run the
country. The country! How can the selection process ever be easy? I am sure you realise it.
The third truth. The syllabus for UPSC exams is very vast, and there are no definite
boundaries to anything. Even when it is a written (printed) syllabus, the ability to answer
questions can require a tremendous mix of insights, facts, conceptual understanding, and
plain simple commonsense. A lot of students may miss out on one or more of these
components.
So, why is it that so many of the IAS success stories are written by the categories of people

you mentioned in your question description? Because they have put in years of efforts doing
what's needed. Reading. Writing. Learning. Understanding. Being ambitious. Developing
themselves. Connecting the Dots. [ But not everyone will accept it publicly and say so. Why?
Perhaps they fear it will reduce the magical adulation they'll get. Perhaps they don't bother.
Perhaps it's too puerile to do so. ]
Did anyone tell you that people made it through the IAS exams with just a few months of
preparation? There's only 2 things happening - either they were geniuses, or they are plain
simple lying.
(a) If they were geniuses, then they represent a very tiny minority of test-takers. And rest
assured, of the final list of selected people, a very very small number is "the genius
category". (If you don't want to believe this, I have no problem. I speak from experience of
having been at an IIT, and more than two decades of handling students)
(b) If they were plain simple lying, then nothing can be done about it.
This is how most people crack the UPSC test:
1. Read, read and read for many years - People read newspapers and
magazines. They improve their conceptual grip on topics by reading over many
years. They may not realise it yet (while they are in their teens) but they are
laying the foundation for the final battle, and all this raw effort proves
invaluable later on. [ I'll be honest - I have never met a single person in my life
who cracked UPSC in the first attempt and actually never had serious reading
habits read before. The person may not say so explicitly, but did the skills
develop magically overnight? Of course not. ]
2. Decide early on - Anyone willing to go for UPSC (and become an IAS) decides
usually early on that they have to make it. And then they channelise all their
energies towards it. They may not publicly declare it by printing an
advertisement in prominent dailies, and putting it on hordings all over, or
updating their social media statuses, but their families know it.
3. Work on the weaknesses, strengthen the strengths - Sincere people
realise what their weaknesses are. For example - for many, it is answer writing.
The UPSC Mains exam requires you to write a lot of essays. LOT OF THEM.
Now writing as a skill is not something you are born with, usually. It is the end
result of a combination of many factors (reading, understanding, good & proper
hold over the pen, stamina, love for the process ...) and it surely takes many
years.
So to summarise :

Do people take years to prepare for the UPSC exam? A big YES.
Do most of them say so publicly? Usually, NO.
Will you need to prepare for many years to crack it? YES, if you have done
nothing so far (refer to skills mentioned above)
Will it be a very tiring exercise? YES, if you don't love it. NO, if you are
super-excited.
Can you make it if you decide to do it? A million times, YES.

When should you start? TODAY.

Why? You are wasting time analysing otherwise.
Really? YES.
Am I telling the truth? YES.

I wish you great luck. Be positive. There's nothing to be gained otherwise. God bless!