‘The last lap to CAT’ & ‘30 days to CAT’ are some of the catchphrases that have the potential to make any aspirant’s heartbeat race in a frenzy. You might often try maintaining a composed, confident demeanour in front of your friends and family while constantly analysing your previous mocks in the background and contemplating whether they were just enough or if CAT has become yet another far-fetched goal. For all those lakhs of aspirants going through tough times, here’s what a Potterhead has to say, who, in fact, was on the other side of the story just a few months back.
Firstly, keep your data analysis restricted to your aptitude mocks and exams and avoid being a ‘mathematical clairvoyant’ which you are obviously not. Do remember that no amount of preparation will ever be just enough for you and that’s the inherent characteristic of human mind. There will always be that one question, a concept or a formula which you could have but couldn’t. Does that mean that you have not done the prep as you were meant to? Absolutely not! You just did your best on that day. No matter how many times Harry faced Voldemort, he was always unprepared, always undertrained and yet he succeeded each time. Why? Probably because he, like a true Gryffindorian, trusted his guts more than anything else which no amount of magical learning could have really taught him.” Hence, the next time such self-destructing thought creeps into your mind, remind yourself what Hermione had indeed cautioned Harry – “The consequences of our actions are always so complicated, so diverse, that predicting the future is a very difficult business indeed”. Challenges in life are not meant to be solved in one set way with all those short tricks instead each one of us has unique journey through all ups and downs & instead of mulling over your past failures and extrapolating them onto your future decisions, what you really need to do is have faith in yourself even if not a single soul is ready to believe in you & try being your own greatest cheerleader remembering that “Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if only one remembers to turn on the light."
Now is not the time to contemplate whether all your efforts have paid off or are likely to. You can’t really strain yourself force-fitting the selected number of jigsaw puzzles without seeing the entire picture which seems hazy at the moment. Who’s to say that one exam you couldn’t clear wasn’t probably meant for you anyway and that’s just God swooshing ‘Accio’ pulling you out of future heartbreaks. Thus, you don’t really need to worry about those CAT approaching reminders instead go with the flow and enjoy the process. I hope you remember what you need to do the next time – close your eyes, remember the happiest moments of your life, gather your inner strength, smilingly utter “Expecto Patronum” and feel all the negativity surrounding you slowly ebb away into nothingness.