To Change Results – Change Your Preparation

 ‘Bhaiyya,’ said Rahul. ‘My parents expect me to top the class in the final exams. I’m stressed out.’

‘Yes bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘Couple of my friends are very worried too.’

‘Hmm,’ said Rakesh. ‘Everyone gets stressed during exams. However expectations are not the problem; unrealistic expectations are.’

‘But bhaiyya, we expect the best outcomes don’t we?’ asked Rinku.

‘Yes,’ said Rakesh. ‘But don’t forget the formula – be it academics, games, art - your results only reflect your preparation. Nothing more, nothing less. At a late stage, your result is already decided.’

‘Bhaiyya, are you saying there’s no hope now?’ said Rahul.

‘Rahul,’ said Rakesh. ‘You’re stressed because you’re only focusing on topping and not on the preparation process. You’re not facing reality and are simply hoping. If your average has been 75% and you’re expecting 90% in the finals, it’s not realistic right?’

‘But I’ve started taking tuitions and am studying more for the last couple of months,’ said Rahul.

‘That’s great,’ said Rakesh. ‘And your results will surely reflect that improvement. However, if you want to top, cramming a year’s study into the last two months may not count as the best of preparations, right Rahul?’

‘True bhaiyya,’ said Rahul. ‘I didn’t fare well in the recent tests.’

‘Perhaps you need more attention and more time from a good teacher to understand concepts clearly,’ said Rakesh. ‘If the results are not right Rahul, always revisit your preparation process. And until you figure that out, stop stressing about topping and do your best to learn.’

‘But I feel my parents want me to top bhaiyya,’ said Rahul.

‘It’s nice that they want you to top Rahul,’ said Rakesh. ‘To achieve that, it might help if all of you assess your chances more realistically and focus on improving the preparation process - instead of focusing on results. It only adds needless stress.’

‘How does one improve the process bhaiyya?’ asked Rinku.

‘If you really want to top, prepare like toppers do,’ said Rakesh. ‘Toppers prepare through the year, study regularly, practice and seek help from teachers until they are thorough. All that preparation shows in their results.’

‘That’s it? Isn’t there another way bhaiyya?’

‘Sadly no,’ said Rakesh. ‘Start improving your preparation process from now on. Good preparation doesn’t mean more hours. It’s the quality of hours, quality of teachers and monitoring of progress.’

‘Bhaiyya, I let myself down badly this time,’ said Rahul.

‘Any exam result only reflects your preparation for that particular exam Rahul,’ said Rakesh. ‘If you prepare better you’ll get better results next time. Maybe you’ll even top. One exam does not define you. What defines you is how quickly you assess reality, make changes to the process and change the results.’

‘Wow bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘Let’s prepare for some tea now instead of stressing about it.’

Pro Tip: Your results reflect your preparation. To improve results, improve your preparation. If you focus on results without preparation, it will lead to stress.

 

Exercise: Take a tennis ball. Make teams of two. Have both mates bounce the tennis ball on the back of their clenched fist. Keep score. Then set aside ten minutes for preparation. Practice. Ask for help. Find best way to do it. Try again. Your results will be much better thanks to your preparation.

Share stories of how students have achieved success through preparation. 

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