Get Ahead has invited readers who have successfully cracked the Common Aptitude Test to share their tips/mantras for success. These CAT tips -- from among the many we have received -- is the third in a series of reader-driven articles.  

hen I started entertaining thoughts of writing CAT and walking down the enshrined corridors of an IIM, my cousin (who is from IIT Kharagpur and from IIM Ahmedabad) decided to play Devil's Advocate.

I was solemnly warned that an IIM education -- or CAT, for that matter -- was not for the faint-hearted. It requires days and hours of rigorous practice, dedication and commitment.

To be honest, what he said was not an overstatement. I realised that, if I wanted to make it, I had to display certain degree of commitment and dedication towards this cause.

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Take the fear out of CAT

Clearing CAT is certainly not an elusive dream. With hard work and commitment, one can easily bell the CAT.

For starters: here are a few facts (based my own observations):

Out of the (approximately) 1,50,000 aspirants who write CAT, more than 50 percent are not serious about it. They give the exam with no fixed goal in mind -- either because their friends are writing it or because they don't want to waste the money they spent on the application form.

This leaves us with just 75,000 people

Out of these 75,000 'serious' people, less than 50 per cent have actually put in any kind of preparation.

So, people who actually prepared for the exam and who are serious about it come down to just 35,000.

That's more manageable, isn't it?

Now, how do we get past these 35,000 people?

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Bell the CAT

Enough and more has already been written about various math shortcuts, tricks to improve your reading speed, etc. I did all that. And I did something more that worked well for me. Let me share those secrets with you.

Focus: It's all up there!

The mind plays a big role in belling the CAT.

We need to eat, sleep, breathe CAT. There are no shortcuts here.

What is required is total focus, irrespective of what we are doing at a given moment. For example, even when I watched television, I would subconsciously keep thinking about CAT.

I would try and visualise writing the exam, getting the calls, going for the GD/PI etc.

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Tackle those weak spots

Worried about your computing speed?

When I travelled, I would observe the registration numbers on vehicles and perform quick calculations. For example, if I saw the number 5988 on a vehicle, I used to compute the values for 598/9, 59/88, 5/988. This improved my speed tremendously!

Worried about your reading speed?

The fact that you read newspapers is a given. Do, however, make it point to read a lot of magazines as well.

Typically, most good magazines have guest columns. These are about a page long. I used to read these, time myself and try to comprehend the passage.

You could always ask your friend/mom/sister to ask you questions from the column to check your understanding of it.

After all, CAT is not about reading, it is about comprehending what you read!

Support groups

Get together regularly with your friends who are writing CAT. Exchange ideas, test papers, etc. Who knows? An idea from someone could help you immensely!

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Group discussions and personal interviews

Though most coaching institutes advise you to start GD/PI specific training once you get a call, I would suggest you start preparing now itself. After all, we need to act and think like winners, don't we?

Watch a lot of good Indian television shows, especially on channels like NDTV and CNBC. It certainly improves your communication skills. The added advantage is, your general knowledge and current affairs knowledge will show drastic improvement.

Trawl the Web

Go through the web sites of all the IIMs.

This helps you in getting an idea about each IIM, the courses offered, batch profile, etc. It will also give you a better grip over the entire process.

You can also get in touch with friends and alumni from each of these institutes and speak to them.

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Plan, plan, plan

Above all: plan and work hard.

However, you don't have to be very rigid.

For example, I used to set weekly time targets for myself. On a certain day, if I was not able to reach my target, I would make it up another day. The whole idea was to make sure my weekly target was met.

There is no point trying to burn the midnight oil when you are tired and sleepy. You'd be better off finishing what you have to the next day.

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Prashanth K is working as a business analyst with Wipro Technologies, Bangalore, since April 2004. He appeared for CAT in 2001 and got calls from IIM Indore, IIM Kozhikode and IIM Lucknow. He graduated from IIM Kozhikode in March 2004.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier

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