Work Hard but Smart – Piyush Raj (AIR 71 – CLAT 2019)

Piyush Raj is a first year student of NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.

In my family, except for a few relatives, nobody knew what CLAT meant and it was hard to break it to them that I wanted to pursue law. Whenever my relatives would ask me what I was preparing for, an awkward silence would follow my reply. To this day, I chuckle every time I recollect their response – “Law karke toh vakil hi banoge na?”

As luck would have it, CLAT, for me, was an inspiration.

In this article, I’ll tell you how I approached CLAT by using a smart strategy. First, I’ll give you a glimpse of  what my approach towards studies was, and second, I’ll tell you how I attempted the mocks and the main examinations – both CLAT and AILET.

CLAT is a very elementary, general aptitude examination that tests your awareness, not your knowledge. As far as my personal experience is concerned with regards to the sections, I personally prefer what I consider to be the most important sections – Legal Aptitude and General Knowledge (the Current Affairs part), because these sections constitute 50% of the marks that can be scores.

But there is something way more important that needs to be kept in your mind while preparing for CLAT. It does not matter how many hours you study, or how many mocks you write, or how hard you work. I have seen people working way harder than I did and failing to get even a three-digit rank. No determinant will ensure your admission to the top NLUs. The world does not owe you anything for the work you do. My experience tells me that it is futile to see your life in terms of your CLAT result. It is a small part of your life – let it remain that, don’t give it unnecessary significance and weigh yourself down. Do not focus on studying more but instead, dedicate your time to problem-solving i.e. attempting mock tests!

On a daily basis, I studied every subject. For example, I would attempt 20 questions from the Mathematics section with the timer on. God, I hated Math and don’t worry if you do too. I’d go through newspapers and websites for current affairs and made notes for them as well. Additionally, I would also attempt a minimum of thirty Legal Aptitude questions and solve two passages for Reading Comprehension.

Analyzing the mock tests is very important. Give plenty of mocks and analyse them closely. The time duration for a mock i.e. 120 minutes is supposed to be divided into two parts. 115 minutes for problem-solving and the remaining 5 minutes must strictly be reserved for review. Stick to the time limit you set for every section when you begin attempting the paper and later, go to those unattempted questions. Just go through the paper once again. Don’t give up after you’ve attempted the last question. Going back to the questions that you couldn’t solve in the first attempt would help a lot. Maybe this time you’ll be able to attempt them. Trust me blindly that reviewing helps every single time. It adds up little to your score. It really worked for me and that’s why I would highly recommend this method.

And therefore, the clichéd quote fit perfectly – “Work Hard but Smart.”

In conclusion, I would like to mention how preparing in a very relaxed set-up was probably what kept me sane towards the end. The only thing that I knew at the time of my preparation was that I wanted to be at NALSAR. No matter how clichéd it might sound, it is critical to dream and believe in your dreams. I put way more effort in preparing myself mentally for being at NALSAR rather than preparing for the exam. Live a normal life, read books, eat good food, listen to music and keep yourself healthy. This will be more useful than pulling those extra hours to cram more GK or to solve an insane number of math questions. Cut yourself some slack now and then by going out. Let the central message of this piece be this – Amid all the hysteria surrounding CLAT, you need to relax and enjoy. Believe me, it helps a lot.

Please leave a comment below in case you have further any queries with regards to preparation. In case you are desperately in need of a Personalized Action Plan, please read this.