Managing CAT Stress
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You have spent many a day
attending classes, giving mock tests, competing with fellow aspirants, et al,
and many a sleepless night with your nose buried in the books. Soon all
your hard work would be put to test. This very thought is enough to give anyone
the jitters. So, no wonder many students suffer from the so-called 'CAT Scare'.
And this fear gets all the more pronounced as the examination day approaches!
CAT, as popularly believed, is
not just the test of Quantitative or Verbal Prowess. The top B-schools are more
interested in your ability to handle uncertainty and stress. Numerous studies
conducted by psychoanalysts have shown that 'stress', as opposed to general
notion, is not entirely bad; it can have both a positive and a negative effect
on us. As a positive influence, stress can help compel us into action; we all
thrive under a certain amount of stress. Deadlines, competitions,
confrontations, give us a new awareness and perspective. Simply put, stress can
be our driving force. Thus, our goal should not be to eliminate stress but to
learn how to manage it in a way that it works for us rather than against us!
Managing
Stress
At the macro level, you must
always keep in mind that you are gearing up to appear for an examination which
aims at testing whether or not you have the requisite skill set to make a good
manager. And as a manager, you would be required to face innumerous stressful
situations, hence, it's a must that you learn how to handle stress effectively.
And, at a micro level - focusing on only the next few days - now is the time
that you must begin training yourself to avoid the influence of anxiety on your
performance in the CAT.
Here are some tips for better
stress management.
From Now
Till the Day of the Examination
Become aware of your stressors
and your reactions to them - We can't be experts at everything that we
undertake. The same is true for the different sections of the CAT. We would be
comfortable with some sections and sub-sections, and less than comfortable with
others. Now is the time for us to identify our weaknesses and our reactions to
the same.
