A boy was watching his grandmother write a letter. At one point he asked: ‘Are you writing a story about what we’ve done? Is it a story about me?’ His grandmother stopped writing her letter and said to his grandson: I am writing about you, actually, but more important than the words is the pencil I’m using. I hope you will be like this pencil when you grow up.’ Intrigued, the boy looked at the pencil. It didn’t seem very special. ‘But it’s just like any other pencil I’ve ever seen!’ ‘That depends on how you look at things. It has five qualities which, if you manage to hang on them, will make you a person who is always at peace with the world.’
‘First Quality: you are capable of great things, but you must never forget that there is a hand guiding your steps. We call that hand God and He always guides us according to his will.’
‘Second Quality : now and then i hav to stop writing and use a sharpner. That makes the pencil suffer a little, but afterwards, he’s much sharper. So you, too, must learn to bear certain pains and sorrows, because they will make you a better person.
‘Third Quality: the pencil always allows us to use an eraser to rub out any mistakes. This means that correcting something we did is not necessarily a bad thing; it helps to keep us on the road to justice.’
‘Fourth Quality: what really matters in a pencil is not its wooden exterior, but the graphite inside. So always pay attention to what is happening inside you.’
‘Finally, the pencil’s Fifth Quality : it always leaves a mark. in just the same way, you should know that everything you do in life will leave a mark, so try to be conscious of that in your every action.
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I did not join any classroom coaching. I did join vision ias mains test series. And followed Insights with operatic regularity throughout the year. This was my first attempt. And my optional was medical science. I am here to share my strategy with you . I hope you go through this with a little trust in me,pick and choose whatever suits you the best. And if this benefits even one of you,I would consider myself fortunate. ☺ Prelims: Essential book list : 1. Spectrum modern india 2. Class 11 and 12 geo ncert 3. Economics class 11th and 12th ncert 4. Economic survey 5. key features of budget 6. Laxmikant 7. Daily newspaper reading – I used to read The hindu. 8. Art and culture- multiple resources – CCRT, Class 11th NCERT on art, any reputed coaching material, themes in Indian history etc 9. Shankar Ias book for environment I might miss some books completely. Do cross check with the booklist given on Insights or any other place. No need to read special science and tech bookl...