Gave my first mains in January.. haven't been studying anything since then..
But from August 2021-December 2021, i have been studying for 8 hour minimum everyday(productive study) on an average.. 
There have been days when it has increased to 10 + hours but those have been rare days.. and especially when exams are just around the corner.. 

 I do think studying ~6 hours everyday will be more on the lesser side..
Even if u sleep for 8 hours a day and study for 6 hours in a day minimum you still have 10 hours left.. ASK YOURSELF WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN THOSE 10 HOURS.. how much are you wasting you time....  If you are taking 1 hour to have ur meals cut it down to 45 minutes... and try to reduce the excess that u spend on breaks slowly and gradually.. do the same for other activities as well.

Having said so, I also dont think  that you should be fixating at a particular number of hours to study.. I personally give a lot of importance to mental health and I believe one must always, ALWAYS listen to their body and mind..  

Don't look at the number of hours people are studying.. look at what your body and mind allows you to do.. IN A SUSTAINABLE FASHION.. 
Honestly no one can study for 10 hours productively daily.. Find you own sustainable limit and be honest to yourself.. Use a stop watch the calculate the time you actually study and waste.. do this exercise consciously and at the end of each day , review if you could have done better...

""How many hours do you guys study on an average daily?"""

so like you naturally assume that everyone is atleast studying

I stopped looking at the hours, and just focus on the tasks to be done and finish them by night. This is a much simpler and saner way to go about prep. 

Like @Steph_Curry I too struggle with efficiency, so kehne-ko I used to study in the 9am to 9pm bracket but it was in my own low intensity way along with other things like lunch, tea break, even Reddit and YouTube in between at times, so effective hours would be around 8 max. This was usually enough to get done all the work planned for the day.

I second what has been said above, do not get bogged down by the hours others are putting in. Everyone takes their own time with things, plus, you never really know what someone’s “quality” study hours are. 

Just keep pushing yourself whilst being mindful of your well-being. For me, a month before exams, be it prelims or mains, all the other considerations go for a toss, or that’s how it inevitably becomes for me. Then, I just try to squeeze in as much study as I can. It gets stressful but I’ve just accepted it now 😅

It's called 'Bread and Bakar'

Like Bread and Butter 

Just on a lighter note guys.

@HeNeArKrand @Steph_Curryto@sjerngal be like :p

If you are efficient enough, 6 hrs a day is pretty good at this point. If you are not, like me, then you can increase the hours. To do that, note down the activities where you can cut down time. Point is to be aware of activities that are taking extra time  and gradually cut it down. Also, ensure that you don't compromise with the leisure/recreation waala time.

P.S.- I am clocking 2-3 hrs a day at the moment 😶. Although, some people on YPT are studying 9-10 hours a day right now.

I struggle with productivity myself. So much so that I started reading a book titled “Finish What You Started” and didn’t read more than halfway through that book either…smh. 

6 hours is decent for the time being, especially if you intend to write in 2022. But you will slowly need to bump it up to 10 as the prelims gets nearer (I’m talking the last 30 days or so). Personally, I believe that there is a need to sit a minimum threshold amount because no one is ever fully productive. Irrespective of how less hours you sit, you will inevitably waste 15-20 minutes here and there. So only if you sit 6 hours do you ensure you study at least 4 hours worth.

Having said that, its ok to not be able to complete your targets or not be able to sit consistently for 10+ hours daily. It’s part of the learning curve and you’re only human. Figure out if your current study schedule is not working for you and see where you could find space to maximise your output

Ma'am, I have been following your posts, big fan!!

"It's not the hours you put in your work that counts, it's the work you put in the hours." - Sam Ewing

Many years ago, had told this quote in "Thought of the day" at the School assembly. Still trying to implement this thought and failing. :p

Most underrated comment on this post  :)

Hey guys, 

This is my first post here. I am clocking at 6-7 hours right now. My aim is to go upto 12 gradually and preferably one month before prelims. This is my final attempt and i have failed all my previous prelims due to various reasons ranging from casual attempts, losing steam and uninformed preparation. 

Here's what I do right now to get my hours. 

1) morning meditation and relaxing immediately after waking up.

2) exercise around 1 hour.

3) no compromise on sleep. I sleep when sleepy and wake up when feel like it. 

4) reduce screen time on social media, YouTube etc. 

5) not cutting off contact with family and friends, jus

I believe as everyone pointed out that quality topples quantity in terms of number of hours. But since this is my last try, i just don't want to leave any vagueness. I gave a few FLTs and my score was disheartening, so i really don't have the option to take it easy at all. 

All the best guys.

There’s this quote - plans are useless, but planning is indispensable 😂 which sums up my entire philosophy along planning and time tables. I rarely achieve most of my targets too, I think they just ensure I don’t do nothing. 😅

Serious answer here. 

I'm facing the exact same problem, the perennial 'kitne ghante padna hai'. Tried app blockers also but seems like my own brain refuses to focus after an hour. Keep telling myself 'motivation is secondary, focus on being discipliner' but even my efficiency levels drop if I study for too long. 

My friend who is also preparing for UPSC claimed that she studied for 10-12 hrs. I have absolutely no clue how people do this. I've been a fairly meritocratic student throughout my life, went to two top tier colleges of India without having to study for long hours, but this exam is seriously making me doubt whether I'll ever finish the syllabus and revise in time. The hours debate may not be valid for any other exam but for UPSC I think it is. 

If anyone knows the answer, please enlighten the rest of us. I'm trying to search for solid answers to this question for nearly 3 years now. 

hi. i have been (at least was) facing the exact same problem for long. been decently good at academics throughout, and yet, ever since i began preparing, i couldn't gather either enough motivation or enough discipline for this exam. and this has been the story for more than two years now. so much so that i began to doubt my ability to 'ever' be disciplined. 

but a few days back, completely tired at my failures to discipline myself (and after trying all sorts of time-tables, app-blockers, habit builders and other stuff), i made a small but very significant change, and also came to a little realisation:

1. i quit my smartphone. shifted to an old Samsung Guru that stays mostly with my Dadi. i have survived (rather, thrived) well without it, so at least i'm convinced that i'm not the compulsive procrastinator that i thought i was. not that you necessarily need to do it, but it does boost a lot of confidence, believe me. the idea that you control, and are not controlled, by technology is liberating. these days, like the old times, i check my social media (this forum, telegram, mail), only once a day on my laptop. and man does it make you feel old-school (and warm). 

2. that being said, i also realised that "enjoying the process" doesn't mean enjoying those grueling 10 hours. while discipline and consistency are a must, but in this exam, they are rather over-hyped. i mean, we all know that we need to do a decent amount of study everyday, but it doesn't really mean studying till you give up because of the pain in your eyes or mind. this is the routine of the last month, and it better be limited to that. in other words, you should be able to understand your own self, YOUR OWN 'process', before understanding anybody else's (and this includes toppers). and now that i study without any guilt of not doing enough, it is only now that i have actually begun to enjoy this preparation. it is a bliss. 

3. this doesn't mean that you shouldn't challenge your comfort zones, but doing so just for the sake of it, shouldn't be your aim. and this was the primary reason of my frustration this whole time. your preparation itself will tell you when the right time is to challenge yourself, and how. trust yourself in that too. (something that i noticed with some people who clock 10+ hours of study regularly on YPT- they started small, at 4-5 hours or so, and increased with time, of about 2-3 months, perhaps when they knew they could, sustainably.)

i hope this helps. all the best :)

I think @HeNeArKr  and @Steph_Curry  can answer this better than @sjerngal  itself.

Didi hamari kam thodi h 😅

in 4 days?