Mains 2021: Doubt and strategy discussion thread

Mains GS PYQs

All 4 Forum pdfs have been merged.

Updated upto 2019 and has only 2013 onwards questions.

Can someone tell me about vision's advanced course for mains? Is it worthwhile to join it?

Does forum offer something along these lines, like classes focusing on mains?

Ayush sir was telling about some GS2 and 3 course in today's talk, if I heard him correctly..can someone please share some info about that?

Hi guys.

Have been a silent participant in SFG 2.0, the Prelims and now this Mains thread.

I really appreciate the help and guidance provided by@Sherkhan1428,@Patootie,@Koro-Sensei and many many more. Thank you, guys.

Special thanks to@Neyawn. Your posts helped me when I was disappointed at my scores in Prelims test series. You kept me going when I was about to give up.

Although I didn't expect to clear prelims based on my scores in tests, I somehow managed to clear it with a margin. I guess the unconventional nature of the exam played in my favour.

But now I find myself clueless and anxious regarding mains. I have no idea how to proce

Till now, I have been preparing, keeping only prelims in mind. It was my (sort of) first attempt, and I am yet to write an answer. I fear answer writing as I don't think I have something worth writing. I don't have any content whatsoever.

I have joined AWFG (since SFG helped me a lot in Prelims, I am hoping this would do the same in Mains), but is that enough to provide me with content.

I also attended@Neyawn live session for first-timers where he suggested CA classes. My main concern is that would these classes be enough? Would these be in sync with AWFG?

Right now I feel as clueless as a deer caught in headlights. Any help would be appreciated.

Ultimate piece of advice 

Either you are doing good in both essay or optional, or you are gonna get chucked in mains. Either at mains itself or at interview thanks to poor mains scores. 

At the end GS is hardly a deal maker these days. With 90s being the new 100s, the variance in score of a average and a good GS paper isn't enough to save the day. 

Do optional. Leave the last month for GS. A 40 50 mark lead in optional is easily achievable, as is a 15 20 mark lead in essay. The same, you can't do in GS. 

As someone with consecutive 140+ scores, no one. Either you read editorials of hindu/ IE or forget getting 145 in essay. Coaching masters can only get you to 125. Also don't constrict yourself, the main funda of essay is that it's not GS. Just making it a mumbo jumbo of data doesn't help. There must be analysis, there must be feelings there must be rhetoric. Also you can write essays that heavily critic the government, but it must be technically sound. 

I took classes from Atul Sir in 2018-19. He used to teach in Orient Was back then(Now is with Shubhra Ranjan Institute). For me, he is one stop solution for ethics. Very updated and completes course in a short span. I our case, he took 30 classes to complete both Theory and Case Study part. Also I feel that his Case Study strategy at least helps one to get average marks.

8 full I believe will be a better idea. I joined Vision list year and it was pretty decent. Forum is good too going by its track record.