Self-confidence is based on a solid foundation of hard work and the relevant skills and talents which is an essential part of humanity. A person with self-confidence is generally willing to take risks to achieve their personal and professional goals, and thinks positively about the future. Performers who doubt their ability to succeed rarely achieve their potential. Self-confidence is something that you can build on your own!

There exists a process of building the skill of self-confidence over time. Self-Confidence can be developed in a number of ways:

Identify your negative thoughts

This inner voice is pessimistic and unhelpful and will hold you back from achieving high self-esteem and greater self-confidence.

Turn your negative thoughts to positive thoughts.

As you pay attention to your negative thoughts, turn them around to positive thoughts. This may take the form of positive affirmations. The more you counter your negative self-thinking with positivity, the more natural this will become. By developing this skill of mental toughness  it can help you cope up effectively in any performance situation.

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Maintain a positive support network

Connect with those close to you, whether they are family or friends, to keep your perspective uplifted. Furthermore, stay away from people or things that make you feel bad. Take some time to think about people in your life who really make you feel great. Make a goal to spend more time with people who are supportive and uplifting.

Identify your talents

Everyone is good at something, so discover the things at which you excel, and then focus on your talents. Give yourself permission to take part in them. Express yourself, whether it’s through art, music, writing, or dance. Find something you enjoy and cultivate a talent to go with your interest.

Stop comparing yourself to others

If you want to build up your confidence, then you need to know that there will always be someone who is prettier, smarter, and richer than you, just like there will always be someone who is less attractive, less intelligent, and less wealthy than you are; all of this is irrelevant, and what is relevant is caring about advancing your own goals and dreams.

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Take action. Get it done.

The most important step in building self confidence is simply to take action. Working on something and getting it done. You must do the thing you think you cannot do. Sitting at home and thinking about it will just make you feel worse. Simple. Once you put more energy into your positive traits, your confidence will start to shine through.

Act the part

If you look confident and act the part you aspire to reach, you’ll not only feel in control, people will have much more confidence in you as well. Maintain good eye contact while someone is speaking to you.

Speak assertively

A great speaker speaks confidently, in a steady, rhythmic tone. Instead of the “ums” and “ahs” that interrupt flow, they use pauses to emphasize ideas. Adopt an assertive, way of speaking that indicates your self-confidence. People will listen to you more attentively when they see the leader radiate from within you.

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Be prepared

Remember the five P’s: Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance. The more prepared you are, the more confident you’ll feel about your expertise and competency. Preparation will help you avoid getting tripped up by life’s unexpected glitches.

Exercise regularly

Part of taking care of yourself is getting exercise. For you, this may mean a brisk walk outside. Exercise does not have to be complicated. Many studies have shown that exercise is essential to a positive outlook on life, and a positive attitude contributes to self-confidence.

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The interview of the Union Public Service Commission (Civil Services) Exam is officially known as Personality Test. The UPSC Civil Services’ interview, the final stage, is held just after the results of the mains exams are declared. A lot of candidates, who clear the Prelims and Mains, fail at this stage as it is aimed at assessing the candidate’s personality, whether S/he is suitable to be a competent administrator or not.

The candidate is tested not only for their intelligence but also for their overall personality development, their attentiveness, balance of judgement and qualities of honesty, integrity and leadership. Therefore preparation for the Interview requires proper planning.

The idea behind the interview is to judge the candidate’s social traits and to see if their personality is suited to that of a Civil Services officer. If a candidate gives off an impression of being a bookworm, their chances of getting selected are reduced. They must exhibit an interest in events happening around them and be able to have an intelligent and fruitful conversation with the board.

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Questions to be raised from sections

The research and analysis section of UPSC is used for assessing background information of the candidate appearing for the personality test/ interview. This questionnair has to be duly filled and submitted at the time of the interview and questions are raised from these sections.

• Background of the candidate.
• Employment status
• Previous Civil Services attempts
• Competitive exams cleared
• Reasons for interest in Civil Services
• Education particulars
• Background of Parents/Guardian
• Source of information for Civil Services
• Coaching attended
• Optional subject chosen

While preparing for the UPSC interview, a candidate needs to remember following things:

• Be attentive and have a positive body language
• Ensure that your posture have a good personal turnout
• Answer questions clearly and confidently
• Remain calm and composed even when faced with provocative questions
• Stay crisp and to the point while answering a question

The qualities that should be possessed in a interview are such as, “clarity of expression, reasoning ability, appreciation of different points of view, awareness and concern for socio-economic problems, ranges and depth of interests and personal attributes relevant to interaction with people.”

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Things to be avoided in the UPSC Interview:

• Avoid saying “I’m sorry”
• Avoid conversational fillers like “as you know”, “that’s correct”, “of course”, “indeed”, “obviously”, etc.
• Avoid using technical terms, unless probed into technical field.
• Maintain a cheerful disposition. You can appear serious but try and maintain a composed look and hold a smile. Even if the board laughs at some point, maintain your smile and composure.
• Do not give a long introduction, keep it precise.
• Show human concern wherever possible in your answers.
• Maintain consistency in what you’re saying, logically and rationally. Defend what you say, but with due respect to the views of the board. Do not defend an answer if it becomes difficult to do so logically and rationally.

Frequently asked UPSC Interview Questions :

• Initial questions will be based on your bio-data, career choices and why you have opted for civil services.
• To start with, the board generally asks a candidate to give a description about himself/herself.
• You need to research well on your hobbies as questions are asked on the reason why you pursue a particular hobby.
• Questions will come from Current Affairs. So have an in-depth knowledge of current hot topics in the present world. While answering, put forward your views in a precise and analytical manner, with a logical backing to it.
• Name your three good and negative qualities. While answering this question, always keep in mind that you provide a justification the good qualities you mention, and while mentioning your negative qualities, always mention what you can do to improve on them.
• Situational questions can pop up during the interview like if you were the Collector/SP of Pune, Maharashtra, you would do after a bomb blast in the city.

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To become a better reader means getting faster and more efficient at reading, and understanding what you’re reading. Increasing reading speed is a process of controlling fine motor movement period. Have an idea that what you’re reading about, not just reading and forgetting or failing to grasp the contents.

Reading involves a pre-conscious level of awareness that naturally stimulates creativity, rapid information assimilation while opening the doors to non-judgmental learning. While reading, we are essentially shutting-off the conscious critical mind from the learning cycle. Even though the conscious mind is essential for stimulating your short and long-term memory, its due to the habitual preconceived ideas and notions about the information you are learning.

In the modern age of information, reading truly is a fundamental survival skill. Here are tips that anyone can use to improve their reading skills:

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Only Move Eyes while Reading

Using this method you can effectively accelerate your reading speed anywhere from 20% to 30%. Your vision will allow you to see more of the page in one glance without having to move your eyes across the page left to right. the most proficient speed readers actually only move their eyes down the center of a page to capture words and phrases that lie off-center.

Focus

Remember, you’re reading with a purpose, so focus on that purpose and the material. When you start getting bored or need a break, take one. Reading should be fun and enjoyable, don’t force it. After your break, return to where you were, and continue. Be choosy and select the chapters and articles that are important. This simple technique helps you focus and increase your concentration.

Skimming

Skimming is the process of speedy reading for general meaning. Let your eyes skip over sentences or phrases which contain detail. Concentrate on identifying the central or main points. This technique is used to pre-view a section of text prior to detailed reading and refresh your understanding of a section of text following detailed reading. Using this method, you can effectively accelerate your reading speed anywhere from 10% to 20%.

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Reduce Amount of Skip-backs

We naturally slowdown our speed of reading because of simple skip-backs, which involves re-reading words and sentences over and over again. Many of us take part in this time wasting habit, because as children we were told by our teachers that we must go back and re-read words that were mispronounced. Using this method you can effectively accelerate your reading speed anywhere from 25% to 50%.

Don’t Move Lips or Make Noises while Reading

Our eyes can recognize words and sentence structures far more quickly then we can articulate them aloud. Hence, if you are verbalizing the words you are reading inside your head or through the process of just moving your lips, then you are dramatically slowing down your speed of reading. Using this method you can effectively accelerate your reading speed.

Form Mental Visual Mind Maps while Reading

In order to improve your comprehension of the information you are reading, it is important to form ongoing visual mind map images of each sentence, paragraph, topic and chapter throughout the reading process.

You don’t have to be a great reader to get the point.

Some people read fast and remember everything. Others read slowly and take a couple of times to get all the information. It doesn’t matter, really, so long as when you read, you get the information you’re seeking. Don’t need to read everything doing this will double the amount of time you have available to read.

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Know WHY you’re reading.

Decide why you’re reading before you start and you’ll greatly improve your comprehension and your enjoyment.

Optimize your reading environment.

You’ll read faster and comprehend more if you read in an environment that’s comfortable for you.

Practice, Practice and Practice Some More

Finally, you will not improve your reading speed by thinking about these techniques and strategies. The key is to practice, practice and practice each and everyday. Through consistent practice over time you will progressively accelerate your reading speed beyond its present capabilities and limitations. The more you read, the better reader you’ll become (and smarter, too)! So, feed your mind: read!

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