Post after a long time

Hey guys, how is it going? Its me Aman after a long time. This time I will be writing about those who are preparing for JEE 2018 (that is, those who most likely started preparation this year).

Since its June, everyone must have gained some momentum (pun?). You must have got a flavor of JEE preparation. You must have seen a nice competition in your school/coaching institute. Now is a good time to look back into what you did since you started your JEE preparation.

Physics: most likely you have completed the chapters on vectors, basic calculus and you must be studying kinematics
Chemistry: Most people study mole concept in the beginning
Maths: Varies a lot. Some start with calculus, others with coordinate geometry.

Whatever you did, you must now look back and see "how much" you did what you did.
Confused? I will elaborate what I mean.
I mean to say that you should try to revise what you did and realize how much you understand the stuff that you completed.

• You are confident that you can solve problems and you did practice some good books and you were able to solve the problems: good! You are on the right track. This is the ideal strategy to follow!
• You are confident that you can solve problems, but you haven't solved problems yet: well, this isn't a good habit. How can you feel confident without solving problems? Try a bunch of problems from each chapter.
• You don't feel confident and you have been trying hard to solve problems: Well, this happened with me in the beginning and I feel that its very normal (provided that this doesn't happen for a really long time). I tried my best, but still I used to be bowled by some questions. And then when I took help from teachers/friends, I realized that it was a silly problem, which had some concept that I knew. This made me realize that I should "think" more exhaustively before approaching people for help and that did help me in a long run. Since its just the beginning, you have only a few concepts. It is generally a good idea to "brainstorm" the possible methods. For instance, as soon as I saw a mechanics problem, I used to think - is it related to simple equations of motion (if acceleration is constant, yes!)? Has it something to do with laws of motion? Work energy theorem? Will conservation of momentum help? This soon became a habit and I could feel that I started feeling more comfortable with problems.
• You don't feel confident and you haven't tried problems as well: you seem to be trouble. It seems that you are still in your comfort zone. This strategy might have helped you get a 9 pointer in 10th class, but this won't work for JEE. you NEED to solve problems else you are heading nowhere.

Also, by now, you should be wise enough to understand that books will remain your best friend and guide for your JEE preparation (usually better than just classroom notes, unless you are enrolled in some exceptional coaching institute). If you even slightly feel that your teachers are not good enough, or if you feel that you are not getting enough practice, I would suggest you to not wait, and straight away buy books and read them and solve problems. I am saying this because its just the beginning and it is very easy to get back on track. You haven't really lost any time now. This won't be the case say 6 months hence. Time flies by quickly. After 6 months, if you wake up, it would be very hard for you to get back in the marathon. For a range of books suggested by me, head to Books section.

I would suggest not buying a large number of books at this stage. At the same time, I would suggest buying at least 2 books - one that contains ample of theory with beginner level problems, and other that contain advanced problems. Make sure to practice advanced problems AFTER you are thorough with easy ones. Also make sure you DEFINITELY solve hard problems. Don't think that "I will solve them when I have gained enough knowledge" (this happens with a lot of people!). You gain enough knowledge by solving problems. It is NOT the other way.

I hope this post helps you. Feel free to ask comments. Its a weekend and most likely I will reply to the comments.

All the best!