Students’ Speak: Resist the urge to overthink
Common Admission Test 2026 ( CAT )
CAT 2026 application submission
3 Aug '26 - 22 Sep '26
By: Abdullah Salman
It's a feeling every student knows the moment he walks out of the exam hall and everybody discusses how it went. You either become a part of the conversation or avoid all discussions because of a bad exam. If you ever feel the latter, here are some tips for what to do when the exam didn't go as per the preparation.
Don’t panic
It sounds obvious, but it is vital not to panic once you enter the exam hall. Plan to find somewhere quiet and settle down. Remember that it's just one exam in your whole educational career.
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No single exam is critical enough to mean you've completely failed your degree. Maybe the module won't count overall, or it means your other modules got to be better. This research is often reassuring and can assist you to calm down.
Don't take it personally
Plan to separate the failure from who you're. Just because one exam went bad doesn't imply you’re now a failure. Consider other things you’re good at and what you’ve achieved lately to avoid letting a nasty exam knock your self-confidence.
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Learn from it
Being hard on yourself isn't helpful, but using the experience to improve is useful. Think where you simply went wrong; what could you have done differently? Was there a selected topic you need to revise more in your revision next time?
Don't dwell on it
There’s nothing you'll do once the exam is over. Thinking about points where you can improve for next time could even be an honest idea, decide to resist the urge to overthink. You can't control the result and you furthermore won't know the results for a month so dwelling thereon will just cause anxiety. Taking a break from negative thinking will assist you to reset and specialise in what’s important.
About the Author:
Abdullah Salman M is a student of Master in Business Administration (MBA) in General Management from Thiagarajar School of Management (TSM), Madurai. He has worked for over a year as a Network Engineer and has studied his graduation in Bachelor of Engineering with a specialisation in Electrical and Communication Engineering from Anna University, Chennai.
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