Reserve List Heartbreak to IBPS PO Selection

For many banking aspirants, the most difficult part of preparation isn't always clearing the exam. Sometimes, it is coming close to selection again and again and still having nothing to show for it.

Prince, an aspirant from Delhi, knows exactly what that feels like.

Prince graduated in 2021 and began preparing for banking exams in 2023. But his course was not a smooth one. At first, he didn’t even know how the banking exams worked, where to study or if he even needed a teacher.

It took him time to understand the exam, find the right resources, and figure out what actually worked for him.

And even after he started improving, success didn't come immediately.

In the 2024 exam cycle, Prince faced several near-misses. He made it to the RRB Clerk reserve list, but another RRB Clerk reserve list was not released as expected. After coming so close multiple times, he reached a point where he genuinely started feeling that perhaps nothing was going to work out.

But he continued.

And eventually, the effort that had taken years finally paid off.

Prince cleared the IBPS PO exam, turning a journey filled with confusion, near-misses and self-doubt into a successful banking career.

His story is not about getting it right from the start. It’s about working in the right direction. Picking yourself up from failure and persisting when the results don’t show up straight away.
 

Prince Live Podcast Video | | How Prince Cleared PNB PO in 1st Attempt?

 

How Prince Overcame Repeated Near-Misses to Finally Crack IBPS PO

Prince's selection as an IBPS PO didn't come after one or two straightforward attempts. Before finally seeing his name in the selection list, he had already spent years preparing for banking exams and had come painfully close to selection several times.

In RRB Clerk, he made it to the reserve list. Then came another disappointment. The RRB result he was waiting for wasn't released as expected.

After years of preparation, Prince even reached a point where he thought about giving up.

But he continued.

As Prince puts it, his first year went into clearing prelims, the second into clearing Mains, and finally, in the third year, he cleared the final selection.

At 26, Prince finally achieved his goal of clearing IBPS PO.

His journey is a simple reminder: “Lage raho, ho jaata hai.”

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A Glimpse Into Prince's Family Background and What Motivated Him

Prince comes from a humble family in Delhi. There are four members in his family,i.e, his parents, his sister, and he.

His father is an auto driver.

After graduating in 2021, Prince had initially planned to prepare for government exams. However, due to some family issues, he could only properly begin his banking exam preparation in 2023.

At that point, he had almost no understanding of how competitive banking exams actually were.

He knew that banking exams existed and that he wanted to clear them. But beyond that, he didn't know what resources to use or how he was supposed to prepare.

That lack of direction became one of the biggest challenges during his early preparation.
 

Struggling Without Direction in the Early Days of Preparation

When Prince first started preparing, he assumed that whatever he had studied during graduation or school would somehow help him in the exam.

That assumption didn't last long.

He remembers his first experience with a prelims paper very clearly. He went into the examination expecting something familiar, only to realize how different the actual competition and examination was.

As he described it, he felt like he had barely blinked before the paper was over.

The reality hit him when he started hearing candidates talk about scores of 90-plus out of 100 in the SBI clerk prelims exam.

For someone who had just entered the world of banking exams, it was a major shock.

He realized that clearing the exam needs proper guidance.

So he started searching YouTube for courses and teachers.

But even that became another challenge.

There were countless teachers, courses and recommendations online, and it took him a long time to understand which resources were actually useful for him.

According to Prince, finding the right teachers itself took around one-and-a-half to two years.

At one point, he even cleared an IDBI exam and joined the job, but stayed there for only two days. After consulting a teacher, he decided that since he still had time, he should continue preparing.

That decision eventually gave him more time to focus on his actual goal.

 

Finding the Right Mentor Who Turned Scattered Effort Into a Focused Direction

The early years of preparation were spent studying without proper direction, then he found Rajan Sir. 

He was studying, attempting exams and trying different resources, but there was no clear system connecting all of it.

Rajan Sir helped change that.

Instead of simply telling Prince to work harder, he guided him on what to study, how to approach the preparation and where his efforts needed to go.

Prince believes this made a major difference in his journey.

He felt that having someone who could assess his preparation and tell him what he needed to improve prevented him from wasting time on unnecessary things.

This is something Prince strongly recommends to beginners as well.

According to him, a beginner should find a teacher or mentor, honestly explain where they are weak, and allow that person to assess their preparation.

Because sometimes the problem isn't a lack of effort.

It is simply that the effort is going in the wrong direction.

 

How Prince Discovered Smartkeeda and Made It His Go-To Source for GA Preparation

General Awareness was one of the sections that worried Prince the most.

During an earlier IBPS PO Mains attempt, his GA marks were very low. Before discovering Smartkeeda, he was following AffairsCloud for current affairs.

The problem wasn't that he wasn't studying.

The problem was retention.

The PDFs were lengthy, and after spending so much time reading and even printing the material, Prince felt that he wasn't able to retain enough of it.

He eventually started looking for a more concise way of preparing for GA.

That's when he came across Smartkeeda.

He watched a video by Anil Agarwal Sir and then checked the Smartkeeda current affairs PDFs.

What immediately caught his attention was the Smart Points section.

Prince noticed that the important information from a news item had been condensed into a much smaller format. Along with the news, related static GK information was also provided in the same place.

For example, if a news item was related to another country, relevant information about that country could be found alongside it.

This made the preparation much more manageable for him.

Instead of spending hours going through extremely lengthy material, Prince could revise the important information quickly.

And for GA, that change made a big difference.
 

Inside Prince's Month-by-Month GA Revision Strategy Using Smartkeeda's Smart Points

Prince didn't just read the Smartkeeda PDF once and leave it.

He had a simple revision plan for it. He would divide the monthly PDF into around 30 pages a day and try to finish it in three days.

The first time, he would read the important news and underline the points he felt were important. Then he would come back to the same PDF again and revise those underlined points.

After that, he focused more on the Smart Points.

And just before the exam, he would give the Smart Points one final revision. So instead of constantly looking for new PDFs or new sources, he kept revising same material again and again.

This helped him a lot, especially when the exam was close. Even if the PDF was around 150 pages, the smartkeeda Smart Points made it much easier for him to go through everything quickly.

For Prince, GA preparation wasn't about reading more and more material. It was about revising the right material multiple times.

His approach was simple: Don't keep changing your sources. Find one good source and revise it properly.

 

Reasoning Emerged as Prince's Strongest Section in the Mains Exam

While GA was one of the sections Prince was most worried about, Reasoning turned out to be his strongest section.

He scored 42 marks out of 60 in Reasoning in the IBPS PO Mains exam, which was a really great achievement.

A lot of this improvement, Prince credits to his mentor, Rajan Sir. Before that, he was studying and working hard, but wasn’t always confident that he was preparing the right way.

Once Rajan Sir started guiding him, things became much clearer. He knew what he needed to work on and where he should put his time.

And that made a big difference to his preparation.
 

Popular Prep Advice Prince Realized Was Overrated in Hindsight

One piece of advice Prince doesn't completely agree with is the idea that aspirants should follow current affairs every single day through multiple sources.

For him, that approach could actually waste more time.

He believes that instead of watching several daily current affairs videos, following multiple teachers and then reading another PDF, it can be much more effective to choose one good source and revise it properly.

The same thing applies to GA resources in general.

If one PDF already contains the important current affairs, static GK and relevant information, there is little point in collecting three or four additional sources just because everyone online recommends them.

For Prince, revision mattered much more than constantly finding new content.

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The Mock Test Discipline That Helped Prince Avoid Getting Stuck on Tricky Questions

One of the biggest lessons Prince learned during his preparation was that not every question deserves to be attempted.

This sounds simple, but actually following it inside an exam is difficult.

Some questions almost seem to call you toward them.

You look at them and think, “This looks easy. I should attempt it.”

But sometimes that question is exactly what ends up consuming your time.

Prince learned to control this instinct.

Instead of simply marking every difficult question for review, he developed a more structured approach.

He would note down the question numbers and mentally divide the paper into sections, for example, where the DI set was, where simplification questions were, or where a particular type of question was located.

This helped him avoid wandering around the paper.

He also became more selective about the topics he attempted.

His approach was simple:

If you know the topic and can approach the question confidently, attempt it. Don't force yourself to solve something just because it is sitting in front of you.

For Prince, learning to leave a question was just as important as learning to solve one.

 

The Areas Prince Underestimated Until They Cost Him in the Real Exam

There were also areas that Prince himself underestimated.

Quant was one of them.

He had been good at mathematics since his school days, particularly in Class 10. He also found Quant questions in prelims relatively easy.

That gradually created overconfidence.

He started thinking that Quant would take care of itself.

He didn't feel the need to follow teachers closely or spend as much time on the subject.

But Mains taught him a different lesson.

When he encountered difficult Quant questions in the actual exam, he realized that knowing how to solve mathematics isn't enough.

You also need to know how to identify the question, how to approach it and how to apply the right method under pressure.

A question can be familiar, but if you don't know how to catch the right approach quickly, it can still leave you stuck.

English was another area he realized shouldn't be underestimated, especially the descriptive section.

Prince worked on this with Varun Chitra Sir from StudyQuick, who helped him change the way he looked at English.

He learned to keep to word limits, to make simple sentences and to express his thoughts quickly.

This became particularly important during his actual Mains examination.

 

How Prince Handled a Panic-Inducing Keyboard Glitch During His Mains Exam

One of the most stressful moments of Prince's entire journey came during the descriptive section in mains exam.

His keyboard developed a problem.

He was typing, but one of the keys wasn't working properly. He could see the clock running, but the words he expected to appear weren't appearing on the screen.

For a moment, panic took over.

The keyboard had to be changed, which consumed additional time.

And as the clock continued moving, Prince started worrying about whether he would even be able to complete the paper.

He admits that he became agitated.

His blood pressure went up, and it took some time for him to calm himself down.

But then he made a conscious decision.

He stopped.

He gave himself about a minute and repeatedly told himself to calm down.

He reminded himself that the paper had gone well so far and that if he could simply handle this situation, he could still finish.

That small pause helped him regain control.

The keyboard incident may have affected his descriptive score – he scored 10 marks in the end, just around the sectional cut-off.

 But it also taught him an important lesson: One of the most important things you can do in some of the most difficult moments is to stop panicking.
 

The Moment Prince Almost Gave Up on His Banking Exam Dream

Perhaps the lowest point of Prince's journey came after several results in 2024.

He had been getting extremely close to selection but kept falling short.

The RRB Clerk result was particularly painful because he ended up in the reserve list.

Then another RRB result wasn't released as expected.

After all these near-misses, Prince started feeling that there was simply nothing left for him.

He had already spent years preparing.

He had seen other candidates move forward while he kept coming close and falling short.

At one point, he genuinely thought about quitting.

He felt that maybe nothing would happen now.

But his mentor didn't let him give up.

Instead, he was told, in essence, that this preparation would have to continue until the selection happened.

And Prince continued.

That decision ultimately changed everything. Prince cleared one of the prestigious banking exams, IBPS PO. 
 

Prince's Advice for Beginners Just Starting Their Exam Preparation Journey

If someone is starting their banking preparation today, Prince has one major recommendation:

• Find the right teacher or mentor.

• Don't try to figure everything out alone.

A beginner may not even know where they are weak or which resources they actually need.

Prince recommends honestly telling a teacher what you know, what you don't know and where you struggle.

Once the weaknesses are identified, the preparation becomes much more focused.

He also recommends staying away from social media during serious preparation.

During his Mains preparation, Prince would leave his phone at home and go to the library about a month before the exam.

Removing the phone helped him focus completely on preparation.
 

What Prince Would Tell Aspirants Who Have Failed the Exam Two or Three Times

Prince's answer to aspirants who have failed two or three times is surprisingly simple:

Keep going.

He knows this isn't easy because he experienced it himself.

It took him around three years to reach the final stage.

According to Prince, his first year went into learning how to clear prelims.

The second year was about clearing Mains.

And it was only in the third year that he finally reached the final selection.

So, a failed attempt doesn't necessarily mean that you're incapable.

Sometimes it simply means that your preparation hasn't reached the required level yet.

His message is:

“Lage raho, ho jaata hai.”
 

Prince's Message for Hardworking Aspirants Whose Mock Scores Aren't Reflecting Their Effort

What if you're studying hard but your mock scores still aren't improving?

Prince believes this is the point at which you need to look inward rather than simply study more.

Maybe your question selection isn't right.

Maybe you're attempting questions that are wasting too much time.

Maybe you're panicking during the mock.

Or perhaps you're trying to jump directly to a large number of attempts.

Prince gave an interesting example from his own library.

There was a student who was very good at Maths but couldn't attempt questions properly within the time limit during mocks.

Instead of telling him to suddenly attempt everything, Prince suggested setting smaller targets.

Start with 10 questions.

Once that becomes comfortable, move to 15.

Then 20.

Gradually increase the target.

The idea is not to force yourself to become fast overnight.

It is to build speed and confidence step by step.

This is an important lesson for aspirants whose hard work isn't yet visible in their mock scores:

Don't just increase the amount of effort. First, understand what is preventing that effort from converting into marks.
 

Why Prince Believes Discipline Matters More Than Intelligence or Patience

When asked to choose between intelligence, discipline and patience, Prince ranked them very clearly:

Discipline first, intelligence second, and patience third.

For him, discipline means being able to follow the same schedule every day.

You don't have to study perfectly every single day.

But you need to keep showing up.

Intelligence can help you understand things faster, but without discipline, that intelligence doesn't consistently translate into preparation.

And patience also becomes easier when you have discipline, because you continue working even when the results aren't immediate.

Prince's own journey reflects this.

He had several years where the results didn't go his way.

But he continued learning, changing his strategy and showing up.

Eventually, the results followed.
 

A Quick Rapid-Fire Round With Prince on Mock Analysis, Consistency and Hard Work

Prince also answered a few rapid-fire questions about his preparation.

The most ignored part of mock analysis?

Looking at the questions you got correct and understanding how you got them right.

A correct answer shouldn't simply be marked as “done.” Understanding the approach helps build a stronger solving instinct.

The biggest enemy of consistency?

Friends.

Prince's answer came with a laugh, but his point was serious—sometimes you need to distance yourself from distractions to protect your preparation.

Hard work or smart work?

For Prince, it is smart work + hard work.

Working hard without direction isn't enough, while smart strategies without consistent effort also won't take you very far.

One thing every aspirant should learn?

How to follow their schedule consistently.

In other words, discipline.

His biggest learning from the entire preparation journey?

Keep going.

Prince believes that if you work honestly and don't give up, things eventually start falling into place.

He also emphasized something that is often overlooked—there are people who believe in you.

So, don't let that faith go to waste.
 

Closing Note: Smartkeeda Team's Congratulations and Words of Encouragement for Prince

Prince's journey is a reminder that selection doesn't always come in a straight line.

Sometimes, you clear prelims but fail Mains.

Sometimes, you reach the final stage but miss the list.

Sometimes, you end up in the reserve list and start wondering whether all those years of preparation were worth it.

And sometimes, you simply feel like giving up.

Prince experienced many of those moments.

But he kept going.

He found the right mentor, changed the way he prepared, developed a structured approach toward GA, worked on his weaknesses and slowly became a more confident exam taker.

His journey from struggling to clear prelims to eventually clearing IBPS PO took years.

From the Smartkeeda team, we extend our heartfelt congratulations to Prince on his IBPS PO selection.

We wish him the very best for the next chapter of his career.

And to every aspirant currently stuck somewhere between preparation and selection, Prince's message is perhaps the simplest one to remember:

Keep working. Keep learning. Keep improving.

Lage raho, ho jaata hai.