You know when the human body requires more blood flow as in during an exercise or any strenuous activity, the body adapts and the heart starts beating faster to make up for it. But do you also know that there is a limit to which the heart rate shall increase, beyond which it might lose its rhythm and just stop. And why would your body do so? Because to function normally in a healthy manner, it wants you to stay within your ‘physiological’ limits. Everything in our body from a cell to an organ, from action to reaction, has its ‘physiological’ limits. Going beyond these limits- that is pathological.
When Henry Fischel invented the concept of exams in 19th century, he would have never thought that years down the lane, what drastic change it would have on the human psychology, personality… and the statistics of stress and suicides. So, is the system of exams wrong? Many would be confused to answer that question confidently. Precisely, exams are not the measure of your intelligence, that would be your ability to adapt and evolve. However, at a given point of time, it definitely is the measure of your knowledge with respect to a topic or subject, which is rightly utilised in most organisations and institutions.
Now, let’s put it this way. Have we started giving more importance to these exams in present times? I guess most would confidently agree with this. It is an issue that needs to be addressed and that’s what I am going to do today.
TRUST YOURSELF AND COMPETE WITH YOURSELF
Years ago when I decided to take science stream, not that I had an option like many of you, I remember the first day when I stepped foot in higher secondary. I could hear students talking about the entrance examinations for engineering and medicine that would eventually happen two years later. “Did you hear about his rank in AIEEE?”, “Which coaching are you going to join?”, “That guy got selected in NIT.” Personal mobile and google were not that prevalent in those days, so took me few months to figure out via a magazine that what does this AIEEE stand for.
When you realise that there are students who have been preparing for such exams in so called exam oriented coaching institutes with self proclaimed expertise since 3-4 years, you start questioning everything about yourself… the self doubt that are you even fit for this race… Yes, race is the word. But the point here is these are 13-17 years old teenagers I am talking about. It is good to be prepared and self aware but at what cost? At such an important age where kids are discovering themselves every single day, they are taught cut throat competition. Preachings are that one exam will shape your life, decide your career. Scientifically, that is a very toxic personality development on its way. As, not this exam or not any exam, determines what your life holds for you.
Instead, at this point when majority are taking peer driven or parent driven decisions, all they need is a blend of trust, support and guidance that it is not the end of life, but a part of it. It is just an exam and you need to better yourself in this ‘race of life’ rather than competing with others.
STOP NORMALISING STRESS
It is important to know that stress is a part of human existence. But it is all the more necessary to understand that it is a double edged sword. As per the Stress model of Hans Selye, it is an optimum amount of stress that will drive you to your goal but an extra amount of stress shall incapacitate you. And what we notice now-a-days is extra of everything.
Normalise cut throat competition, normalise overtime, normalise burnouts, normalise profession over personal time and normalise stressful short miserable lives, when there is no need to.
‘PRESTIGIOUS’ EXAMS… REALLY?
The human race needs to evolve beyond dividing anything and everything they come across. When I read news headlines adding prestige to exams and some going to the extent of rating toughest exams, I guess that’s quite uncalled for. Let’s just let them be. Because our society then goes on to shift that prestige and toughness to the students who get through and ignominy to the ones who can’t… which is never the case. Never! Moreover, how do you compare the toughness of UPSC exam with IIT… or NEET… all separate fields of work altogether. I guess we have got experts for everything these days.
LET’S KEEP IT ‘PHYSIOLOGICAL‘
Imagine being in a lone street and you see a pack of street dogs which start barking at you. What happens? ‘Fight or Flight response’, right. Your heart rate goes up, lips go dry, pupils dilate, blood vessels constrict and lot of others things that the sympathetic activity triggers when body registers a fight or flight situation. Something similar happens for a while when you are just about to sit for an exam. That is physiological… normal.
Now imagine being in a constant state of fight or flight. Having given few exams myself and been surrounded by highly competitive fraternity most of the time, I gradually discovered that the stress of exam preparation and the fear of being left out puts many people in a constant state of sympathetic activity, to the extent that they need medicines to get to sleep for a while or to drive away their frequent headaches. Now, that is not physiological… and definitely not normal. Such continuous stress and sympathetic activity of body would later be the root cause of life style diseases, as we call it and untimely deaths, as we see it. And for the context, these are full grown adults preparing for their higher exams I’m talking about.
Yet, the fact of the matter stays that such state of body is a result of the psychological development that gradually happens during school years, thus reiterating about the importance of positive and flourishing environment that is needed in initial years.
EXAM IS A PART OF YOUR LIFE, AND NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND
I came across this beautiful dialogue in a series on Netflix, “Do not give tough exams because you have to crack them at all cost but give them because they are tough… and tough things prepare you for life ahead.” And that sums it all. Your psychology and mental strength during this time of crisis and competition shapes your personality in unimaginable way, which not just involves paving your path to success but also gracefully accepting failures and learning from mistakes. No matter the prestige one adds to the exams or importance one gives to the profession, but it’s just a small part of not so small life.
IT IS TRANSIENT
Do you remember how much you scored in third grade… what rank you got in ninth grade… does anyone meet you ask, “hey, what was you rank in NEET?”… Do you recollect how much you scored in your first prof or year in college… Does it even matter? It definitely did back then and should have but as you grow if you fail to realise that its all transitory and ephemeral, then you need to introspect. Because grades will never decide your level of intelligence or for that matter your life; your intent and the actions will certainly do.
“The meaning of Karma is in the intention. The intention behind the action is what matters. Those who are motivated only by the desire for the fruits are miserable, for they are constantly anxious about the results of what they do.”
