Hello everyone. I am Kruthika. I secured rank 100 in cse 2018 and rank 194 in cse 2017. Currently I am in IRS (IT) training at NADT Nagpur. I secured rank in my fifth attempt. This year, I have got 443 marks in general studies. My optional was public administration. In this article I will share my journey, the mistakes I made and my strategy for general studies. I have divided this article into following parts: My Preparation journey and lessons learnt My GS strategy Important tips for answer writing Tips for making notes Tips for revision. My Preparation journey and lessons learnt My journey for civil services started on 25th june 2012. I picked up the Hindu newspaper and made notes after reading it. The first note I made was about Mahi. She was a 5 year old girl, who had fallen into an open manhole and her parents were claiming compensation. The parents, the municipality and police all had different stories to