How an average student cracked the CAT and how you can too!

Main ideas, concepts, and lessons

• You don’t need to be naturally gifted to do extremely well in CAT

  • The speaker (Lux) frames CAT success as less about “god-gifted aptitude” and more about hard work + planning + consistency.
  • He positions himself as an “average” student who still achieved a very high percentile (99.44% in first attempt).

• The biggest “unlock” is planning—then following through

  • Planning shows you have less time than you think, so you must prioritize and let go of non-essential tasks.
  • Planning is implemented weekly and across multiple phases.

• Preparation should be structured into phases that progressively deepen and optimize

  • Lux divides his overall prep into three phases:

    • Phase 1 (“85% phase”)

      • One-level coverage of all chapters for basic understanding (formulas + concepts).

    • Phase 2 (“95% phase”)

      • Deeper study of the same chapters/subjects.

    • Phase 3 (“99+% phase”)

      • Optimization: determine strengths/weaknesses and improve accuracy and score strategy by focusing where effort pays off most.

• Start studying slow to build confidence, then increase difficulty/volume

  • Avoid “over-ambitious” plans early (e.g., trying to do too many modules from day one).
  • Over-ambition can create a loop of planning but not following, which becomes hard to exit.

• Identify and fix weak areas with targeted tools

  • Lux says he struggled in Quant despite a statistics background (frequent early mocks with single-digit scores).
  • His solution: create an own formula sheet (not copying others’ sheets verbatim).
    • Use others’ formula sheets only as reference to ensure completeness.
    • Write formulas in a way you understand and can recall—he emphasizes “photographic memory” from writing it yourself.

• Use the right mix of educational resources

  • He claims he used only two main study resources for content:
    1. IMS full classroom program (Quant + overall classroom structure)
    2. VARC 1000 from Career Launcher (VARC prep; taught by Gijo sir)
  • He also adds non-educational / motivational content to reduce monotony (CATKing on YouTube; Unacademy reels/Instagram).

• Mocks are central—and you should analyze them deeply

  • Lux emphasizes:
    • Taking many mocks (59 mocks total; CAT itself being his 50th mock).
    • Understanding that performance fluctuates, but trends still matter.
    • Mock analysis beyond “which questions did I miss”—analyze patterns across topics/sections.

• Trend analysis using spreadsheets can change strategy

  • He created an “end game Excel” to analyze performance across mocks and PYQs.
  • Example strategy pivot:
    • IMS advice: do para summaries at the end because they’re time-consuming.
    • His data: his para summaries accuracy was actually high.
    • Strategy pivot: he started doing para summaries first, improving results (including on the actual CAT exam).

• Every practice iteration counts (effort is compounding)

  • He used linear regression on PYQ outcomes to estimate a consistent percentile increase per mock/PYQ.
  • The takeaway: CAT outcomes reflect long-term sustained effort, not only one-time aptitude.

• Hard work can close the “aptitude head start”

  • He references a mentor quote: “the harder I work, the luckier I seem to get.”
  • Core belief: people starting ahead (natural aptitude) can be caught through sustained iteration and effort.

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Methodology / step-by-step instructions (as described)

A) Build a multi-phase study plan (3 phases)

• Start prep early

  • Lux began around February, with ~8–9 months total while working.

• Divide syllabus progress into three phases

  • Phase 1: “85% phase”

    • Cover every chapter at one basic level
    • Focus: understanding what formulas are and what they represent

  • Phase 2: “95% phase”

    • Go deeper into all chapters and subjects

  • Phase 3: “99+% phase”

    • Optimization
    • Identify:
      • which chapters you’re good at
      • which chapters to deprioritize
    • Maximize:
      • attempt count
      • accuracy
      • overall score

B) Create detailed planning artifacts and execution rhythm

• Make a phase chart first.

• Then, every 2 months, create:

  • a week-wise plan for each week within each phase
  • targets for each section:
    • Quant: number of modules
    • VARC: number/type of RC content
    • DILR: number of sets + where from
  • mock targets:
    • how many mocks
    • from which coaching source/platform

• At the start of every week:

  • assign daily tasks based on weekly quotas
    • Example pattern:
      • Monday: one Quant module (e.g., HCF/LCM) + 2 RCs + 1 DILR set
• Add flexibility:
  • keep a day off (Saturday/Sunday) for recovery/spillover.

C) Execution rules for early study

• Begin slow

  • Don’t schedule excessive volume immediately.
  • Let confidence and pace develop.

• Avoid the plan-but-don’t-follow trap

  • If you continuously fail your plan, it’s very difficult to recover.

D) Quant weakness handling: create your own formula sheet

• Write your own formula sheet instead of using others directly.
• Use external sheets only as a reference/checklist.
• Structure the sheet the way you prefer so you know exactly where each formula is.
• Rewriting supports recall (“photographic memory”).

E) Mock strategy and analysis (“end game Excel”)

• Take a large number of mocks (Lux claims 59 total).
• After mocks (and using PYQs), track:
  • strengths and weaknesses by section
  • deeper breakdown inside each section
    • Example: in Quant, track arithmetic vs algebra vs geometry accuracy
• Create an Excel to:
  • identify trends across mocks
  • validate or contradict coaching advice
• Use the findings to change CAT-day tactics, e.g.:
  • If accuracy on para summaries is consistently high, do them earlier instead of strictly following “do at the end.”

F) CAT mindset framing

• Practice is compounding: every mock/hour/30 minutes/15 minutes adds up.
• Treat CAT as both:
  • an aptitude test, and
  • a preparation-based test
• Use iteration to overcome aptitude gaps:
  • sustained hard work can surpass those who only had a head start.

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Resources and platforms mentioned

Coaching / courses

• IMS full classroom program (Lux’s main resource for content)
• VARC 1000 by Career Launcher (taught by Gijo sir)

Mocks sources

• IMS, Career Launcher, TIME
  • Lux recommends:
    • IMS first
    • then Career Launcher
    • optionally skip TIME
  • He also mentions Cracku mocks as an option (heard to be good)

Non-educational / motivational CAT content

• CATKing (Sumit sir) on YouTube; live sessions; he watches at 1.5x
• Unacademy Instagram reels by Amit Arora sir
• Mentions he watched Unacademy VARC content on YouTube too

Other mentoring references

• He says an IMS professor Rohan sir told him the hard-work/“luck” line.

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Speakers / sources featured (identified)

1. Lux (main speaker; CAT 99.44% scorer; mentions his background and methods)
2. Chawla sir (IMS mentor)
3. Rohan sir (IMS mentor; also professor referenced)
4. Gijo sir (Career Launcher / VARC 1000 instructor; analyzes VARC in mocks)
5. Amit Potia sir (IMS mock analysis mentioned; moved to IQuanta)
6. Prasad sir (IMS; respected for concise CAT prep explanations)
7. Sumit sir (CATKing YouTube channel)
8. Amit Arora sir (Unacademy Instagram/YouTube content)
9. IMS (institution/source for classroom program + mocks)
10. Career Launcher (source for VARC 1000 + mocks)
11. TIME (source for mocks; perceived negatively by Lux)
12. IQuanta (mentioned regarding Amit Potia sir; “IQuanta notes” purchased)
13. CATKing (YouTube channel/source)
14. Unacademy (Instagram/YouTube content source)
15. Cracku (possible mocks option)