We have all heard others around us advising us to fake ourselves till we make it through SSB. But is that really beneficial? Please know that you cannot fake yourself for five long days and hence, the only way out is to build habits of defence aspirants in yourself. These are not some high-level habits that require a 180-degree shift in your personality, but basic ones that can be inculcated over time. If you also aim at welcoming change in yourself and become an officer in the Armed Forces, we bring you the top habits that define defence aspirants today.
How Do Habits of Defence Aspirants Help?
Before we even jump to the meat of the blog, most of you would ask the relevance of building habits of defence aspirants in yourself. Let’s be clear, SSB is not a test of your knowledge alone. Rather it tests more than you can think of. Good habits in yourself can help you in building:
- Structured routine for yourself
- Physical fitness
- Discipline lifestyle
- Leadership qualities
- Management skills
In a nutshell, the habits of defence aspirants promise to bring positive change in your overall personality, which is what each assessor is judging end of the day.
5 Essential Habits of Defence Aspirants
Now that we have understood how these habits can help you in SSB and in real life, let us look at the five essential habits of defence aspirants which you can develop step-by-step too.
I. Building a morning routine
This is the most important of the five habits of defence aspirants that you must also build. To have a good morning, you need to start by building a morning routine. This includes waking up early and making your bed.
Hence, start by waking up early because the earlier you wake up, the more time you will have to complete your daily tasks. For this, you also need to fix the time when you sleep. Build consistency everyday, and don’t be disheartened if you fail to be punctual on some days. It is the pattern that matters. Once you’re awake, start with making your bed, because doing so does two things at a time:
- It removes the sluggishness right after you leave the bed.
- It also gives you a sense of accomplishment after completing the first task of the day.
II. Working on your fitness
Physical fitness is the stepping stone to a life in the defence forces, and the academy life can be particularly challenging if you’ve never hit the tracks. Therefore, start working on your fitness. Create a fitness regimen, like working out for half-an-hour daily or going for a run on alternate days. This small act will have twin effects:
- You will grow physically fitter, which will boost your confidence in everyday life.
- An active lifestyle will help you during the physical tasks during GTO testing, such as GOR and IO
You do not need to focus on building a lot of muscle or lifting lots of weight. Just be consistent, build stamina, and train efficiently.
III. Having a positive mindset
Optimism is another one of the five habits of defence aspirants that separate them from others. For most of you, the defence journey will not be an upward-moving line; rather it will have a range of crests and troughs. In simple words, it will be a roller-coaster ride and the only thing that will keep you going is a positive mindset.
Hence, find the good in everything, especially setbacks. Stay positive, and focus on the solution, and not the problem. When I went for my first SSB interview, I was rejected on the very first day. I was heartbroken, but I stayed positive, cleared the next exam, and went on to get recommended in the very next attempt. You can build the same mindset in your life too.
IV. Being introspective
To clear SSB, you need a good personality, and this does not come without introspection. By introspection we mean being reflective of the things that you do. You can start writing diary entries, going on solo walks, or confiding in a close one to do so.
Please don’t try to be too meticulous in doing so. Just take a few moments at night to reflect on your day, and ask yourself whether what you did was worthwhile or not. If the answer is in negative, think of how you can improve in the same and be cautious from the next time.
V. Helping and befriending people
The last of the five habits of defence aspirants strengthens your social skills. Don’t be the aspirant who stays at home and keeps writing stories and narrating PPDT stories to the mirror. Be social, connect with people, and make friends.
You can volunteer at an NGO, go for solo trips, or if you see a person doing something alone, offer help without being asked to. While these are simple activities, they can help you build the cooperation that you would need during group activities, and people will remember you too. I have tried this through my defence journey, and it has always helped me.
Final Thoughts
We would reiterate the fact that SSB is not looking for the most knowledgeable candidate but the one whose personality has the 15 OLQs. Hence, rather than trying to imitate recommended candidates try to understand why they got recommended, and build similar habits in yourself for personal growth.
