246 Days Left. Am I Cooked?
Need some honest advice from people who have actually been through this.
I graduated recently and I'm preparing for GATE CSE 2027. I have around 246 days left, but the truth is I haven't been consistent at all.
I work part-time for about 5 hours a day, every week I tell myself, "This is the week I'll start properly." Then somehow gaming, social media, procrastination, and overthinking take over again.
The worst part is that I already attempted GATE once. After seeing the paper, I genuinely felt that if I had put in serious effort, I could have done much better. That feeling is what hurts the most because even after realizing that, I still struggle to stay consistent.
I had enrolled in an offline coaching program for a year and attended the classes. I also made notes for many subjects during that time. Now the same institute has provided me with online recorded lectures, so I do have resources available and I'm not completely starting from scratch.
But seeing the days go from 260 to 246 without building a proper routine is making me anxious.
Has anyone here been in a similar situation where they wasted the initial months, got serious later, and still managed to get a good rank?
With around 8 months left, previous coaching, notes, one GATE attempt experience, access to recorded lectures, and a part-time job, is it still realistic to aim for IITs/IISc?
I'm not looking for motivation or false hope. I just want honest experiences from people who were in a similar position and managed to turn things around.
What would you do if you were in my place right now?