QUESTION 3(b)
GS4
10 marks
“In looking for people to hire, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence and energy. And if they do not have the first, the other two will kill you.” – Warren Buffett. What do you understand by this statement in the present-day scenario? Explain.
WRITE IN
7 min
150 words
What the examiner wants
Explain why integrity must precede intelligence and energy in hiring and in public life today.
ExplainMake clear how and why it happens: causes, process, and an example for each point.
Demand-wise check
- 1Meaning: intelligence and energy are amplifiers; without integrity they magnify harm≈30 words
- 2Present-day: corporate frauds, cyber crime, insider trading, scams by skilled people≈30 words
- 3In civil service: clever officers can design better scams; integrity makes ability useful to the public≈30 words
- 4Implication: integrity checks in recruitment, ethics training, values-based appraisal≈30 words
Open in about 20 words and close in about 20.
Answer plan
MeaningWhy integrity firstCurrent examplesImplications for public serviceConclusion
Where marks usually go
- Explaining the three qualities separately without the 'kill you' logic
- No present-day example
Draw this
- Matrix: integrity yes/no vs ability high/low
Value addition
- CaseSatyam scam (2009): founder Ramalinga Raju admitted inflating accounts by about ₹7,000 crore.2009
- ThinkerGandhi listed 'knowledge without character' among the Seven Social Sins.Young India, 1925
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Vidushi Singh · AIR 13 · Page 5 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 23 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Aakash Garg · AIR 5 · Page 7 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 3 ↗Same syllabus reference
Links open original public sources. MainsBuddy does not host these answer sheets.
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 7 minutes, then get it checked.