Half a manager??...Naah...

It’s a start of a new academic year for me. After spending a week relaxing at home in Chennai I came to Mumbai today morning. I was greeted by a wet and drenched city as the monsoon has well and truly set in. It was a complete contrast to the dry spell I had experienced in Chennai. Luckily the local train was not crowded and we reached the hostel soon. Although we had to walk through ankle deep water before reaching the gate, it was better than what I had expected. Just one week into the monsoon and the approach ‘road’ to the hostel already looks like shit. Wonder what’s gonna happen in the months of rain to come.

It is sometimes hard to believe that I’ve completed half my MBA course. If this means that I’ve already gained half the amount of knowledge I will gain from this course then I am in deep trouble. But being a sensible person that I am, I know that I will be putting in more dedicated effort this time. I have to…because there is only 6 more months left before placements begin, and by then I must’ve learnt enough to fool my prospective employers that I know more than what I actually do! Well, I was kidding (partly). The fact that half my course is over has made some seriousness dawn on me. I realise that the next one year is the best time for me to learn about a lot of stuff.

My academics in the past year have been pathetic to say the least. My grades suck. And I cannot claim that “grades are not representative of my knowledge/capability”. Because I’ve hardly learnt anything. I am gonna specialise in finance and I don’t even know financial ratios. Gosh…I am sometimes confused between assets and liabilities! Well…at least I’ve realised the seriousness of the situation and I know, now is the time to buck up. And buck up I will!

What else did I do apart from academics…I participated in a lot of competitions, both inside the college and in inter b school competitions. I managed to get selected for the final rounds for competitions in XLRI and IIM Indore. But since the dates clashed we had to skip XL. We presented a paper in Indore but failed to get any prize. But I savoured the opportunity to visit an IIM and interact with people from various institutes.

My participation in competitions reduced drastically once my health deteriorated. I always prided myself for not having suffered any major illness ever. But the pleasant environment of GR Jani hostel, in which I am honoured to be living for the past year, has been very conducive to friendly bacteria and viruses that helped me through Malaria, Rat Fever and Jaundice. The good part about this is that now I am not at all scared of another attack of malaria since I know what to expect from this illness.

One of my worst regrets has been my interaction levels with my batch mates and my seniors, which have been very limited. My interaction with girls has been extremely limited. I don’t know whether I should’ve expected this. I’ve always been shy with girls. It did not help that my engineering college had a stupid rule that did not allow opposite sexes to interact. When I joined cognizant, I was able to overcome my shyness and I interacted extremely freely with girls. But somehow, when I came here I went back into my shell when it came to interacting with girls. Maybe it has something to do with culture…its difficult to explain, but to me, there is a sea of difference between girls here and girls in Chennai. And somehow I could not come to terms with this difference. I hope in the coming year I come out of my shell and interact more freely with my fellow batch mates and my juniors.

As I look back at the past year various pictures flash in my mind. The crowded city of Mumbai, the daaru parties in the hostel, my first experience in a discotheque, ogling at the attractive girls standing in and around my college gate during the tea breaks, the lush campus of IIM Indore, my illnesses, the class presentations, sweating it out in the streets of Mumbai during the internship, the sleepless nights, the Sunday trips to Matunga for having authentic Tamil food, the longing for home, and many more…

In the coming year I hope to live life the right way. In the end I do not want to regret not having done this or that. I want to participate in competitions. I want to update myself with all kinds of knowledge. I do not want to be lazy!! I want to interact freely with people. I want to do well in academics. I want to experience life in a b school in the true spirit.