My Expectations

I am into the last week of one month notice period in the office. I am itching to get into IIM Lucknow and begin the most important phase of my life. I feel like a batsman padded up and waiting for the play to start.

If I look back at last few years of my life, I feel the four years of engineering in NSIT was a big let down. I could have learned a lot more but squandered the opportunity. Why did it happen? One reason as I see now is that I was not clear of my objectives. Mine was a journey without a destination and a clear sense of purpose. No wonder, I covered great distance but displacement was paltry.

Wise men never repeat the mistakes. So I have decided to put in writing what I expect from this course. It would serve as a template, a reference which would guide the route I choose in this momentous journey. Let this be the light that leads my way…

My expectations are:

1. Good understanding of all functional areas of management.
2. A structured thinking process. The ability to define a problem out of thin air.
3. To further refine my thought process
4. To discover new facets of my personality
5. A network of great individuals to march with in the professional life.
6. Buddies for life. NSIT introduced me to some people whom I respect a lot. I hope IIML gives me a larger number.
7. The confidence to do anything.
8. Time management
9. To prepare me for battles in corporate life. I should never quit because of inability.

Delhi, My Love....

I am leaving Delhi for IIM Lucknow in just about eight days i.e. on 20th June. Just four more days of office for me. Though I was born in a village called Kallidaikurichi in Tirunelveli in southern Tamil Nadu, I have spent all my life here. My schooling and my engineering were in this historic city. For my job, I wanted to move out of the city so that I can meet up new people and learn new language and culture, but as luck would have it, I got the job in Greater Noida itself.

So, I wanted to move out for the last two years but now that I am actually moving, I feel a bit uneasy. Leaving this city is emotionally more difficult that what I imagined it would be. I would be missing my family, friends and above all my daily dosage of “Gol Guppa and other chats”. Traveling in DTC buses seems pleasurable and this sweltering heat bearable.
Though I am just going to a near by city that I can reach in six hours and one which is similar to mine in terms of climate and culture, I still feel the pain. I am thinking about the people who have to leave their motherland and go to some strange place permanently. How difficult it would be for them.

Now I understand why NRIs are more attached to this country than the average resident Indian. Now I understand why they say “Janani Janmabhoomischa Swargat api gariyasi”. I always supported Nasser Hussain when he complained about British supporting Asian cricket teams in England. Now I am a bit skeptical. You just can’t cut away the roots.

If planned emigration by choice is tough, what about the forceful displacement of millions of people in war torn areas. These people are forced to cut their roots and move to a strange place on account of the ego of a single man, an emperor or a political leader. What emotional turmoil do they go through? When I talked to a Kashmiri pundit, I see a glint in his eyes as he talks about his ancestral home. Now I understand the affection for Pakistan amongst the elder Punjabis. Imagine the plight of Hindus and Muslims at the time of partition as they moved to a strange land. Imagine the dwellers of the “City of Peace” (Jerusalem) during those chaotic years of late 1940s. Imagine the situation of people of Africa who have civil wars as the only constant thing in their life.

These thoughts further enhance my love for ahimsa. Why can’t the world be a happy place where there is no conflict, hunger or poverty? My Lord! When will you answer my prayers of “Loka Samasta sukhino bhavantu, Sarve janaha sukhino bhavantu”?

PS: This should qualify as my most random post. I started with something and I ended up this way.