The Performance

The little girl in red. She climbed up the bamboo poles, one step at a time. She looked down, behind her as she climbed higher, her feet trembled, her body clutched tightly to the poles. To the crowd looking at the act, it seemed just a few minutes before she was standing there, ready to walk on the tight rope that connected the 2 poles. But with every step that she climbed, she mumbled a small prayer. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath-her feet had not given way. She had reached the top of the pole. She looked down- her mother wondering, ‘Would this act earn us enough for 2 meals?’, her younger sister running around, exited- little did she know that the same fate awaits her a few years later.

Acts like these don’t entice us anymore. We give a mere glance at them and run along to our menial routine. But there was something in that little girl that day that made us wait and watch her act till the end. Was it her determined face that reminded us how somewhere, in our daily drudgery we had lost that determination that had brought us this far? Or was it the faith that she had in herself that took us back to those days when we had the hope that kept us going? Or was it simply, the anger that she had within her- to be the bread-earner, to support a family when the only responsibility kids her age had was to complete their homework? Did we have the same anger within us that made it so relatable? The anger to obey, the anger to behave exactly how society expected us to;  The anger to accede to unreasonable demands, the anger to accept the future rather than paint it ourselves.

The sound of the drums got louder, bringing me back to the scene- the girl now walking on the tight rope- her feet holding it firm, a bamboo stick in her hand, a tower of steel glasses balanced on her head and a zillion thoughts running in her mind- what if I fall? What if I don’t earn enough? What if my mother beats me today for not giving my best? What if my sister sleeps hungry again today? An infinite series of ‘what if’s’ and the bamboo pole to reach at the far end. She walked- body firm, head held high, and a staring crowd. ‘You could have paid her instead of having a cigarette today’, I overheard a discussion and a chuckle that followed later. ‘Oh this is India, Sir. You find this pretty often. Nothing to worry about’, a secretary reassured her worried American boss.  ‘Would you like to take a video to show your family back home?’, asked a man to his British colleague. They all looked in awe, but not one applauded her, not one came forward to pay her for the act. She reached the end, sat for a while, relieved that she made it through, and looked around- nobody came forward. She sighed, stood up and walked again, back to the start.

Thoughts raced my mind once again. While on one hand, I was grateful for leading a life much better than hers; on the other I found it no different- just like her, we have forgotten to laugh. There were times when just a word left everybody around in splits, when mere exchange of a glance would suffice for days of laughter. Just like her, we have got accustomed to moving with the flow, letting time take its course that there is not much left to laugh over, to talk about, to discuss, to contemplate, to ponder. We have got so accustomed to the life that we lead that somewhere, deep within us, we have lost that little spark- the spark that ignited our creativity, the spark that spread cheer all around, the spark that made our presence felt. Have we ceased to ignite that spark? Have we forgotten to dream? She longed for some company to play with her, to laugh with her, to talk to her; we long for it too. We plan, go on outings to bring back those memories, try to remember the old days and our old friends, long to talk to them, try to remember our carefree childhood days, try to show the world how happy we are. But somewhere, deep within, we know this is just a façade. And no matter how hard we try, no matter how much we long to be the way we were, it can never be the same. Would we want to go back? Maybe we do- to those carefree school days, to the college days where we moulded ourselves to what we are today, to the beginning of our career when we always planned for a brighter future. Would we want to go back? To those tensed days when we were uncertain about our career, to those late nights when we crammed for an exam, to those sleepless nights when we didn’t know what lay ahead. Maybe we don’t want to go back. We want to move ahead, to let time take its course- but is time always to be blamed? For the family we don’t spend as much time with anymore, for the friends that have lost touch, for the promises we failed to keep, for the mask that we wear - is time to be blamed?

Another loud beat of the drums. The girl was now walking on the rope with her chappals, tougher than before, more determined than before, and probably, a little more scared than her earlier round. She completed this round just as the one before-very easy for a passerby to see, but not so for the girl up there. As she crossed and reached the other side, she threw down her chappals. The way back seemed so easy now-for her, for us as well. It only reminded me of the saying, ‘ It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult.’ We thought the act was over. And as we turned to go back to our routine, she started another round- this time standing on a plate. Much slower than before, much tougher than before but the only thought in her mind was to reach the other end- it might just fetch me some extra money, it might just help my mother a little. Her sister ran from one person to another begging for money. This act might just replace the begging bowl in my sister’s hand with a beautiful doll. Don’t we do this all the time? Work an extra hour for a faster promotion? Spend lesser time with family and friends to earn an extra bonus? Talk less, work more and then complain about the drudgery that life has become? Can we change ourselves? Can we be the way we were before? I’m not sure if we can. I’m not sure of we would want to.

She reached the other end, ran back to the start and climbed down. She jumped into her mother’s arms, clutched her tight for a while, ‘Don’t send me up there again, Maa. Let me run and play. Don’t let my sister beg, Maa. Don’t take her childhood away.’

I didn’t have money to give her that day. It would be so meager. All I had was a proud applause, an admiration, an inspiration, a blog post after 6 months and a prayer: ‘I ask not for a lighter burden. But for broader shoulders.’

The Times that Change

If I may reiterate Vincent Van Gogh, ‘I dream of writing and write my dreams’. Nearly a year ago from now, penning down my thoughts was never this hard. Was it because life at K was a new experience every day - A story that we would reminisce for the months to come? Or is it because, now, life has become the same old drudgery that we have been forced to get accustomed to?

But then again, what can be a better time to re-enkindle my nostalgia, my passion, my love for writing than the same old zephyr, the same old mountains and the same old winding road uphill that welcomed us back; that made us feel as if we had never left.

The 2 days spent on campus were pretty different this time. With us finding every opportunity to revisit the most memorable 2 years in 2 days, once again seeing those faces that we had last seen when we bid goodbye, meeting our favourite professors, those smiles and hugs that gave us back the warmth we had missed so much. And then again came those goodbyes, those teary-eyed farewells when we realized that it would be another couple of years before we’ll meet again, at this time, at the same place.

However, leaving campus this time was not that tough. Was it because we were more prepared for it than we were the last time we left? Was it because we knew that we were going back to the same old drudgery that we had left behind us just 2 days ago? Or was it because we knew each other better that we knew what to expect from them and what not to?

I have come to realize that most of my posts in the last 2 years have been about life at K and I was quite sure this one would be the same. ‘You always write about your time at K. What will you write about once you leave?’, they kept asking. I really didn’t know how to answer them then. I would, without any doubt, come up with a topic; there are so many. But today, as I write, I can’t help but feel the void; that something is missing, that the ink from my pen doesn’t flow as it used to back then.

What has changed? Is it me? Have I become too professional, too sophisticated, too mature that en route this voyage I let go of the juvenile, mischievous self that I was? Is it those around me? Have they changed? If I think of it, it’s just the time-the Times have changed.  

We have become so used to being in an environment where we are looked at with envy and jealousy that it has only made us tougher. We have become so accustomed to staying alone that it gives us solitude, sometimes boredom but never the sense of freedom. We have accepted with such ease the patriarchy in the society that we have learnt to live with those ogling eyes, those constant stares and those lewd remarks with our heads bent down in acceptance. They say, “When in Rome, be a Roman”. But, did they mean that we mould ourselves in a way such that people around us would begin to accept us; even at the cost of our own dreams, aspirations, lifestyle and behaviour? Did they mean that we accede to their unrealistic dictates without voicing our opinion just because, as they say, “Aaj toh ladki suna kar gayi!”? Why do they expect their female colleagues to behave in a way that they would never prefer a girl from their family to? Why are they not sensitive enough to understand what to talk and what to not, when to talk and to not, yet expect us to feel comfortable in their company? Situations like these only make one tougher, more aware and make us realize that life outside is very different from what we thought and that some learnings are best left within the Acad block-not because we are not adept enough to incorporate them; but because our society is not yet ready enough to accept them.      

Mitch Albom writes, “Man alone chimes the hour. And, because of this, man alone suffers a paralyzing fear that no other creature endures. A fear of time running out.” We have set stringent deadlines for our life - post-graduation by 23, marriage by 28, multiple promotions and a respectable position in the organization by 30, retirement by 60; but is life so predictable that the deadlines can be ‘sacrosanct’? College has made us adhere to timelines, has made us ecstatic, when, in trying situations, these deadlines were extended. But today, a miss in the deadline makes us anxious, makes us fret, makes us feel incompetent compared to our peers. We are so anxious about our future that we forget to live in the present, to enjoy all that we have earned, to give time to our family and friends, to live….

We all yearn for what we have lost. But sometimes, we forget what we have. We yearn to be a student back again, to be in campus for 1 more day, for 1 more year; to spend just 1 hour with the same people who we used to spend months with. We may not be in K anymore, but we have learnt a lot more from there, long enough to keep us going in this ruthless, lecherous world; long enough to endure the changes, the compromises and the adjustments that we are forced  to make everyday. We yearn to go back home, to go back to the coziness, the warmth and the comfort that we have taken for granted all these years; to enjoy the sumptuous meal at home, to pour out all our worries to our parents, to share a laugh with our siblings-to be ourselves, without worrying about being judged. But then again, they are the 1^st ones we go to in troubled times, we need them to tell us, “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine tomorrow.” And sometimes just smile when they say, “If you don’t like it there, come back home. You’ll fine 10 other jobs for yourself.” How we wish that was true! How we wish we could go back!

We all have awaited our ‘Dream come true’ moment. But once this moment passes, comes the slow, melting realization that this is not what we thought it would be like. This is not what we imagined our colleagues to be like. This is not what we imagined our managers to be like. This is not what we thought our friends would be like. And this is definitely not what we imagined our life to be like.

Life has changed in the past few months. There are a very few people with whom we are still as comfortable talking to as we were back then. It’s not about how often we meet them or talk to them, it’s more about how good we feel even in those little times that we talk. As they say, it is easy to talk to people, but hard to remember them. As the days pass, very few people would still remember you, very few would still be there to comfort you, very few would give you a shoulder to cry on. But as Rabindranath Tagore puts it,

If they answer not to your call walk alone

If they turn away, and desert you when crossing the wilderness

O thou unlucky one,

trample the thorns under thy tread,

and along the blood-lined track travel alone.

If they shut doors and do not hold up the light when the night is troubled with storm,

O thou unlucky one,

with the thunder flame of pain ignite your own heart,

and let it burn alone

The Transition

‘The day we fret about the future is the day we leave our childhood behind’

- Patrick Rothfuss, The Name of the Wind

It’s been 6 months. 6 months since I left IIM K. 6 months since the day reality struck that life still continues to be race- a race much tougher, much uglier than all races that I have been a part of till date. 6 months since I started my 1^st job. 6 months since my last post. 6 long, tiring, working months! And probably, 6 months since I left my childhood behind. 6 months since we all left our childhood behind.

These same 6 months, a year ago! When we thought that the only hurdles ahead of us were grades, B-school competitions and placements. When losing a competition was a failure that left us pondering for days. When we ran to a 9:15 class; often half asleep, more often without a bath and always with a cup of coffee. When nobody cared to find out how much we were being paid when we bagged a job offer. When we were never scoffed at for being from premier B-schools. When we never imagined spending an entire day all alone, with the phone and laptop being our only company. How we have grown!    

From Companionship to Solitude:

As I entered Kozhikode airport each time we had a term break, all I could see was a sea of IIM K sweatshirts, IIM K t-shirts and even more familiar faces as we moved towards the security check. As I ponder now, it no less resembled a bus-stand, with students queuing up, ensuring that friends got seats next to each other in the aircraft, whiling away time eating at the airport, and finally running around when the boarding was announced.  

When I travel today, or rather when we have our ‘business trips’, there are no companions, the seat adjacent remains empty or there is just another business traveller, there is no hustle and bustle to ensure that the luggage has not exceeded the specified limit because we do not have a bag full of snacks and ‘ghar ka khana’, for our friends and nobody takes turns to ensure that the auto has arrived, because a taxi awaits us outside.

From students to employees, from weekend trips to business trips, how we have grown!

From Celebrations to Formal wishes:

At the stroke of midnight hour, when it is your birthday, you are drenched with filthy water, beaten up, and covered with cake, toothpaste, conditioner and every other thing that your friends could get a hand at. And it’s not just you, even your best friends are not left out; because after all, best friends eat together, stay together and celebrate together.

A group of new people who always wonder why you studied as much, in a new location where you have nobody else for company, you spend your birthday working; with a few formal wishes, a formal ‘Happy Birthday’ email and a formal celebration with your colleagues.

From friends to colleagues, from late night treats to phone call wishes, how we have grown!

From Campus to Corporate:

The month of June meant the arrival of a new batch, those ‘interactions’, welcoming juniors and having the pride of being a senior!

When you 1^st enter the office, you are left all alone, the remaining employees wondering who you are, frequent glances from people around, occasional discussions about how much you are being paid and even more observations about your behavior- you are being judged at for what you speak, how you speak and whom you speak to.

From being carefree to conscious, from preparing our CVs the night before the deadline to regularly checking and updating our profiles on LinkedIn, how we have grown!

It seems just yesterday when we were still kids; when we sat there, at Arjuna Path looking at the stars till we nearly dozed off, when we needed no permission to barge into our neighbour’s room at any time, when we could laugh and play till dawn, when CCD had no reference to any tax saving plan, when comparisons were made not of the CTC but of the mess refund (followed by the usual, ‘How come your refund is more than mine?’), when case studies, competitions, and night-outs kept us awake till a time when we now are forced to wake up, when we divided 10 slides of a ppt among 4 members, when we listened to songs, cracked jokes and did everything else other than working on the ppt, when we could meet each other every day and not spend months only hearing their voices on the phone.   

As I write these lines, I wonder, ‘When did I grow up?’ Was it since I started to keep a constant track of time because a meeting was scheduled? Was it when I started thinking how to be crisp, polite, yet firm when I wanted to get things done? Was it when the content of the emails changed from: ‘PFA slide 1-4’ to ‘PFA last week’s target Vs achievement’? Was it since those days when I kept no track of the amount we owed each other to those when I understood that FM taught back in term 2 inherently meant managing your salary? Was it when I started paying my own utility bills? Was it when I grew up from being excited on receiving a mess refund to simply glancing at the salary message and continuing with my work? Was it when I preferred eating at home rather than eating alone in a hotel? Was it when I started understanding the power of hierarchy in an organization to simply ignoring it while studying OB?

When did I grow up? When did we grow up? When did our discussions change from laughter and jokes to mature discussions on our jobs and career prospects? When did we start fretting about our future? Oh, when did we leave our childhood behind!

4^th April, 2015: The day we bowed down on the stage to the Director as we accepted our degree, the day the curtains fell with a thunderous applause from our parents, professors and friends, the day we bid farewell; sad, excited, a bit scared, anxious and confident of what lies ahead of us!

This was the day, the day when we left campus, the day when we left our childhood behind!

The Bliss of Solitude

 “It is always the same with mountains. Once you have lived with them for any length of time, you belong to them.”

And no sooner had I read this quote by Ruskin Bond, I went into a nostalgic reverie. The scenic beauty of IIM K came like a flash before my eyes and I would reiterate Ruskin Bond, nevertheless with a tinge of difference: Once you have lived at IIM K, you belong there.

6^th April, 2015: 2 days after the convocation and the campus seemed deserted. Farewells are never easy and more so from that place which had been your home for the past 2 years, where you have seen your best and worst times, where you have made new friends and didn't realize when they became family.

As I bid adieu to the last few friends remaining on campus, I was left speechless. As the auto-rickshaw accelerated, I once again witnessed the zephyr, the misty mountains, the first rays of the sun that touched the Kampus-which I had taken for granted all along. And the same zephyr brought with it a lot of memories-of those rainy days when we just ‘gazed and gazed but little thought, what wealth the show to us had brought’, of those long, refreshing walks, or those little strolls, of the anxious days when we did not know what lay ahead of us and those relaxed times when we knew where we would be a month from now. Those words of wisdom of Socrates, Tagore and Swami Vivekananda gushed past me. All my favourite locations en route downhill went past me with a blink of the eye. With a lump in my throat and glistening eyes, I caught a last glimpse of them.

I was enthralled by the beauty of IIM K 2 years ago when I 1^st came here.  And now, as I left, I was jolted by reality- this was perhaps the last time that I go downhill towards the same gate that I could not take my eyes off when I 1^st entered.  It was a sense of déjà- vu. I could not take my eyes off the gate now either. And then as I left the gates of that sprawling campus, I turned. I turned back one last time to see those white words on the blue board, ‘Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode’. I could not withhold my tears any longer. They gave way. Yes. I cried. All of us cried. No matter how hard we would have tried to withhold our tears, no matter how strong we would have been in all those difficult times here, no matter how much we had promised ourselves that we would leave with a smile on our face; this moment was just meant to break down.     

It has been nearly 2 months since then. Some of us have entered the busy corporate life. Some others are on the brink of entering it. But even today, the people that we talk to almost every day are the ones from IIM K. If a phone call goes on for more than 1hr, it is bound to be with your friend from K. All those names, all those stories that our parents and friends back home hear from us are those about K. Even today, the rains remind you of the campus; the lush greenery, the distant hills, the misty walk-ways and of course, the Arjuna Path-where we found serenity and solace even amidst the mad rush and competitive pressure.

As I look out of my balcony today, I see nothing but a spread of concrete jungles. As I walk on the roads, I see nothing but a mad rush of people running for work. As I read a book to keep myself occupied, I hear nothing but screeching men and women, street fights and loud honking horns. All I can think of is, Oh those days of solace, where did thou go! Those days when we used to have a sip of coffee in the academic block looking over the breathtaking view of the valley, those days when we used to have a quick cup of noodles laughing over a CP done by a friend in the last lecture, those days when class breaks were spent discussing dinner plans, those days when happiness meant a pizza discount at Domino’s, those days when 5min was all we required to plan a movie outing- Oh those days of solace, where did thou go!  

Somewhere down the line, in these 2 years, we stopped fretting about placements, we sailed through sacrosanct deadlines, we aced the most difficult exams and we made the best of memories. Like those when it was a daily routine to stay up till 6 a.m. working on a case study competition, when late night case discussions witnessed every other discussion except that of the case, when the entire college would turn up for a batch-meet or a theatre performance or any other event albeit it being post midnight.

2 years just flew by, like a gush of fresh air. Looking back, it seems that these years were a transit from the care-free student life to the responsibilities of the corporate world. When we entered those gates, we were unaware of what we want to accomplish 2 years hence. While Term 1 was about rigorous academics, getting to know people through section-wars, committee tasks and group activities, it introduced us to a gamut of possibilities that lie ahead. Although we were still unsure of which specialization we would opt for, the summer placements made this a tad easier. It was the summer placements that brought out the best and the worst in us. It was at this time when we found our true friends and realized what seniors are meant for-to instill confidence in us, to guide us through. Academics did not seem that rigorous any more and Terms 2 and 3 were all about long night walks, night canteen, Milma and understanding how wonderful the next few months here are going to be. At the same time those dreaded Finance subjects made some of us realize why we were meant for Marketing and others that they did not have choice now that they have bagged a Fin internship. While the 2 months internship made us realize how much we miss being at K, the next 2 terms were about being the same for the juniors what our seniors were for us, about B-school competitions, and seeing success and failure together. The last term saw various facets of our personality. Learning through cinema and questioning every fact that was thrown at us, the anxiety and fear of Final Placements and the relief thereafter. But it was much easier this time with your friends to guide you at every step. And once it was all over there was rejoice, outings, long walks and even longer talks.

But in the middle of all this hustle-bustle, we participated in various activities, organized several others and started the countdown to the end of our journey at K. But it was only during the final good-bye, when we held back our tears did we realize how much we care for each other. How we miss those days when going to CCD at 2 a.m. in a t-shirt and shorts was no big deal, when walking around in business formals was a daily affair, when dessert meant water melon, when breakfast meant the ever-smiling chechi serving you hot dosas, when you could go anywhere without carrying a wallet because you had a mess account, when you could authoritatively ask a loan from your friend and not settle the account for days together, when you could eat a sumptuous dinner on your friend’s mess account and allow several others to drink coffee from your coffee card. How we wish we could go back!

And these few lines of Wordsworth sum up my stay at K

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

Almost 10 years since I recited this poem do I understand that it was meant for occasions as these-where daffodils are simply a metaphor for the wonderful 2 years at IIM K.

Those times to Ponder

Two roads diverged in a wood and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.

I remember reading this quote of Robert Frost back in school. I remember promising myself that I would do the same. But somewhere down the line, you tend to forget the promises that you have made to yourself. You tend to leave your dreams behind and start running the rat race. More than that, you start running with just 1 intention-to win.

It is that time of the year again. That time when you suddenly start wondering: Why MBA? That time of the year when, after 18 months of fun and frolic, you are jolted back to reality. That time when you once again start reflecting on all that you’ve accomplished (or failed to do so) till date. Sometimes I wish I could answer these questions as I shall describe below. But alas! There’s a race to run again.

Why MBA?

It may seem a bit strange. For many, IIM K was a compromise. They longed for greener pastures. But for me, the answer to ‘Why MBA?’ was, is and probably will remain quite juvenile.

1^st April, 2012: IIM K PI: I wish to pursue an MBA so that I can study at IIM K. Coming from a school famous in my suburb to graduating from a college popular in my city; I wish to study in an institute of national importance. Not for the salaries that I would earn after my post graduation, but simply for the brand name.

11^th December, 2014: G-20, IIM K: Perhaps, I have more IIM K branded merchandise than most of my batchmates. I wonder if my reason to do an MBA has changed over the past few months. But, my answer still remains unchanged.   

4^th April, 2015: 17^th Annual Convocation, IIM K: Maybe after getting a job, my reason for doing an MBA would differ. I might want to do an MBA for the better career prospects, for a higher salary. However, the degree certificate with the IIM K brand would shed all these whims.

What I answered in that interview 2 years ago was quite different. It wasn’t what I have written. What I answered in several other interviews in these 2 years again wasn’t what I have written. The answer was quite different, quite mechanical; what they expect us to answer. Yes. The same old clichéd answer where you talk about your achievements, what makes you suitable for the organization and what makes the organization suitable for you. I wish I had been truthful all those times. I wish I had poured my heart out and said what I have just written. But, I didn’t say it then; neither would I say it now nor in any other interview in future for the fear of losing the race.

What has been your biggest achievement?

My biggest achievement thus far has been securing an admission into one of the top most B-schools in the country. I have worked with diligence all through my engineering to secure a good rank in engineering and simultaneously bell the CAT. After coming to IIM K, I have been privileged to meet new people, travel new places, study under the best of teachers and make friends for a lifetime. This, I believe is and will probably remain the most significant achievement of my life.

“What are you saying?”, they yelled at me. “There are more than 300 students who have made it here. How does this achievement make you different from them? What are you points of differentiation? If you say this, there is no way you’ll clear the interview. They are not waiting for you. They have 100 other options.”

“But THIS IS the achievement that I am truly proud of. Why can’t I be truthful? Why can’t I say this?”

And yet again, what I said in all those interviews was very different from what I felt. With a smile on my face, I said everything that I was instructed to say. I said everything in exactly the same tone, the same pitch that they wanted to hear. Yes. I secured an admission. Yes. I got a job. Yes. The interviewers were delighted with my answer. But I wish I could have been myself. The same, juvenile self that I truly missed being.

What has been your biggest failure?

This is the toughest part. You don’t know where you have faltered. You think you have been perfect. But still, an answer for this, you must have. “It shouldn’t project you as a weak person”, they said. “It shouldn’t be clichéd. If you don’t have such ‘kinds’ of failures, invent them. How does it matter? Your goal is to clear the interview, isn’t it?”

In economics, lies a concept, ‘The Impossible Trinity’ which states that it is impossible for an economy to have all the 3 policy decisions implemented simultaneously. My biggest failure was that it took me 2 years to understand this simple concept and its practical applications. This is what it actually looks like:

At any point, there will be only a select few who can have all the 3 simultaneously. And these ‘chosen ones’ as everybody feels so are indeed the lucky ones. But they are after all, outliers. For all others, this is the 1^st compromise, the 1^st decision and probably a tough one too- to select any 1 side of the triangle; to select only 2 out of these 3 options available. But rest assured this is not the last Impossible Trinity that you would come across. As you move up the ladder, there would be many more such trinities which if you fail to understand when the time comes; you will fail to live a happy life.

What are your short term and long term goals?

Children stories may seem a thing of the past. But they indeed teach us a lot. It is surprising how almost 20 years later, I understood the true meaning of these lines:

Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?
The Cheshire Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.

Alice: I don't much care where.

The Cheshire Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.

Alice: ...So long as I get somewhere.

The Cheshire Cat: Oh, you're sure to do that, if only you walk long enough.

I do not know where I will end up after IIM K. I only know that the brand name would suffice to land me somewhere and that hard work would take me ahead. So why worry about the future? It is bound to be bright. There are less than 3 months left back here. As they say,

Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is mystery. Today is a gift. That is why it is called ‘the Present’.

My Experiments with Competitions

With trembling hands and an accelerated heart beat as that of a marathon runner, she clicked “SUBMIT”. A zillion thoughts rushed across her mind: Was the naming convention correct? Was the submission format adhered to? Will we win this one? Alas! It’s too late to fret over all this. So, she tells her team members, “Chalo. Night canteen chalte hai! Ab yeh toh gaya!”

Most of you would have already guessed what this discussion was about. Or rather might have just come back from one. For those who didn’t, this is a typical after-submission discussion. And not a clichéd case submission indeed. This is one of the most dreaded, the most anticipated, the most tiring submission. Yes. It is the B-SCHOOL COMPETITION SUBMISSION.   

Of late, most of us would have had to answer at least 1 or perhaps all of these questions: How do you make these ppts? What’s the thought process? How do you solve these case studies? I can’t help but reminisce similar discussions last year. And just like last year, we tell them: It’s an experiment with competitions.

An experiment is a scientific procedure undertaken to 

A. Make a discovery, 

B. Test a hypothesis, or 

C. To demonstrate a known fact.

B-school competitions are also experiments. How? They too are undertaken to 

 A. Make a discovery: Of how you underestimated so many people, accurately estimated many others and overestimated yourself.

 B. Test a hypothesis: I would rather put this as ‘Test several hypotheses’

1. The number of likes on a company’s FB page follows a bell curve

I have come across several cases which require us to find a solution to a Digital Dilemma. But web analytics probably never take this factor into account. The number of likes increase gradually once the teaser for a competition is released; reach its peak when the details of the competition are revealed and decline the day the results are declared. Why decline? Because of the disgruntled students unlinking the pages as they aren’t shortlisted for the next round and hence there’s nothing left to be notified about.

2. Multiplier effect is only theoretical

Being a finalist in one competition doesn’t imply that you would be a finalist in the next one and in the one after that. And if you think that winning a competition triggers this effect, think again.

3. N=5 (where N=no. of steps from the time the details are sent to the time when the solution is submitted)

1. How many members (m) are required?

     a. If m=3, your team is ready

           b. If m=4, the search for the 4^th member begins

           c. If m=5, check if the 5^th member is mandatory or can the team be formed  with 4 members as well

     2. Is there a campus round?

           a. If Yes; go ahead, register

           b. If No; go ahead, register (but don’t submit)

    3. When is the submission deadline? Or rather how many days to go before the deadline?  

    4. What is the submission format?

            a. If word doc; how many pages?

            b. If ppt; how many slides?

Oh the joy that comes with the smaller submission format and the frustration that comes later when you realize that there’s so much to write and so little space!

   5. Is there a possibility of a deadline extension?

C. To demonstrate a known fact:

Fact #1: Deadlines are sacrosanct

23:59:59 for an ordinary submission means 00:30:30. But if you think this would work for a B-school competition, it wouldn’t. With a blink of the eye, the uploading link gets disabled.

Fact #2: Surveys are fraudulent, seldom genuine

If you conducted an ‘in-depth interview of 20 customers visiting a kirana store’, you probably got 5 of your friends (maybe the team members themselves) together and had a less than 5min chat on the topic.  

Fact #3: The font size is directly proportional to the slide/word limit

The amount of information that can be filled in a 1 page word doc is equal to

                  1. The amount of information that can be filled in a 6 slide ppt.

                  2. The amount of information that can be filled in a 10 slide ppt.

                  3. The amount of information that can be filled in a 40 slide ppt.

No. This is not a multiple choice question. All the 4 are equal, albeit with minor differences. As the slide/page limit increases, the font size increases, the number of SmartArts increases. But the amount of information always remains constant.

But all said and done, nothing summarizes my experiments with B-school competitions other than these lines of Rudyard Kipling,

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same;

Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it.

To solve an unsolved case: A Case Study (A)

Case (n): an instance of a particular situation; an example of something occurring

But as a B-school student, I would rather define:

Case (n): a minimum 20-page report, usually taken from Harvard Business School, for which we are expected to provide a 2-page solution

These days, whenever I check Facebook, the only notifications that I see are: ‘X_i likes Y_j’. Pardon me for the excessive use of variables. But it is the effect of the Marketing Research test I just gave. Rather as I would put it, the post-test effect. So, ‘X_i likes Y_j’; where X_i includes all the students presently studying in a B-school and Y_j includes the FB page of all those companies who launch case-study competitions in B-schools with the aim of, as they call it, ‘Getting a fresh perspective of solving real-time problems’.

Until last year, these competitions were a taboo. The reason for not participating was as simple as: ‘We’re just in our 1^st year. We don’t know how to solve a case.’ Almost 2 months into my 2^nd year, and I still wonder if I could give the same reason to evade from participating in them. But unfortunately, they are now the raison d'être for a 2^nd year B-school student.

With almost all professors resorting to the case-study approach pedagogy, I think it is time to reflect on how a case is actually solved.

1.  If you think reading the chapters mentioned in the course outline would help you find a solution to a problem faced by a Mr. …..(a name you can’t pronounce) from …….Ltd. (again a name you can’t pronounce and are probably checking  Google to know more about the company) as he looked out of his car window on a rainy day in August 1995, think again.
2.  Always count the number of pages that the case runs into. Get your concepts right. Page count is always back-to-back. Avoid creating a feeling of utopia to the other person by telling him-‘The case has 7 pages’. Tell him, it has 14 sides. One needs to be mentally prepared of what lies ahead of him.
3. When you mention the number of pages, make sure that you accompany this count with the number of pages of simple-plain text.                                                                                     NOTE: Exhibits are never read and hence are not to be included in the modified page count.
4. Should you discuss a case before submitting the solution? If yes, then where? In a friend’s room? In the mess? In the hostel common room? In the library or in the Computer Center? How long should the discussion last for?                                                                                       NOTE: Case discussions have been known to have lasted for hours together, sometimes even after the case has been submitted.
5. NEVER discuss a case. Why so? Because a case discussion would always be preceded by several other discussions: A discussion on the venue for the discussion, a discussion on the time for the discussion and a discussion on the members that were present for the previous discussion and a discussion on who will be present for today’s as well as the next discussion.
6. The best way to solve a case is, initially (in the 1^st year) to divide the number of questions and assign them to the group members. And as the number of cases increase (in the 2^nd year), to assign each case to a group member. In this way, every member gets to enjoy the pleasures of free-riding.
7. Google will always be your best friend. It will give you all the possible solutions for the case. But remember, plagiarism is an offence, isn't it?
8. Ensure that your solution has less of text and more of SmartArts, Charts, and frameworks. Not only does the solution become easier (and beautiful) to read, it suddenly makes you look more knowledgeable (although just a misconception).
9. It is imperative that your group has at least 1 member who claims to ‘understand’ the exhibits and is able to fill in 5 sheets in an MS Excel Worksheet. Make sure that you use all the primary as well as secondary colours as highlighters in those sheets. Again, although just a misconception, it suddenly makes you look more knowledgeable.
10. Never submit a case more than 60seconds before the submission deadline, least you miss out an important conclusion from a not-so-important case fact.

If these points are taken into consideration, your submission will definitely earn you a good grade. But more than the submission, it is the case-presentation in the next class that will earn you brownie-points. So how do you pass with flying colours there as well?

Now, Harvard case studies never reveal the solution in Part (A), do they?  

The mystery will be solved in: To solve an unsolved case: A Case Study (B).