It was one of those usual weekday mornings when the morning sun gleams through my windows and forces me to give him a front door entry. The morning sun invariably cheers me up and leaves me in high spirits throughout the day. So as most of the days I dragged myself out of the bed and opened my door to let the bright morning sun in. Few tall coconut trees from the neighborhood spread their long leaves into our compound and adorn the front view from my flat in the second floor. When I opened my door this morning something on one of those leaves caught my attention. What I earlier thought was a small lump turned out to be a squirrel perching really high on the spine of one of those long leaves of the coconut tree. It was probably the same squirrel which used to haunt my doorstep quite often looking out for a crumb or a piece of fruit. I was awestruck at its ability to make its way till nearly three-fourth the length of the tapering leaf axis (probably 1-2inch in width) which was constantly swaying b/c of the wind.  Squirrels, according to me, are the sweetest among the rodents on earth and I take pleasure in watching them. This morning was no different. I gazed at the creature, appreciative of nature's gift of mobility to this rodent and went back to my chores, thinking that it was resting on the leaf and enjoying the gentle swing. Sometime later while taking a peek outside, I realized that the squirrel was still on the axis of the leaf trying to figure out a means to get off the leaf. I could see it turning around a fixed axis but unable to proceed an inch further from where it was . The wind was getting stronger. The joy and calmness that had earlier enveloped the squirrel had vanished and only a sense of desperation was visible. I tried to call few people to reach out for the rodent but a busy Wednesday morning hardly gives time for such activities to most Bangaloreans. A strong wind soon threw the squirrel off the tree. I am not even sure if the squirrel survived the 25 feet fall though I hope it did. I will soon know if it doesn’t visit me tomorrow.

Nevertheless, this incident did leave me thinking. Quite often in life, I have been like this squirrel. I have unknowingly taken the wrong roads in a hurry and have been left stranded waiting for instances & situations to throw me off balance. Few times some concerned souls have helped me reach the ground safe. I have endured difficulties, learnt valuable lessons and have moved on anyway. But I so wish I had made use of my sixth sense to assess the roads before embarking on the journey. That would have saved me so much of energy and time...

It has been a lovely week at work. Not that everything went fine. Lots of things were going wrong and I tried my best to get things back on track. After a long time, I am experiencing this immense sense of satisfaction at work. I finally feel I have discovered what the term "job satisfaction" actually means to me. Man, it feels wonderful..

It has been close to 2 months since I have blogged. Well I have been lazy, depressed, gloomy and lost. But last weekend has been quite refreshing and now I have realized that it is time to gain the lost momentum. I plan to write few posts on leadership covering some topics that have been bothering me for sometime now. So do check the blog in the coming weeks.

Two weeks into Phase-1 of the program and I already am fully accustomed to the student life at IIM. Just don’t feel like getting back to work after a week. The basics in the core subjects are almost covered – marketing, microeconomics, accounting and supply chain management. Corporate Finance or CoFin as the students here call it is scheduled for the coming week. We have had quite a few formal and informal sessions on Business planning and they have been extremely fruitful. The class is expected to have the roughed out version of our business plans on Monday. My plan is going to be on the non-profit sector and I am really looking at doing something big on it. I intend to start small and gradually grow with time. In the next few days, I will be working on getting my plan ready for the presentation that is to happen towards the end of May. There are quite a few areas which need to be sorted out and I will have to slog to make my plan a success. Well nothing comes easy.

Rarely does a student get a chance to sit in a class that is both entertaining and enlightening. The marketing class handled by Y, one of the best Profs at IIM, has been quite such an experience. With three sessions done and one more to come, I already feel loaded with information. I have always strongly believed that marketing cannot be taught and one just needs to get his/her hands dirty and move on. So what is in store for a person with such a mindset at Y’s class? A perception change for sure :)

Well, I agree that professors at such institutes probably would have covered the same case multiple times and are masters in their specialization. But what came out quite clear in the marketing class was the Prof’s passion for the subject and his ability to ‘Connect’ (in marketing terms ;)) with the class. Sure, most of the information is available in the books or the internet but such professors pass on the crux of any book/cases in a very short time and in a very impressive manner with added-assimilated insights. I wouldn’t have probably understood the Xerox Vs Canon case if it were not for Y and I wonder if anyone can teach the pillars of marketing and hence the essence of marketing like Y. I am so glad to be a part of this MPWE at IIM-B. May many more students get benefited from such institutions and such professors!

After having read a few good books on the same, the theory was pretty boring. But the way GNP went about the sample case, the structured approach he used to address the issues was in itself mindblowing. The case was just a part of Robin Hood's story. Little did I know that I was going to learn about re-orgs, expanding enterprises and the importance of preserving an Orgs core objective when I first read the case.

The professors are pretty good in surprising people.Every prof seems to have a unique way of handling the class. AV, after having left us in groups for a case analysis, did not invite us for case-presentation but instead had a open house and still managed to get the crux of each presentation. The plan my group put up was based on my core idea and I managed to hold the class for a bit. That is cool aint it? Such things do boost your confidence :)

Either my expectations are high or the others have low expectations. Come on, you sit for 3 hours and learn only the most simple decision tree problem. Was a let down. But thanks to my buddy V, I was at least able to get more info. Given the detail in which this was covered, I dont think people will use it at all :(

No comments. Was more like a english class with definitions being discussed. Three hours and no calculations. I cant call it accounting. Was a let down again.

1. Even if it is Michael Schumacher, he has to drive only at 5kmph if he is driving behind a bullock cart on the Indian roads; Bangalore roads are no exception. I, invariably, am submitted to such conditions once a week :(

2. Dogs respond to automobile horns much better than human beings. Humans just don't care for they know that their lives are precious to the automobile drivers. You can hit and run in a place like Bangalore during not so odd hours.

3. Economic Times, the newspaper daily, has a regular column - Spiritual Quotient. Though I kept thinking that this column in outta place in such a newspaper, I am interestingly finding the column very useful

4. Economic times is byfar my favorite newspaper.. Why?? If it is Economic Times, I dont end up reading stuff like blasts, suicides, robbery and accidents every morning. Who needs such a dosage every morning? Not me for sure.. I hate the sensex details on the newspaper though.

5. I just realized that some of us need 2 things to accomplish a task - internal push and external push. Self motivation is internal push, peer/family pressure is external push.

6. With the bird flu fear still continuing, water bodies are sure gonna be depleted of the fish species. Come on, I know restaurants that have stopped serving chicken and have still managed to retain the same number of non vegetarian customers because of the new and updated fish delicacies.

7. Best example of Six Sigma practitioners are the chefs of the restaurant that I frequently visit. They serve the same quality dishes every time.

8. Some big brand bookstores have horrible customer service. They can go places if they do something to enhance the buyer experience. They survive better because of the patience each customer exhibits.

9. Finally sitting in front of your comp on a Saturday evening is not all that boring if you are bitching about stuff :)

 

The views expressed above are totally personal.

It is official. I am planning to do this series on "Women at Work" regularly at Pagalgirl.com. First article/interview is out and expectations are already high for the upcoming ones. I need to now decide whether this series is going to be only on interviews or if I should also be writing about women who break the drudgery of life to realize their dreams and about those who have the vision and persistence to redefine boundaries set for them. But I am sure I dont want to write about or interview women who are already common names like Sudha Murthy and Kiran Mazumdar Shaw. While it is great to have them as role models, I find it quite difficult to relate to them. Let us see how this series goes.

My upcoming interview is sure gonna be different from the first one. I need to work on the frequency of posts too. If I keep doing this weekly, people might be wondering if I work at all. Little do they know that I spent time till 2am compiling the first interview before posting it on PGG.

Keep watching the space at http://pagalgirl.com

I bumped into an article which spoke about how army (Indian army here) as an institution imparts few lessons to the corporate world.

 

The first point was about recruting the best people for the job. This is something that has been bothering me for quite a while now and the article is making me wear my thinking cap once more. While, in general, the corporate recruitment process is of no comparison to the rigorous army-recruitment process, there are quite a few companies that do put their applicants through some sort of stress interview. I work for an organization where 100 applications are reviewed before closing in on one applicant for the post. Inspite of that, I see people who dont fit very well with the job.I can attribute it to the following few reasons:

 

So now I wonder if such cases occur in the army? Well, when people work for an institution that calls for sacrificing ones life, issues like placement and interests are quite trivial.

Today we are celebrating Holi.. I have never been exposed to all these North Indian festivals while I was in TN but Bangalore sure has a great diverse mix. While B schools strive for such a mix, Bangalore has it all just readily available.. I have been working for 6 years and this year Holi will definitely stand out in my memories. And it is because, people are celebrating it right at office. Most of the overtly enthu crowd have dipped themselves in red, blue, green and yellow colors. They are pulling out people that are stuck to monitor screens and showing them the colorful side of life. Managers are enthusiastically wishing everyone and are joining the celebration. Why am I so touched by all this? Well I guess its because everyone likes to experience fun and frolic once in a while and I kinda like this joyful-colorful atmosphere today :)

Well I better run before the tissue papers and soap get exhausted :)

Weekend has been crazy for no reason. A friend n I combatted the horrible weather and our bad luck to find a decent club to play shuttle. And finally after few hours on the road, we managed to hit one that is close to our place. We started the first session today and I am hoping that it will be regular from now on.

 

I went to this absolutely divine place Kalanjali and registered for my Classical Carnatic keyboard classes on Saturday. The person-incharge was all interested in my passion that he kept talking about music for a long time. I finally start my classes this Saturday. Though I know that I will not be here for more than 3 months, I prefer to do something now that just be idle. Boy.. if only I had planned all well, I would have been a maestero by now..

But better now than never..

 

and btw if I had a 1000 sqft area, I would have started a Shuttle badminton club with few courts here..

 

 

 

 

In less than a month, I will know which school I will be attending. Duke results will be out by March 7th. If I manage an admit in Duke, then I will have to choose between Duke & UNC, which seems a little tough. Both the schools are in the same state, are kinda people oriented and have been my preferred choices. Duke has a brand value around the world and UNC has a smaller class size compared to Duke. I am trying to not think further on this till March 7th..

 

Visa dates are not available till July. Have to come out with a plan of action for handle the visa scenario as well as issues at my work place...

 

And if I am attending UNC, I will have to be there in June to attend the ASW. That gives my just a little over three months to sort out other stuff at home. I cant believe I will leaving my parents and sisters ...That throws me on an emotional low..

 

Didnt I forsee all this coming?

 

God please give me the mental and physical strength !

This weekend I am off on a team outing to Nagarhole. Looking forward to the trip. We are going to be staying in a jungle lodge and visiting a Tibetan monastery. Two days amidst a jungle and Buddhist monks ! It is going to be such a relief from the mundane and stressful schedules.

 

Well, I am in the organizing committe and lots of things to do before Sat morning 5am. Will write more on the trip once I am back