I guess a lot has changed for all of us.. Bachelors got married and married have kid and some looking forward (marriage & kids). I was just retrospecting and went into my thought process as of 2005 Dec, when i was applying for MBA.
To some extent i was more focused and more confident then..
Focused that i have to do MBAAAAA... and confident that will crack some hi-fi job (though now when i think there was no strong reason for that confidence).
But as the saying goes.. its good to be confident.
Now why i am writing all these.... 3 reasons to name a few
- I am full vela (no work) and have nothing better to do, so thought of writing something (will never match Saurabh's eloquence or vamsi's depth or Umang's reasoning (Ref: MBA friends)
- I have met a lot of MBA's after i completed mine and unfortunately/fortunately found them more confused and illusioned.
- Wanted to check on all of you.. feel the pulse as of now.. and will be interesting to know everyone's thought.
The beginning
Some of us started on the correct career path, got the boost we needed, the correct industry.
Some of us made some compromise (place, salary), because of the time constraint. But the good thing was everyone more or less landed in their preferred industry.
Some of us waited, waited in hope and then got something.. wouldn't say too bad.
The earth has revolved 4 times around the sun since MBA and almost 3 times since the smart souls started showing their skills to the corporate world.
Hmm.. time does fly.. But i don't agree, because these 3-4 years doesn't look too less to me atleast. It certainly looks to be a hell lot of years/time. Few people may differ and as MBA taught/or to me consulting taught we agree to disagree. Simple logic:
Agree: Who didn't have a smooth riding and still trying to jump in the right orbit rather than rotating in the periphery or running in a track parallel to your dream track.
Disagree: People who had a smooth riding. Are in the right track.
Well, well i am just trying to discuss the professional side. I know every one's personal life has a big role to play in this as well. But being an engineer and some bit of maths/analytics still left in me, i wouldn't make the equation more complex by adding more variables. I would just keep it a first degree or max second degree equation.
Partners, love life, breakups, left in middle without any reason.. too complex to be handled here.
Where do we stand now:
Again few categorization:
Level 1 : Well settled, doing great (professionally as well as personally).
Level 2 : Doing decent in life. Holding on and almost there.
Level 3 : Thought they were in level 2, but suddenly they realized, No No.. they were wrong. The party has not ended and the fun still continues, the fight is on.
Future:
Level 1: Don't need to think too much (little thinking is needed in this world where you can miss a life time in a blink).
Level 2: The most confused. Should they end the fight and stay where they are. As one of my client said to me one day: "Any ways all the smart guys are not consultants or Bankers".
Level 3: You don't need to think about future. If you can handle your present, feel happy and have a pint with close friends.
Consoling reasoning's/logic:
Before MBA, you were fighting in a different league, probably B-Division. Now you have come to A-Division. The rules of game have changed.
The stakes are higher now so the wait has to be long.
Its a long term bond/loan. For some its front loaded but for some its back/end loaded. But the final returns are going to be the same.
Action (Be true, dig deep to understand what kind of person you are before actions) :
Action 1: For people who can still change their career and still thinking:
Develop core skills. Now that's tough to define. But something which you can do and show right in the face of someone. Something which is objective and not a road map/strategy on UFO. Get in the core rather than being in the periphery.
Action 2: For people for whom success is nothing but what you have achieved professionally (most of us fall in this category though we may tend to disagree):
Only if action 1 is not possible, do any shit but in a big brand. Cleaning the loo in a big brand is more recognized than having a coffee in the front desk of an isolated world.
Action 3: For people who have achieved a lot or for people who are mad enough to take risks and risks:
Leave everything and do what you want to do, there is no right time and that means there is no wrong time (but yaa only if you have the balls and means to do it). Everyone has the ambition and i guess the balls as well but there are always parameters in life which sits on your control panel which you cant CONTROL. So Action 3 becomes very subjective depending on the individual's status. And Yaa i forgot only if you get a chance/role to do what you want to.
Action 4: For all kind of people only if you believe in philosophy:
Stop competing with the world. Well this is philosophical. Think of you as the only person in the universe and all others make no difference to your life. Their achievements are just non-concerning news for you. How much do you need and compare it with what you have? and for some seconds you do feel good on what you have. This is tough and almost impossible to execute but if executed you are the happiest person in the world. But then happiness tags itself with success but the reverse is not true.
This piece of writing will be described as follows from different people depending on where they are in life:
1. Reality based on observation and discussions with a lot of people.
2. Piece of shit from a frustrated person.
3. General "Bakwaas" (shit) without no start and without an ending
4. Random thoughts
Signing off: To me its random thoughts based on my multiple discussions with people at work, over a beer, while running and sometimes just listening to discussion on the next table. I wanted to write something for a long time and so this is.
Now you guys will be thinking why i wrote this and why i am putting you all through this treacherous and boring act of reading it.
Good that means... you read it. enjoy it, even if you didn't like it.
