It’s been two days since I have started re-arranging my thoughts on writing something about the iconic
Aditya Birla Group (ABG)’s impact on my life and yet, every time something new pops up. After all for a 150-year-old company having presence in 42 countries across the globe and most importantly having diverse portfolios in the domain of Banking & Financial service, Fashion, Cement, Chemicals, metals etc., it is not easy to hand pick a single brand that influences you. There are many – be it my love for
Peter England casual wear or
Van Heusen formal suit or the childhood memory of looking at hundreds of
UltraTech cement bags piled up near our home’s construction site.
13 years have gone by since our house has been built. Back then, I didn’t know the parent company of UltraTech cement but now I do. It’s simply unbelievable. I still remember climbing on those pile of UltraTech cement bags and then getting beaten up by my father. Nostalgia hitting me all over again. Those days are gone but my beautiful home still stands tall holding those memories.
By the time I joined my graduation at IIIT Bhubaneswar, a premier institute of Odisha, I had no idea about “Brand Loyalty”. “Peter England” taught me this and 5 years down the line, you will only find Peter England casual wear in my Almirah. The impact of this brand is huge and my love for this brand is known to everyone who is close to me. Be it my family who still gifts me a Peter England t-shirt every year on my birthday or be it my friends who gifted me a Peter England tie when I joined my MBA at Department of Management Studies, IIT Delhi. For a person who belongs to a middle-class family, the affordability of Peter England with the unmatched comfort is the key for this undeniable love.
The Journey of a Failed Warrior
Yes, I would love to call myself a failed warrior. Failed because I have seen failure quite closely in most occasions and warrior because I have never given up nor will I.
After all, they say it is not easy to leave everything you already have in search of something you might or might not get. This was exactly my social media status 3 years ago when I left my job in an MNC, to start preparing for Civil Services. The joy of qualifying the prelims without any coaching assistance convinced me that I can do it given a support. I left my Job and joined Chanakya IAS Academy for for further coaching support. People call Civil Services exam “Nation’s Favorite Pass-time” and I knew the success rate is 0.001% only. Still I was audacious enough to go for it. 2 years of intense preparation with hundreds of notes were not enough to get me through. Moreover, the other failures like SBI PO, RBI Grade B were mounting on my shoulders. Parental Pressure, Mockery of Society became everyday diet for me. Some called me waste of money and some called over confident, after I failed to qualify even the prelims in 2017. I was completely dejected and didn’t know what to do. But after finally gathering the much-needed courage, I decided to write CAT and by God’s grace landed myself up in IIT Delhi.
When I look back, I regret nothing rather I feel proud that I could sail through that phase of my life. It’s not easy to bounce back and not always life gives you a second chance. I am happy where I am now, and I look forward to grow in life both personally and professionally.
Want to read more about my Journey? Find it
here.