Memorable Classroom Experience - Pranav Naik, IIM Udaipur

“My goal Is not Winning ; But to participate in all possible races”

                                                    –Sanji-Paul Arvind, Data Research Manager at Trescon.

I always try to imbibe this quote in my life. Be it participating in the sports competitions in school, college or at workplace, or be it taking part in various cultural events, I have always made sure that the fear of failure doesn’t stop me from participating in various activities. Over these years, I have realized one thing, that sometimes it is not only winning that helps you to achieve your target but participation, irrespective of the result, works out miracles for you.

I had come to IIM Udaipur with no prior connections. None of my school or college alumni were my seniors nor my present batch mates. I was also not very active on Facebook and WhatsApp due to my work schedule, so I missed out on the opportunity to interact with the senior media committee of IIMU. So one thing was clear for sure, I had to sail all alone in this deep blue ocean of elite minds. The first priority for a student of any B-School is networking, because you can’t live all alone for 2 years, and I literally had 0 known faces on campus.

During the 1st week of college due to various group activities, I started connecting with a few members who were my group mates. However, it was difficult to strike off a conversation with others as I wasn’t aware of the interests of other people. A week passed by and my interaction was limited to my activity group. The following week there was an announcement for the nominations of the Class Representative (CR). Due to my inherent habit of actively participating in events, without a second thought, I filled out the nomination form. We had 3 days to prepare for the soapbox and I went the extra mile to make sure that I leave no stone un-turned. I still remember me skipping my dinner so that I could rehearse my speech one more time.

The time had come and the stage was set. I was both anxious and excited at the same time, after all it was my first official address to my class and as they say “The first Impression is the Last Impression” so I wanted to make it a good, long lasting one. I was 4th in the order, and 3 of my other classmates who were before me, competing for the post, had pitched in their qualities in a very informal and a friendly manner and the audience was also enjoying it. On the other hand, I had scripted a very formal speech and had rehearsed it  ‘n’ number of times. So I was not sure how this was going to be received by my audience. While walking towards the stage, thoughts of changing my speech into an informal and impromptu one started crossing my mind, but in the end I decided to stick with what I had planned and delivered accordingly.

After the soapbox we had voting which was then followed by Karaoke Nights. This was the time where something unexpected happened. My batch mates who had never spoken to me approached me saying that I had delivered one of the finest speeches and irrespective of the results they were very impressed by my articulation skills. We then all sat together and enjoyed the karaoke nights. This was one fine experience which I feel I can never forget in my life. Even though the results of the CR elections, were not in my favor, I had achieved what I was trying since a long time.

Fast forwarding to the current day, we have our breakfast, lunch, evening tea and dinner together apart from studying together in groups. Now when I remember that day, I still wonder, whether I really lost something?

Which ABG company would I want to work for and why?

I want to be associated with an organization which keeps itself updated with the latest trends in the market. ABG as a corporation has always been on my wishlist because of this reason. When the Government had given its approval for payments bank, Aditya Birla Idea Payments Bank Limited, was one of the firms to implement it on an immediate basis.

It is my ambition to be associated with a payments bank because my work profile aligns with it. I am an engineer but apart from working in the IT sector I have also worked in the insurance industry which makes my profile suitable to work in a renowned fin-tech company which makes Aditya Birla Idea Payments Bank Limited the ideal choice for me.