It was the month of May, the year 2019. Life was mundane, and going at its regular pace. I had been working for more than 2.5 years for the digital arm of one of the largest media conglomerates in the country. Work was not bad, but there was something missing in life. The dreaded question, “Where do you see yourself five years down the lane?” had started haunting me now. And that is when I had realized that an analyst job was probably not fulfilling for me, and this was not something I would want to see myself doing for the rest of my life. Management always excited me, be it events in office/college or anything that required critical business problem solving with efficient utilization of available resources. Having gained enough corporate experience, it was now the optimal time to take the big step and start preparing for CAT 2020. It was a six months long toil, managing the regular office routine, and stealing time out of it to study. It wasn’t an easy task because I had already lost touch; it had been three years since I had graduated. But the zeal to do something and see me in a better position in the future is what kept me going and stay motivated. After about two weeks of struggle, I had started to manage both office and studies efficiently. This again was a management problem that I was solving. Months passed by, and finally, it was November 24th, 2019, the D-Day had arrived, and it was showtime.
I was able to fare well in the exam and scored a decent percentile when results were announced in January 2020. After the rigorous series of group discussions and personal interviews in various private and government institutions, I converted and got admits from most of these reputed B-Schools. It was time to take the final call. I chose IIM Nagpur over other colleges because of the IIM brand and the stature it has established over other new IIMs in such a short span of time.
If you ask me, the Journey was nothing less than a roller coaster ride. Meeting office deadlines, preparing for and giving CAT mocks, maintaining a healthy lifestyle and social balance, all this has taught me perseverance and the skill to manage the available resources. The feeling to get into an IIM and getting all the congratulatory wishes definitely gives one a sense of immense pleasure. But this is just the beginning, the next two years shall be the most crucial ones, and I hope to make the best out of these years to make them worth cheering for a lifetime.
About the author- Ayush Chadha is a PGP 2020-22 student of IIM Nagpur. He has 44 months of experience with a reputed digital products company. He loves philately a lot and is an amateur guitarist. He is looking to take up Marketing as majors.