24
th June 2018
It was late in the evening when I entered the gate of Indian Institute of foreign trade. In front was the beautifully sculptured wings of wisdom statue. The architecture of the place resembled the old British architecture, the one you see in the hills of Shimla and Dalhousie. My parents dropped me outside old hostel which was to be my home for the next one year. The room had a cozy feeling to it. My roomies and loomies hadn’t arrived yet. It was dark outside when I opened the door to the attached balcony. The view didn’t resemble Delhi at all. There was a large stretch of forest and barely any concrete, just like it was in Himachal, my home state. The moment I entered the balcony, it gave me a kind of weird feeling. I suddenly remembered my conversation with a friend about spirits. I began to wonder if spirits exist in real life. I stood there for a few minutes captivated by the silence of the forest.
The new dawn came with new aspirations. The drill of MBA life had begun. For the next few days, I learnt that when your body is ready to give up, you’ve used only forty percent of your capacity. Amid all the assignment work, guest lectures and orientation sessions, there were intense conversations about resistance and persistence happening over tea breaks. In a matter of two-three days, the whole batch had become one big family. Everyone pushing one another, having each other’s back, genuinely caring about each other, standing up for one another and what not. These relationships were beyond friendship. We all were companions in this exhilarating journey.
Today, two weeks since the journey began, I’m again standing on the same balcony. I’m beginning to acknowledge that there indeed exists a spirit in IIFT. It’s the spirit that pushes you to go all the way while doing something. The spirit that makes you recognize the value of interpersonal relationships and strength of unity. Something that pushes you to be the best version of yourself and release your hidden potential.
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ABG Company:
If given an opportunity to work with Aditya Birla Group, I would like to work in the Aditya Birla Retail limited in the Marketing division. I think that the retail industry is at a dynamic crossroads after the tsunami of ICT that has changed the business principles forever. It is an exciting and transformative time in marketing and thus, I would love to be a part of this revolution.