Have you ever wondered what made the world to be as it is today? It’s not that hard to find answers for that. As in many cases, there’s never a right answer for any question. Rather we have multiple. And in similar lines, one of the many important reasons is the way we connect. We are closer to each other than ever before in the history of humanity. Not physically. But, digitally.

It’s hard to imagine a world without cell phones. And it’s even harder to imagine a world without Vodafone. Right since childhood, I’ve been mesmerised by the way Vodafone tried to pull the market towards themselves. Be it through extremely creative advertisements (how can someone forget the ZooZoos?), through aggressive pricing strategies, they were going neck and neck with some of the leading telecommunication networks of that time, including Bharti AirTel.

Vodafone was one of the most heard-of names in the mobile network market just behind AirTel. Being a Vodafone-r ever since I started using mobile phones, I’ve never stopped to look back. No matter how remote the location is, Vodafone always kept me connected to the world. Some offers ,back in 2012, like 1GB data for just Rs.251 kept me and many other loyal customers hooked to the network. It was more like I was emotionally attached to the brand. And no wonder I am, still. However, Vodafone took a severe hit by Reliance Jio’s entry into the market. Several telecommunication networks shut shops, while other networks including the then-market leader, AirTel were faltering. That’s when the management teams of Vodafone and Idea decided to come together for a merger, since they were unable to cope with the low margins that were arising due to the intense price war between the giants of the telecommunication market of our country. And after the merger, they’ve become the network with the largest market share.

So, now coming to the latter half of the write-up, the biggest challenge I’ve faced in my life so far, was career stagnation. Being relatively lax about my academics because of my obsession with music, in which I was really good at, until few years back, I mired myself in a situation that was difficult to come out of. It didn’t take me long to realise that the opportunities are limited in that field. Once I realised that I was stagnating, I had to look for other career options which made me excited. Which made me eager to learn more. Which kept me on my toes all the time. Which had opportunities. And that’s when I started to explore other options. Being an avid cosmos enthusiast, I initially ventured into some astronomy inspired by great figures such as Carl Sagan and Neil deGrasse Tyson. Realising that it was not that feasible, I ventured into Data Science and took a ton of online courses. But my work kept me more occupied than I wished to. And I realised I needed more time to venture full time into that field. Then I moved to stock markets. And that kept me engrossed. It made me curious to learn more. It always kept me on my toes to learn more and more. That’s how I started learning about business as a whole. Realising the ample amount of opportunities here, I decided to pursue an MBA. And there was no turning back at all. Shuffling between work and studies was a little difficult initially. But, eventually, I was able to come out with flying colors in the examinations and right now, I’m pursuing MBA from one of the best institutes in the country, of which I’m extremely proud of.

Analyse the opportunities, take a decision. And never look back. Keep working hard until you reach your destination. I’m still far from where I want to be. But I’m pretty sure I’ll be there. Some day.

sheryn_samson

Vodafone and Me #IIM Trichy