If there's one thing that gets an MBA hatching's mind to start taking their life seriously, it's the Summer Internship season. The priorities, future plans, ambitions and passions start catching up, asking you questions as you sit in that hall with 359 others trying to answer theirs. Thankfully, my priorities perfectly aligned with my internship: summers, so Bangalore; knack for people, so consulting; student of HR, so Aon Hewitt.

To say that my time there was a great learning would be an understatement. Being surrounded by thorough professionals who took care of in-office professionalism as much as their conduct with clients, creating value using the knowledge I never knew was this valuable(I would have paid more attention in the classes had I known), the power of networking and the entrepreneurial spirit in each consultant was humbling and inspiring. At Aon it is fairly common to work late, not because anyone has to but because they want to. I learned that the whole perception around consulting being a very demanding profession is born out of the fact that consultants are actually passionate about their work and travelling, client interactions, selling services is actually a way of life they prefer over any other.

As I immersed myself in my project, I got the chance to live this life; coordinating with remote teams for data, making and remaking presentations, team outings to swanky restaurants, glimpsing into how leads are obtained and pitches done to clients and an assortment of activities. My internship taught me that in order for you to be eager to come to your workplace everyday it is very important to know that you have a purpose going there, that if you don't turn up, clients will be affected. It is this sense of belonging that makes consultants own their work the way they do, even before they become formal 'Partners'. And having seen what it's like to live with this purpose taught me exactly what I need to learn from these two months- about the kind of career I want and the kind of passion that will take me there

Sonam Pastaria

Chasing The Consultant Dream - Sonam Pastaria's Internship Experience At Aon Hewitt