The sea had been my home, my identity, and my classroom. Over the years, I’ve sailed across the vast Atlantic to the shores of Africa, maneuvered oil carriers through the bustling ports of Dubai, and docked near the palm-laced harbors of the United States. From stormy midnights to sunrises over still waters — life at sea was nothing short of cinematic. But even amidst that vastness, there was always a quiet whisper in the back of my mind:
“MBA — someday.”
It had always been a bucket-list dream. But like most dreams we leave parked for “later,” I never knew when that “someday” would arrive.
Free CAT Mocks 2025: Daily Sectionals!
The Shift
Then came a moment — random yet life-altering — when I was staring out at the sea during a quiet night watch. No alarms. No chaos. Just calm. And that’s when it clicked.
I didn’t want to just navigate ships. I wanted to navigate businesses. I didn’t want my world to be limited by the four corners of a cabin. I wanted boardrooms, brands, and building impact at scale.
So I returned home. And not metaphorically — I literally stepped off the ship and into the world of CAT prep.
From Stability to Chaos
Now, let me be honest — the transition wasn’t poetic.
It was scary.
I would have to leave behind a stable, high-paying job in the Merchant Navy. The world I knew — the uniform, the respect, the structure — was suddenly replaced by mocks, RCs, percentile charts, and YouTube strategy videos.
I had limited data. No IIT-IIM network. Just a dream and Google. And yet, something inside me said, “Let’s sail into this storm."
The Prep Begins: From Port to Percentiles.
Stepping into CAT prep was like being dropped into a storm without a compass.
I didn’t have a coach whispering shortcuts in my ear. I had limited access to “top 10 tricks” or those magic percentile-boosting Telegram groups. That's when I knew, I want a structured platform and enrolled myself in a few coaching classes. I built my own roadmap. Trial, error, and a little bit of stubborn optimism.
My Strategy — Simple, but Sharp
VARC: The beast. Coming from a Merchant Navy background, I wasn’t surrounded by people discussing editorials over coffee. So I started with baby steps — reading newspaper op-eds, watching breakdowns of articles on YouTube, and gradually solving RCs every day like a ritual.
I read editorials, long-form articles, opinion columns, and even Reddit threads if they helped build comprehension and perspective.
➤ One golden rule: Read daily, even on the day before CAT. Momentum matters.
➤ RCs weren’t about speed-reading; they were about understanding tone, eliminating traps, and trusting instincts built over consistent reading.
DILR: I treated this like a mind game. I didn’t try to solve everything. I aimed to spot the 2–3 doable sets and maximize accuracy, not attempt rate. The wild card. Here, variety was king. I didn’t just stick to one source.
➤ I exposed myself to as many different puzzle types and logic structures as possible — sets from CAT, mocks, forums, and quirky Telegram groups.
➤ Over time, I built a mental radar for set selection — spotting the doable sets quickly and banking on accuracy over blind attempts.
Quant: Basics first. No skipping fundamentals. I revised all the Class 11–12 concepts (especially arithmetic, algebra, and geometry) and followed it up with time-bound sectionals to get a grip on speed + pressure.
➤ Arithmetic became my best friend, with Algebra and Geometry not far behind.
➤ I treated previous year CAT questions like pure gold.
➤ Every PYQ I solved gave me insight into the CAT mindset — how they set traps, the kind of logic they favor, and what they expect from a test-taker
Mocks & Analysis:
➤ I didn’t just write mocks, I dissected them. Every mock was a performance audit — what went wrong, what clicked, what I thought I knew but didn’t.
➤ Some mocks broke me. Others boosted me. But all of them built me.
➤ I always reminded myself: The real exam isn’t on test day. It’s in the 50+ mocks you write before it.
What worked for me was not doing everything — but doing the right things again and again.
The Lows Were Real
There were mocks where I scored well below what I expected. Mocks where I felt maybe I’m not cut out for this.
I had sacrificed a lot — celebrations, my routine, my peace — and there were moments when self-doubt hit hard.
But every time I felt I couldn’t do it, I reminded myself:
“You’ve crossed oceans. You can cross this.”
I started journaling after every mock — what went right, what didn’t, and how I felt. This helped build self-awareness and tame the mental chaos.
The Scores That Spoke
CAT 2024: 99.40 percentile
XAT 2025: 99.28 percentile
SNAP 2024: 99.73 percentile
NMAT 2024: 262
SPJIMR: Converted
CAP IIMs: Converted
IIM Shillong, IIM Kozhikode, IIM Lucknow: Converted
XLRI Jamshedpur: Converted
MDI Gurgaon: Converted
Yes — I converted every single call I received. But no, it wasn’t some fairytale. It was a mix of sweat, fear, focus, and faith.
The Interview Gauntlet
If CAT was about numbers, interviews were about stories.
They asked me why I want to switch gears.
They grilled me on my experiences on ship.
They threw curveballs like “Why not stay in logistics?” or “What does leadership mean on a vessel?”
Every time, I answered not just from the brain, but from the gut.
I spoke about my journey, about mentoring juniors onboard, about managing teams mid-sea, about discipline and resilience.
And I always brought it back to why I believe I’ll thrive in B-school and beyond.
The Final Call: IIM Lucknow
When the final admits came in, my heart was full. Every convert felt like validation.
But choosing IIM Lucknow was instinctive.
The culture, the peer group, the opportunities — it just felt right. It felt home.
What I’d Tell You — Future Aspirant
Start with what you have. Don’t wait for the perfect material, mentor, or moment. Start anyway.
Track your mental health like you track your mock scores. It’s the real game-changer.
Write your story, not a script. Your background, your “non-conventional” path — that’s your strength, not a gap.
Don’t chase percentile. Chase performance. Every day. Every question. Every mock.
If you’re someone standing on the deck of uncertainty, wondering if it’s okay to leave stability for a dream — let this be your lighthouse.
I’ve been there. And now, I’m here.
At IIM Lucknow. Ready for the next big sail.
So can you.
