Name an instance where you wanted something and went out of your comfort zone to achieve it OR Tell us the biggest risk you have taken so far in your life.
During my graduation, I was a part of several startup attempts, some of which I led from the front. The idea was to create something novel, something that changes a few things for the better. Simply said, I wanted to create an impact with my work, something that goes beyond just placements and packages. I soon realized that to get to where I want to be and to fill in the gaps that existed between my dreams and the often disappointing reality, I must educate myself by enrolling in a top b school. However, coming from an English-nonmathematical background, CAT was always a daunting challenge. It required me to start accepting numbers as my friends...to find something fascinating about them.
Thus began my long journey where I essentially rewired my brain to switch from an 'art only' perspective to a balanced outlook, where analytics and art could ideally come together in beautiful harmony. At times, this failed, especially during the beginning of this journey. I felt my mind vehemently reject wanting to do anything with numbers, but I persisted despite all failures. I scored miserably in the QA section in most of my mocks, and there were times when those around me doubted my aptitude for this paper. And why would they not? The task seemed so daunting, from being under average in mathematics to being excellent at it!
But I knew that if I kept at it, one day I would get through. CAT was just a means to an end, and I could not let a paper stop me from moving towards my dreams. I was thus out of my comfort zone for about 2 years before things started to get a little better, to the point where my scores in this section would often eclipse those from VA. All it took was two and a half years of patience, persistence, and an unflinching belief in my dreams, and in my capability in achieving them.
When was the last time someone relied on you? OR What did you do which was purely for someone else - a truly selfless act.
I risked being ostracized from my own class group for my professor.
I remember during college, we had a professor who was quite strict with his decisions, and very ethical in his demeanor. Some of our students were perturbed by his decision to not budge on his stance on a retest, to the point where they decided to write to the director about this teacher being unfair and biased in his judgments with respect to a few students. They thought that doing this would give them the leverage that they desired with respect to this retest.
But I strongly opposed this idea, collective bargaining was fine, but slapping charges that were never there on someone just to get our way was not something I would ever be a part of or would allow happening.
Thus I bought in with a number of people, convinced many who were going to approach the director to not go ahead with this plan, to the point where the entire idea was dropped due to lack of support from the class. I knew the professor would never get to know about my actions, and that acting on my intentions might get me ousted from several in-groups and even make me a few enemies, but I knew that what they were trying to do was very wrong, and just because the professor was firm with his decisions and unwilling to negotiate, did not mean that we put his employment and standing at risk. This would set a bad precedent for other academicians and would eventually end up affecting us, the students.
Tell us about a time when you disagreed with an opinion/idea/decision. What did you do about it?
I firmly believe in the value of feedback, that at times, when we out of courtesy, shy away from giving any negative feedback, we are actually doing a disservice to this person, or project, whatever it might be.
This was during my time at MDI, when a person was being ill-spoken about by a few of my peers, and it seemed to be the right thing to agree, for the sentiment against this person was strong. I interjected, asking them all to kindly reconsider the opinion they were holding for this person, without even clearing the central issue with the party concerned. It is easy to bash somebody behind their back, but the repercussions for them can be many.
I was myself a victim of gossip-mongering once, and I understood just how painful it is, to be judged for something you might never have done, and how disheartening people not speaking up can be. Thus I brought in many perspectives on this issue, countered a few replies with an even broader range of possibilities until I made them realize that they were jumping to conclusions prematurely. Eventually, the person was proven not guilty of what he was being blamed for, and it was a valuable lesson on commonly held biases for all, including my own self.
What is the one thing you can claim to have some level of expertise or depth of knowledge in - it could be anything - a subject, a sport, a hobby, a venture, an initiative which has led you to do deep work in that field?
The year was 2014, and I was fascinated by just how many gadgets there were to choose from, and how little the common man actually knew about them. I saw people struggling with purchase decisions, and eventually giving in to what the salesperson at the store would deem right, or be influenced by clearly paid-for reviews.
This is when I decided to write on technology, to be that person who reviews things in the language that the common person understands and yet be unbiased and thorough. I interned with a tech publication house, stating my love for technology and my knack for writing, where eventually I was offered a full-time role, given how passionate I was about the content business.
I kept learning more as I grew with this firm, and eventually, my work in the field was recognized by many tech titans and even OEMs who would invite me for discussions on future product launches.
If 10 Million Dollars (approximately INR 75 Crores) is given to you to use it any way you deem fit what would you do with this corpus?
I would be ecstatic that with this corpus, I could finally achieve all three of the following:
- It breaks my heart every time I see a human being begging, and sleeping on the streets. How, as I drive my car in the wee hours of the night every winter, I see people struggling just to keep themselves warm. Also, animals, foraging for food, some visibly in dire need of it, all of these things affect me, and I always wish to have enough to be able to do something for these groups. With 75 million dollars, I could invest a third of it, or 25 Crores in funds where the returns could be used on the welfare of these people on a daily basis, and where the capital in itself, when it compounds, can be used to create infrastructural facilities for them so that once food and water are secured for them, they can have shelter for themselves, that they never have to sleep on the streets again.
- I would invest another 25 Crores in generating jobs for the unemployed, by using the money as capital to start businesses that have been there in my head for long, where the returns or profits from the business can be used to fund the growth of these firms, so that the cycle of employing more people can continue. I see it as an excellent use of our mortal presence to be able to provide for a family by giving them the opportunity to respectfully earn this living.
- With the remaining one-third, I would invest for my own self, and for my family. I would invest some in the stock market, some in real estate, and some in fixed deposits, so that my financial independence can be secured for this lifetime so that I can not only continue to focus my energy and efforts exclusively on the previous two points but also provide well for my own family. Once we have enough, we can begin work for others, but having a strict upper limit of 25 crores would help me put a full stop on what I would deem as enough, all things taken into consideration.
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