Any journey to an IIM is a herculean task by itself and one who goes through the same can definitely understand the painstaking efforts and intense competition he has to go through to ensure that he gets into what is known as the “Best of the Best”. Having said that, let me take this opportunity to share the experiences of my journey.
I can still recall the expression of awe on the faces or hear it from the voices of my friends, peers, and relatives when I broke the news of getting the fabled call from IIM Trichy. At that point of time in May 2016, I was working with Mitsubishi Electric as a Senior Engineer, and I realized that people were trying to confirm why I was leaving such a career and joining an MBA course. While people may have had their own reasons to express their concerns, I had identified from my 56 months of work experience (which I found extremely enriching) what I do not know, and what I desperately need to learn in order to extrapolate my horizons, cement the foundations of my career and in turn, contribute to my organization and society more effectively. And where else would such skills be taught in a structured and thorough manner? Obviously, the Best of the Best – the IIMs.
My journey started from 2011 when I graduated in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Panjab University, Chandigarh. I went on to work with reputed firms like Cummins, Keihin and then Mitsubishi Electric. In each of these places, I realized time and again that although we may be good in technology, we may still not translate that into sales, which results in the loss of the organization's revenues. Not only that, I experienced the absence of suitable organizational structures and the zeal to work for a common goal in several organizations throughout my years of work. As easy as the solution outwardly seems, it did present before me the knowledge of my lack of organizational, marketing skills and the economics of a market. I thus made up my mind to join an IIM and fill the knowledge gap. The decision was only made even more firm when several of my friends joined IIMs in the previous 1-2 years, and each having spoken volumes about the quality of education at IIMs and overall positive transformation of an individual's personality during the course. I just had to go for it.
Then came the hardest part of the journey – implementation. In my case, the difficulty compounded due to the culture of 6 working days per week (typical to an automotive Company – however things are slowly changing for good), a lack of holidays, unscheduled and varied shifts and stretched working hours (sometimes beyond 12 hours a day).
I was forced to drop out of coaching and focus on CAT 2014 purely through self-study but the attempt was unsuccessful. However, I refused to give up. I stuck to the same methodology I adopted last year, with increased efforts. I can say now that I had been a nocturnal and coffee addict long before joining IIM. I took CAT 2015, scored well, took the subsequent interview for new IIMs and got the final call from IIM Trichy (and also 5 other converts) – all of which was totally worth the wait and efforts that I undertook. It was extremely satisfying that my hard work had finally borne fruit. It was really, really very difficult to choose between 6 IIMs (many of us can definitely connect on this one) but still, after reviewing several parameters which suited my academic expectations, I chose to go with IIM Trichy.
Fast forwarding to now, i.e., almost 2 months into the PGPM course in IIM Trichy, I feel that coming to IIM Trichy is one of the best decisions I took in my life. I feel privileged to meet and learn from the esteemed and learned faculty and fellow students in IIM Trichy, and enjoy the little celebrations which come during the year in our student life. We take pride in working hard (and partying harder). All that work I did for the past 56 months can somehow be logically related and understood, thereby slowly opening avenues for bettering the same. I can surely vouch that being in IIM will not just enrich you with a great learning experience, it will also positively transform your overall personality – something which cannot be described in words. You have to be there and experience it yourself.
Before signing off, I would like to tell something to the prospective IIM students, be confident about yourself and create the willpower and the zeal to work hard to achieve what you want. In the end, you will definitely get it. I agree it is easier said than done, but I hope you will also agree to the fact that some people who chose to believe in themselves and put in the best of their effort, have ultimately achieved their dreams.
I wish you all the very best!
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About the Author:
Abirbhav Mukherjee is a currently a member of Podium Club (Literary, Debate, and Communications) Club of IIM Trichy. He has 56 months of work experience, working in Mitsubishi Electric, Keihin and Cummins, in the automotive domain. He has handled a variety of roles and functions, particularly team management, sales, technical support and customer relationship management. Abirbhav passed his BE in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Panjab University in 2011. A hardcore automotive enthusiast, Abirbhav is also passionate about traveling and exploring the uncharted territories and trying to find logic and thorough understanding in everything around him.
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