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.
Getting my Book Published at Age 12!In grade 5, I had failed my English Grammar exams. I was never good with my Grammar up to that point in my life, and I was not stressing too much about it either. But failing in English Grammar was a whole new level! I had been an avid reader ever since my childhood, but when it came to writing in the language, I would be having a hard time. But the jolt that failing set in me was something else. "What would I do if I couldn't even express myself in a proper manner?" that was the thought that went through my head repeatedly. I devised a plan to rectify this. I was able to identify grammatical errors if I read them but still made them while writing. So what if I segregated the two things, practised and then made the rectifications?I started writing stories after that defining exam. Short stories at first, then I would analyse where I was making the mistakes, and in my next story, I would make a conscious effort not to make those mistakes. Slowly and gradually, my Grammar started getting better, and I started enjoying the writing part as much as the reading part. A year later, I completed my book, "Pheonix - The Story Untold". I was confident enough in my writing abilities at that point, and I sent the draft to some of the local publishers. One of them got ready to give my book a run! So in about a year and a half, I went from failing Grammar, getting out of my shell, and getting my first book published.
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 am part of Luminati, which is the official photography club of IIM Calcutta. As a club, we publish a monthly e-magazine each month called "e-Xposure", which showcases the analysis of works of famous photographers, the technical aspects of photography and pictures taken by us. Ever since I have been part of the club and inception of the magazine, I have been responsible for collecting the articles, photos; editing and formatting the magazine and getting it published on various platforms within the Institue.
Tell us about a time when you disagreed with an opinion/idea/decision. What did you do about it?
I recently had the pleasure of working with an international group of students on a project, each from a different country. We were all diligently working on the project, and we were given multiple deadlines with fixed deliverables. In one of the sections, we were required to conduct a market survey. As had been the practice before this section, we all would divide the work, work individually, and collate our work to make a report on our deliverables; that is how we started for this section as well. But in the middle of the timeline, I felt that we were depending on secondary data only and had no primary data from the target markets on our hands. I tried to convey this to my other team members over text messages, but they were not warm to my idea of conducting a survey with half of the time gone. I called an emergency meeting over a video call and presented my views. I also showed them how we could conduct a very focused market research survey on the target audience within the given time frame and deduce results fresh from the ground, resulting in a much better report. In that call, I convinced everyone to go for a primary research survey, and we were able to design, deploy and interpret a survey, creating a more data-backed and focused report.
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?
I believe that one of the areas where I can claim some levels of expertise is writing. I started writing as a method to improve my grammar, but it became more of a hobby over time. I love how a few strokes of ink can capture your thoughts, emotions and ideas, and efficiently convey them to others. I have gone on to write more books, and I enjoy the process of telling stories. In MBA, I have written various articles, contributions to compendiums, and blogs to various wonderful and enriching clubs at IIM Calcutta. I even got the pleasure of getting published in The Bottomline, a joint publication between IIM A, B, C and L. I wish to continue this hobby of mine and improve upon it.
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?
If I were given $10 Million, I would divide it into three parts:1) For Self2) For Future Self3) For the Society1- For Self: I would set aside an appropriate amount of money to care for my current needs and travel the world. I wish to explore different cultures and see what the world offers in terms of experiences, stories and nature. I would set aside around 5% of the funds for this.2- For Future Self: I would set up a diversified investment fund for future needs and uncertainties. It would house around 60% of the funds.3- For the Society: I wish to open a subsidised public bookstore where anyone can buy a book for a nominal token charge. Along with this, I would want to open an NGO which would have two core focus areas: i) Increasing literacy and education; ii) raising awareness towards Climate Change. We only have one planet we can call home, and we require an educated population to save it! I would utilise some of the funds to start these institutions and invest the rest in high yield low-risk assets so that the long term needs of these organisations are also taken care of.
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