“No obstacle is too big for you, no dream too great. You have the greatest force in the universe on the inside.” - Joel Osteen
We often give up on our dreams looking at the potential obstacles in our path. But true to the quote, all the obstacles can be surpassed if you have the will to fight for your dreams. I am an engineer, an IT professional, an upcoming IT manager.
But what if I told you, if it were not for my family and my will to go on, I wouldn’t have been able to see!
Early Life
I was born in Varangaon, a village in Northern Maharashtra, in a traditional retail business-minded family, where each child is expected to inherit family business in future. When my family found out that I’m severely visually impaired, they did everything to treat my eyes while also trying to keep me at par with other kids of my age in terms of education. I was enrolled in a local Marathi school, where I had to sit very close to the blackboard to be able to see it. My teachers never allowed me to enter into a Computer room, fearing it would harm my eyesight. I decided to learn it anyhow and on my own.
Family Business
Like all my siblings, I was also trained in my family business by my grandfather, where I learned standard business topics like cross-selling, up-selling and importance of services and customer satisfaction in a retail business. Soon, I started helping my father with a telecom distributorship, where I was handling daily operations. My father had to buy a computer to manage his business, this was an excellent opportunity for me, and I started learning computers although with some resistance from all family members.
Higher Studies
Fortunately, I realized that I had to come out of my comfort zone of the village and do something on my own, to be able to do what I liked. By standard 10th, by helping my father in his business, I developed a passion for computers and dreamt of pursuing my career in technology to prove myself one day. There was no way my parents would have sent me out of the village to study because of their conservative business mindset and my eyesight.
I decided to follow an unusual route and took admission in Polytechnic Diploma in IT at Government Polytechnic so that I would be able to play with computers. I was denied admission, as the college felt I would waste a government seat and leave the course unfinished. Somehow, I managed to convince the admissions committee. My parents were happy that I was excelling in my studies and sent me to MIT, Pune for my engineering where I was part of organising various tech-fests and technical workshops for students and for the first time learned how to be a team player.
First Job
I grabbed an opportunity to work for the world’s second-largest telecom company, Vodafone. My first project manager was hesitant to take me in his team seeing my thick glasses, but with time I was able to convince them that I could be an asset to the team. I was involved in the Innovation group of my company where people could discuss new solutions for existing technical problems in the company and train newcomers alongside my regular work. My eyesight was never a problem for me because I was very determined about following my passion and contribute to technological space.
“As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.” - Bill Gates
Life At IIM Udaipur
At IIM Udaipur, I was amazed by the diversified batch-mates I met who were filled with various perspectives, experiences and, of course, that provided an immense learning curve. I was nervous due to my vernacular background and lack of confidence in communication. But, due to early exposure to business, I was never hesitant in taking decisions in my life. With the help of my professors and my friends, I overcame my fears and learned how to develop products and services which are customer-centric and can empower people. Still following my heart, during the course, I took up courses inclined towards IT and Analytics. Interacting with the faculty about the technology and the different dimensions it brings to management was a great learning experience.
The Path Ahead
As a part of campus placements, I tried to chart a return to the IT industry. For this very purpose, I was largely focussing on just the IT related roles coming to campus, be it as an IT Consultant or as a Manager. With my background as a developer in Vodafone and my evident passion for technology, my eyesight couldn’t become a hindrance in my path. When given a chance, I managed to showcase my technical capabilities and made the cut in one of the top IT firms that visit the campus, MAQ Software.
Someone who was considered as destined to fail due to the severity of problems is now pursuing excellence just because my family refused to bow down. The fight is not yet over, but neither am I.
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About the Author:
Lakhan Menghani is a member of the 2019 outgoing batch of IIM Udaipur. He is a technology enthusiast who loves computer games and coding.
What makes Lakhan's journey special: He is the first from his village to graduate from an IIM, that too despite his visual impairment, and excels in a field where visual impairment is a serious drawback.
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Comments
gaurav
I believe the argument put forth by MDI about family run business is not strong as MBA;s from these families send their children to study from top US B-Schools where the focus is on experiential learning.
6 Aug 2012, 05.14 PM
Mausam
MDI's point about demand for B-Schools not getting low seems invalid as if that was the case why would you see a drop in CAT exam givers in times of recession or a move towards foreign b-schools by Indians recently through GMAT. Clearly classroom training at top Indian B-Schools is inadequate
6 Aug 2012, 05.21 PM
anonymous
The tangible benefit points mentioned by MDI are extremely myopic in vision , when you are studying MBA , you don't study with the goal of studying 'only' what will help in getting placement . Placements are just the start , the skills acquired from practical learning will help in growing faster than your peers once in industry . Though classroom learning is an important and a necessary part of B school education , Focus should be more on practical learning . As Benjamin Franklin says "Well done is better than well said."
6 Aug 2012, 08.20 PM
Avani
Off Summers/Research teach you a lot more. When you work in a bank you obviously understand better than what you learn about banking in a classroom. For instance in class you only learn the finance part of banking but banking encompasses lots of guidelines which need to be adhered to practically. This cannot be taught in any class. I have practically experienced it guys and i tell you there is a big difference.
6 Aug 2012, 08.42 PM
Soumitro
I find the arguments given by the JBIMS team a bit hollow in the sense that the stress on practical learning has a meaning only after the context for that is set by a strong grasp of theory. Experiential education will anyways be the bread and butter of a career in Management, and most MBAs would probably spend 3 decades after their graduation pursuing this never-ending education in the industry. I feel that a strong foundation of theory is the chief value addition of an MBA school, most of whose intake would be lost in their new corporate role, without such education.
6 Aug 2012, 10.07 PM
sachin
Yes MDI does have a point regarding fundamentals that are taught in class being necessary, but we have so many non-MBA leaders in the industry today and that somehow leads you to the fact that practical aspects of MBA are crucial and it is better for some of these MBA grads to learn this in B-School themselves rather than spend the next 30 years trying to learn them, I mean you can learn and apply the skills simultaneously. You do not need to learn for 2 years and spend the next 30 years implementing it. Learning is one continuous process and i don t think any B-School can cover the entire gamut of MBA skills in a 2 year course.
6 Aug 2012, 11.25 PM
Bhavin
@soumitro - you may agree with me when I say, theory simply put is what one saw in practice... treat management education as any sport or an art and you will understand the point the team from JBIMS is making.. :) I see clarity in their thoughts..
6 Aug 2012, 11.25 PM
Soumitro
Hi Sachin, Bhavin, Thanks for considering my views worthy of your comments :) I realize the error in putting my point across, which probably appeared as if I'm stressing solely on Theoretical Education, while overlooking Experiential Education entirely. Like both the teams, I also believe that mid-way approach is the most suitable with stress laid on both aspects of learning - theoretical and practical. To refine my point, 2 years of MBA education are probably the most ideal for internalizing the theoretical concepts, whereas the practical concepts whose seeds are laid during MBA (for example, during Summers) will continuously prosper throughout one's career. Theoretical learning, which provides the context for practical learning, might take a back-seat after joining the industry, so I feel an MBA education should focus more on building the foundation. Just an opinion. We can always agree to disagree :)
6 Aug 2012, 11.47 PM
Abhinav
Plato would have said, "This maybe good in theory, but it doesn't work in practice" to which Ayn Rand would have replied "What good is a theory one cannot practice?" Guess where I read about the above concepts of philosophy? I read about them in a book I bought from crossword. My point being, an MBA is not about learning concepts and theories. Whether it is India or abroad, an MBA is about the EXPERIENCE. The focus is on practical learning, getting your hands dirty, making mistakes and learning from them (not referring to making mistakes in an exam and doing better next time). I think fundamentals are great but when I asked myself - 'Why MBA?', 'theories and concepts' is not the answer I got. If I had to get my basics in place, I would much rather continue working and enroll with the best library in my city - will give me access to diverse opinions, it is more cost effective and will save me two years of time and opportunity cost.
7 Aug 2012, 01.24 PM
prashant
The argument really is as to whether Indian B-Schools have become too bookish and less practical.IS this the reason why we do not produce as many management thinkers. I mean why do we need a Peter Drucker or a Micheal porter. Even CK prahalad and Amartya Sen havent done MBA's from India. IS it because of our poor emphasis on research and focus only on books.
7 Aug 2012, 02.42 PM