‘Velvet Hand in Iron fist’ summarises my experience in IIFT so far. With its niche in International trade, IIFT has serves as playground for future corporate executives to face the real-world battleground.
Since each batch contains a diverse group of people, rigorous procedure is in place to raise the skills and capabilities of students. Many students when starting the course won’t have faced tough situations constantly. They are soft as velvet. But to succeed in corporate jungle, we need to use our iron fist from time to time. To achieve this IIFT puts its students through a series of the trail by fire. To me IIFT is a crucible, regularly challenging and pushing us beyond our limits. Though at first, we faced severe difficulties, with the passage of time, the extreme conditions became the new normal. All these harsh conditions were done to simulate the worse of conditions in the corporate scenario. I could see myself becoming more stoic through this process.
In the real world, where the margin for error is very less, where a small mistake could cost career progression, IIFT serves as a place where students are encouraged to raise the bar and make mistakes to achieve our dream. Since all the activities such as placements, event organisations, and alumni interactions are student run, it helps students juggle multiple things at all times. Many students’ journey from followers to initiators was sped up by participating in various committees and events.
Also, the frequent guest lectures and alumni interaction is unparalleled. It helps us keep our ear on the ground with respect to current industry requirements and happenings. More importantly, it helps us understand the routines, habits and the path taken by prominent figures in the different industry.
In retrospect, I have found the tough love shown by college is in accordance with the 10x rule by Grant Cardone, which basically prescribes us to train in situations which are ten times difficult than the expected situations. In short, IIFT prepares us to be gladiators in suits. #IIFTianForLife.
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ABG Group:
With the rise of The Great Indian Middle Class (GIMC) and their disposable income, the luxury segment is going to transform in the coming years. I wish to play a pivotal role in this transformation through Madura Fashion & Lifestyle division of Aditya Birla Nuvo. The company's lifestyle store, The Collective, offering a unique blend of global fashions, international trends and innovative customer services in Tier 1 cities will seek to expand. Also investing in Indian luxury brands, which is close to my heart, will have a huge potential.