MBAs and humility...

"Hi, My name is ... I have done my MBA from..."

doesn't it sound good ? i had always dreamt of this intro of mine (of course ever since i joined my first company and decided that i was too young to get into the job grind so early). in india, it is the general perspective (mine too) that mbas are gods if not demi-gods... they do the work of 10 men, in a fraction of the time and they don't make mistakes... of course they are paid very high salaries, but are we not above all these materialistic pursuits.. :)

yeah baby... being an mba elevates you to super status... people start looking up to you... and why not ? 'I' wrote the painful and toughest test of managerial aptitude - the CAT and emerged on the tops amongst about a hundred and fifty thousand and ever increasing competitors. 'I' made it into a top b-school through their tough scrutinizing interview and GD and group-interviews and essays and psychometric tests and management aptitude tests and what not... and 'I' am among the few that have been selected - with the success ratio being about 1:100, that is something to cross the post-CAT stage...

now enters the first stage of realization and it hits you - there is about 30% of the population in the form of non-engineers who have already done some of the majorly important subjects that you never even had an inkling about their existence... so there goes the 'A' grades.. but that is ok guys, the remaining 70% is with you... and you sleep peacefully...

but whammo, while you were sleeping a part of the 70% had remained awake and gotten the knowledge transfer, though not completely... but still there is enough knowledge in their heads now to at least automatically nod whenever the prof says something in a language like greek or chinese... so there goes the 'B' grades...

now all that is left is the 'C' grades. but what do 'I' care... marks are not everything in life... so chill yaar, there is a lot of time till the exams. party on and watch movies all you like even if it were the worst movie of the century and you are watching it for the 124th time... but come exam eve, you cannot remain awake beyond midnight becos the moment you touch your books you fall asleep - reason NO PRACTICE... but the last part of the 70% have some grit in them and somehow manage this one night - resulting in them getting into a low C grade... bu twho cares: a C is a C is a C...

but were are you ? 'D'rowning.... after all the clowning, wodidja expect ? i am splashing around helplessly and hopelessly groping around for any small tip of a lifeline...

PS. this is when you realize that the part of the 70% that back-stabbed you were not actually turncoats... you failed to read the signals. they were participating in the events and winning prizes and accolades and fame...

what does the first year in an MBA do to you ? it makes you think -

"it is time that 'i' realized how small 'i' am."