Around this time last year, I was celebrating the first weekend of Term 1 at ISB. Only four days of classes and a three day weekend - coming from ITC where I had a six day working week -- Awesome! At least so I thought at that point of time. And add to it a party to celebrate the occasion (never mind you had to pay for the stuff you consumed) - what place on earth is this? The next one year was going to be fun.
At the same time, there were certain things that were no less than a real pain in the "neck". Those long queues at Goel, and random people trying to chat-up (yeah that's Networking for you) in those queues, quizzing you on almost every goddamn thing in this world. You might have guessed, I hated these Networking sessions. As if this was not enough, Speed Networking sessions were conducted the SLC - and you had to register for these sessions through the dreaded "Google Spreadsheets".
There were certain things that were extremely difficult for me to understand. Why the hell was I paying 5000 bucks for a class, when I had to read 5-6 chapters in advance on my own? If I read on my own, what will the professor teach? In my bank statements, Credit meant an increase in the cash I had at my disposal; not any more - thanks to Accounting 101. And yes, Marketing 101 - almost everyone bought the required textbook for the course, Marketing Management by Philip Kotler. Till date, that remains the most useless book that I have ever read (in my life, not only at ISB). If you are a current batch student and have not bought the book yet - don't buy it! And then there always was the Wine and Cheese story! Also, I never understood the mad race for grades (oh yes, I too was running!). Maybe that's because ISB is an Indian B-School, and Indians cant digest their food unless they rub their asses off - okay, that dialogue sounds nice in Hindi. But the fact remains, grades help only a few people to get a job, those 2% at the tapering portion of the normal curve in the one-tailed test.
So here I am thinking what could I have done differently during my stay at ISB. I know I cant change the past, but I surely can provide some tips for the future. Some of these tips come from things that I have done at ISB, and some from things I have not. I won't tell which ones are which.
- Network, even as much as you hate it, you still need to network. Why, cant be explained if you hate it, but still give it the best of your tries.
- Use the Rec Centre - Play! You will never have similar amenities at your fingertips. Ever.
- Learn, don't just run after the grades. The profs are amazing, and make the most of it. Only sound learning will help you during job interviews, superficial learning will not.
- Participate in school events. You need not do everything, choose a few things that interest you and contribute as much as you can.
- Choose the right candidates for the GSB and Club posts. Attend the SOP Boxes. Every batch makes a mistake here, and wishes they did a better job.
- ISB is a Consulting focused school, so you will hear a lot about Consulting from Day 1. If Consulting is not what you came for to ISB, do not worry. There is life outside Consulting, and a good one too.
- Dont give your life for CP - you can manage good grades with very average CP.
Above all, make friends for life and have fun. Go on trips, bike rides, outings - do as much as you can. You will never realize that how fast the ISB dream would end.
