Why Not MBA?

I have been fortunate enough to get into the GDPI stage of the selection process of a few B-schools in India. And like most aspirants, my preparation to convert them hovered around the million-dollar question - “Why MBA?” It is very easy to give a well-rehearsed answer to this question keeping aside the fact that convincing the panelists will always be a hard nut to crack. But the purpose of writing this blog is not to give you that perfect answer (of course I don’t have any clue about that either) which will do the trick.  

In the course of attending the interviews, I met quite a number of aspirants like me and talked with them. While it was very random at first, the responses to ‘Why MBA’ became clichéd with time. Some were being honest (a very rare species). Most were not. So for a change, let me list down a few answers that most people (at pre-MBA stage) can sincerely associate with.

1. I work in a public sector unit. I get a hefty salary but they have posted me in a remote corner of some naxal-infested state where I am not being able to enjoy my life. I want to do an MBA.
2. I work in IT sector and that too in you-know-which company/companies. Do you want any more reasons?
3. All my friends are doing MBA. Let me do it too.
4. I was preparing for GRE but I got lucky in CAT. I should do an MBA.
5. I have done/wasted my Engineering playing LAN games. I can’t see my future without MBA.
6. I should get as much as my manager is getting. So MBA.
7. I don’t want to do MBA. My parents and neighbors want me to do it.
8. It has been my dream to do an MBA since the day I saw the placement report of the top B-schools. 
9. I have heard students in B-schools stay in co-ed hostels. Definitely MBA.
10. Foreign exchange programme in B-schools seems cool. So MBA it is.

P.S.  “Management is the most noble of professions if it’s practiced well. No other occupation offers as many ways to help others learn and grow, take responsibility and be recognized for achievement, and contribute to the success of a team. More and more MBA students come to school thinking that a career in business means buying, selling, and investing in companies. That’s unfortunate. Doing deals doesn’t yield the deep rewards that come from building up people.” -- HBR

I sincerely hope and confident that in the post-MBA stage, all of us shall echo this sentiment with greater conviction and not the ones listed down in the post.

P.S.S. Sometimes, the above answers may do the trick. True Story. 

All in a year's Paribartan

A week ago MS. Jayalalitha, the CM of Tamil Nadu ordered to put up full page Ads in some of the leading national dailies regarding the achievements of her government in the last one year. It did not go down well with the people. Well, nothing wrong in showcasing what you have achieved and scoring a few brownie points over your competitors. But in my opinion, she would be better off following her Paschimbanga counterpart. Ever since the day Mamata Banerjee cried for ‘paribartan’ and guided her party to a landslide victory in the state assembly election, I have nothing but admiration for this lady. She has done so much for her state in the last 1 year. Yet, humble as usual, she has never tried to showoff or will ever do in future for that matter. Hence as a sign of goodwill gesture, I am writing down a few of her and her party’s major accomplishments.

1. Professor Ambikesh Mahapatra who was employed in the famous Jadavpur University in Kolkata, was arrested for sending a cartoon in an e-mail to his associate. But the arrest was made not before he got a royal bashing from the loyal TMC supporters.
2. Cabinet railway minister Mr. Dinesh Trivedi was sacked for announcing a brave railway budget that focused on safety aspects in train.
3. Leading newspapers were banned from public libraries so as to promote freethinking among readers.
4. The rape case of an Anglo-Indian woman returning from a nightclub was out rightly snubbed. Forensic reports and other evidences counted for nothing against Ms. Banerjee’s correct intuitions that it was an act of malicious campaign by the CPI(M).
5. Late Closure License (LCS) of all the nightclubs was revoked. The message was clear- “Go home early. Else don’t blame the government if you get raped.”
6. Steps have been taken to remove Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels – Founders of Marxism – from the textbooks.
7. Students were branded as “Maoists” for asking uncomfortable questions.
8. Now this one is my favorite. Ms. Banerjee has directed the authorities to make sure all the government buildings are painted Blue. The rationale behind this is there must be a neutral uniform color code for a city/state and it is also an answer to Jaipur being called the ‘Pink City’. The municipality also has plans to give tax cuts to people who paint their home blue. One of the best utilization of public money.

I wish Ms. Banerjee good luck in her efforts to make sure Paschimbanga is known as “The City of Blues”. What irony !!!

Bhag daud bhari zindagi, thakna mana hai

There is a very good quote that I came across recently.

“Every morning in Africa, a Gazelle wakes up, It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a Lion wakes up, It knows it must outrun the slowest Gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn't matter whether you are a Lion or a Gazelle... when the sun comes up, you'd better be running.” 

Probably the wise brain who came up with the above line failed to notice a few things. Are there only Gazelles living in the forest so that the lions will die without them? And do the Gazelles need to be afraid of only the Lions ? May be I am asking the wrong questions here. But then, aren't the Gazelles and the Lions going to die due to excessive running and chasing? 


If you are a part of the rat race, you are lost. If you aren't, then you are nobody and forgotten. Professor VIRUS from 3 idiots : Life is a race.. If you don't run fast.. You will be like a broken anda (egg).. Nobody wants to be branded a broken egg. But everyone wants to be like Ranchoddas Shamaldas Chanchad.


I pity the society that we live in. A confused society.