Her confidence was at its zenith when she stepped into IIM because up till then, fate had been extremely generous to her. But then, it had to be fair too. This was the time to bear the not-so-good things that were in store for her.
IIM is the abode of the 99+ percentilers of the country. I am sure every person in this haven had felt victorious on the day of announcement of the result in the same way as a marathon runner feels triumphant on crossing the finish line. But alas, it was not the finish line for the achievers in CAT.
For the first time in her life, she felt she needed to prove her existence. From fighting for a chance to speak in class (because, well, there are marks for class participation) to slogging the entire day with assignments and projects, she constantly elbowed her way to meet the set expectations.
She hardly had time for extra-curriculars which used to be a major part of her routine before that. But she didn’t complain until her grades were announced. It shook her hard to see “average” grades in her report. Average was something new to her. All her life she had aced exams and this tag of mediocrity somewhat became a major setback.
What is more remorseful is that it clung to her. No matter how hard she tried to get rid of it, it stuck to her like a parasite. Thanks to relative grading, her performance was not just hers, it was the result of the cumulative performance of the entire class.
Life at IIMs is a continuous battle. You are constantly pushed towards this crowd of mediocrity – the nameless and the faceless called the “average”. The saddest part is that most people give in. They measure their self-worth with grades, salaries and packages. They become complacent because, well, you get great jobs anyway.
The point here is not about the hard life at IIM. The world outside is even harsher. The ‘IIM’ tag brings responsibility. You would always have to fight for set benchmarks and outperform them. So, see this as an opportunity and do not succumb to being an “average”. You are special and you do not require proof for that.
Want to know what happened to Sara? She freed herself from the shackles of mediocrity. She couldn’t get better grades but she revived her taste in arts. She involved herself in many extra-curricular activities and found that she was, indeed, no “average”. She was happy.
Sara is just a name. She is among you and me. Whenever you pass the lonely roads in IIM campuses, you will see many of her wandering clueless or maybe some of them inside their hostel rooms or libraries, trying to absorb the indefinite knowledge that the prestigious management course claims to offer.
If you recognise her, help her and if you find her in you, I hope you now know what to do!
*Featured image credits - Seanwes.com
Comments
Sailesh Hota
SabHotaHai. Dog person. Hate CATs. 710 in GMAT. 97.46 in XAT 2018. Stand-up comedian, IT professional, NITTian and lazius maximus. Worked for 28 months in semiconductors before calling it quits. Feel free to reach out to me on any platform.
Loved the article. So true!
26 Mar 2019, 10.33 PM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Glad that you could relate :)
27 Mar 2019, 12.07 PM |
Prabhansh Rai
Amazingly written!! A recommended read.
28 Mar 2019, 11.39 AM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Thank you so much :)
28 Mar 2019, 11.48 AM |
Shijo Jose
Whoa! Very nicely put Payal! I too had my world turned topsy turvy when I joined and took me time to come to terms with how different it is from Architecture and design
28 Mar 2019, 11.39 AM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
I am glad you could relate. Thanks for the encouragement :)
28 Mar 2019, 11.49 AM |
Deepanjali Nambiar
This is beautiful! Everyone has to read this before they step into an IIM. Lots of love to you!
29 Mar 2019, 09.27 PM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Thank you Deepanjali.
31 Mar 2019, 10.30 AM |
Ajay Singh
I am pursuing BBA from ggsip university and also MBA aspirant .
It's like a true story.
1 Apr 2019, 11.53 AM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Thanks..good to hear :)
1 Apr 2019, 09.06 PM |
NARENDIRAN M
Wonderfully Written !! Thanks :)
15 Apr 2019, 07.46 PM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
I am glad you liked it :)
16 Apr 2019, 07.56 PM |
Vamsi Karedla
Wow. Good going stating the obvious
16 Apr 2019, 09.42 AM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Thank you so much. You're very kind.
16 Apr 2019, 07.57 PM |
Ashwani Kumar
Currently pursuing my MBA(2018-2020) in Global Bussiness Managment from IIM Lucknow. Graduated from Punjab Technical University in Electrical Engineering.
WOW!!
16 Apr 2019, 11.52 AM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Thanks a ton :)
16 Apr 2019, 07.57 PM |
Vedaantsingh Pardeshi
Very well written! Bravo!
16 Apr 2019, 07.51 PM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Thanks. I am glad you like it!
16 Apr 2019, 07.57 PM |
Keyur Shah
BE Mechanical Engineer 2018 pass out and doing job since March'18 till today
WOW!!! INDEED ONE...
16 Apr 2019, 08.41 PM
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Payal Phukan
Payal, a student team member of Inside IIM, is currently pursuing MBA from IIM Calcutta (2020 batch). She is also a Post Graduate in Advertising and Public Relations from Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. She was born and brought up in Guwahati and if you do not see her watching sitcoms or incessantly chatting with her friends, you would definitely find her writing or painting. A dire coffee lover- she believes there's more caffeine than blood in her veins. Probably, you would even see traces of it when you read some of her works (mostly poetry and fiction) here: www.payalphukan.wordpress.com
Thank you Keyur
16 Apr 2019, 08.48 PM |