Just another day

“Bharadarajan Bharadarajan” a shrill voice woke me up from my sweet dreams so early in the morning. With a grin on my face, I babbled something about my professor and tried concentrating on the class. First Day of B2B marketing class and we all hoped that we might have a bearable prof, for a change. And hope as always betrayed us !! In the wee hours there stands a man who lectures on how managers should act, how decisions ought (not) to be taken and everything under the sun for ‘B2B Marketing’. The horror part was we had to answer a quiz on the very first day of the course. And the horrorer (if ther’s eva such word) part is that we would have one every day based on our pre-reads. Huh !! Would the Profs ever cease to be merciless?

After a heavy lunch in the afternoon
I was late by 2 minutes to the class and when I opened the door to enter the class room I was astonished by the fact that the entire class was standing there as if to welcome me. To my relief it weren’t the truth. It sounded like a fish market and I asked them why were people behaving as in a fish market. And my friend pats on my back and says ‘my dear, we are simulating a market and trying to learn experimental economics’. Huh again. I need to congratulate my fella folks on successfully re-creating a market which the Prof. himself couldn’t control. End of it, I have no clue what I have learnt about markets; so don’t u dare ask me about it.

Keats was a Tuber
“wow.. see those dears” said someone and lo behold there was a heard so close by. This is the IIT Madras campus. A never ending campus it is. The greenery inside, the libraries, the auditoriums.. you neva know how many are in there. I went there to watch a play ‘Keats was a tuber’ and it was worth a spend.

The play is a tirade against the present system of teaching English in most of the schools and colleges in India. The locale is the staff room of the English Department of a small college somewhere in Tamil Nadu.

Some quotes here and there from the play

Charles Lamb's essay, A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig ... That's what I have to teach today. I have to take apart Lamb's delicate whimsy to boys and girls who are first generation literates. And worse, much worse, I have to talk about the mouth-watering and irresistible taste of crackling of roast pork to a group of students, a great many of whom don't eat meat and over half of whom are Muslims".

Mrs. Nathan asks him not to waste students' time lecturing on Karl Marx and communism, when Raghu says, "Why shouldn't I do that? I am expanding their minds, helping them grow, that is what teaching is about. Real teaching. Not this cramming and vomiting out that you and your colleagues expect them to do. Memorize, by heart, mug up!"

While chanting, he goes on to say "Keats was a tuber... Keats was a tuber... Keats was a tuber... culosis patient... culosis patient... Is that all you can tell them about Keats? That he had tuberculosis? And so it goes on.

"Literature goes beyond the question of language, it has to do more with experience... "

"Why would any Indian woman want to be compared to a summers day"

After a sumptuous (free) dinner in the IIT canteen, I have realized that we need to walk back 5-6 KMS to reach the main gate. Phew!! We waited for a free shutter bus along with the scores of IIT kids. I just loved their enthusiasm and spirit, the hope and aspirations, the sparkle in their eye and the playful mood in the air. Everything around was so different. The bus driver played a song from ‘Arpil Madathil’. I have no clue wat the song means but it was full of pep. So here goes it for my readers..

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

The Know it alls

Amongst the numerous encounters with people, this is one clan which amuses me to a great extent. I would never miss on an opportunity to interact with these people coz I learn from them how not to live life.

Scene 1

Prologue: Before the start of the Business Ethics class – one of the best courses that we went thru during our stint at Great Lakes.

G : What the hell does this man teach?
Me : Ethics

G : Sure, but he is supposed to teach business ethics. Where is the business part of it?
Me : Well, that depends on your definition of ethics and business ethics. In my opinion being ethical in personal life or business doesn’t vary much. It’s gotta do with your integrity basically.

G : Yaar, still I don’t agree. Take for example ‘International Entrepreneurship’ course. I know what I know before going into the class and what I learned after the class. There is nothing I am learning here that I can count or recollect.
Me : Why dontya listen with an open mind. Be it ethics or Business ethics, may be you would learn something at the end of it. How does it matter what the title is?
G: Nah. Doesn’t make any sense. If he is here to teach he ought to teach Business Ethics and nothing else. How can I learn anything which is not supposed to be taught???



Scene 2

Prologue: In the canteen, during the lunch one of the gals strikes a conversation with a chap who would never ever say any prof is good or that he learnt anything in the course. He bullshits every famed professor and all that they teach. I would like to believe this fella is gyani who knows everything under the sun but unfortunately……

Miss R : Hey how is ‘….’ course going on? I heard that it is too good and the professor is doing a wonderful job.
Mr. H : What the heck. He is so dumb. He doesn’t know what he is talking. I cant stand him. And anyways don’t we know all that he teaches?

Miss R : Hey. I always wanted to ask you something.
Mr. H : Shoot

Miss R : What is your expectation out of this course or for that matter even MBA?
(I am searching for words to explain the expression of Mr H’s and everyone else around)

A tour

Apart from the oh-so very obvious stuff in my mouth,thanks to my doc, these are the latest additions

1. Two rings
2. Two tubes
3. Silver colored balls
4. Modules
5. Wires
6. Brackets

This is not all. If you thought only additions were painful, what about my four teeth that were knocked off? It was so much painful when I had a last look at em.

Sunday morning

Sunday morning or a Monday morning really doesn’t make much difference in an MBA coz you wouldn’t even remember which day of the week you are floating on !! It’s like some one has to tap on my shoulder and say the most obvious ‘D-AH’ and then I grin back and say ‘Oh! I see’. Well, today has been different though, I knew it was a Sunday morning coz I don’t have classes scheduled for the entire day. It felt like ages that Sunday happened on my week. This Sunday was so special coz I got a chance to spend the day in some august company. The company that I love. The company which has no substitute. It was a nice Sunday morning date which I would never want to end and which I would never forget. The fresh smell of pages, the newness look on each of the books, thousands of them to make sure I don’t get bored even for a moment. There I was, lost in Landmark in the citi centre mall and how I loved that place and the company of books. I wanted to buy every second book on the rack. I earnestly wished for once I had a filthy rich boy friend or an emperor dad who could afford me all those books that I want. After it flashed to me that I had neither, I had to settle down with a meager 8 books and yet manage to spend 4k. What a lovely day !!

On the poly bag of landmark this is what I found

1. No matter how high or low it flies, an aeroplane’s shadow will be exactly the same size.
2. A cucumber is 96% water
3. Earth is the only planet not named after a god.
4. The average ratio of yellow kernels to white in a bag of popcorn is 9:1
5. The size of your foot is approximately the same size as your fore arm.
6. There are more insects in one square mile of rural land than there are humans on earth.
7. The word Sunday is not in the bible.
8. If you slowly pour a handful of salt into a totally full of glass of water it will not overflow. In fact, the water level will go down (someone explain me why please)
9. Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying.
10. There’s cyanide in apple pips.

Do you know me?

I have recently taken up the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator personality test. For those of you who are still wondering, please google. This is what Myers and Briggs have to say about me...

ENFP (Extroversion, Intuition, Feeling and Perceiving)

At Their Best

For people with ENFP preferences, life is creative adventure full of exciting possibilities. ENFPs are keenly perceptive about people and insightful about the present and future. They experience a wide range of feelings and intense emotions. They need affirmation from others and readily give appreciation and support.

ENFPs are good at understanding how people and groups work and are persuasive and compelling in pursuing what is important to them. They are adaptable, blooming where they are planted. Their energy and enthusiasm encourage others to bloom as well.

Characteristics of ENFPs

ENFPs are innovators, initiating projects and directing great energy into getting them under way. Using Intuition primarily externally, they are simulated by new people, ideas, and experiences. They find meaning and significance readily and see connections that others don’t. They are likely to be

• Curious, Creative and imaginative
• Energetic, enthusiastic and spontaneous

ENFPs value harmony and goodwill. They like to please others and will adapt to others’ needs and wishes when possible. ENFPs primarily use Feeling internally, making decisions by applying personal values through identification and empathy with others. ENFPs are likely to be

• Warm, friendly and caring
• Cooperative and Supportive

ENFPs have exceptional insight into possibilities in others and the energy and motivation to help actualize them. They feel confident moving ahead based on their insights, and their enthusiasm tends to bring others along with them.

How Others May See Them

ENFps are usually lively, gregarious, and sociable, with a large circle of friends. They are interested in almost everything and bring a zest to life that draws others to them. At the same time, they value depth and authenticity in their close relationships and direct great energy to creating and supporting open and honest communication.

ENFPs hate routine, schedules, and structure and usually manage to avoid them. They are normally verbally fluent, even in extemporaneous situations; however, when their deepest values need expression, they may suddenly be awkward and express their judgments with uncharacteristic intensity. Others usually see ENFPs as

• Personable, perceptive, and persuasive
• Enthusiastic, spontaneous, and versatile
• Giving and seeking affirmation.

Potential Areas for Growth

Sometimes life circumstances have not supported ENFPs in the development and expression of Feeling and Intuitive preferences.
• If they have not developed their Feeling, they may go from enthusiasm to enthusiasm, never committing the energy necessary to actualize their insights, or they may make overly personal decisions.
• If they have not developed their Intuition, they may fail to take in enough information, lack trust in their own insights, be uncertain, and accept others perceptions too quickly.

If ENFPs do not find a place where they can use their gifts and be appreciated for their contribution, they usually feel frustrated and may

• Become scattered, have trouble focusing, be easily distracted
• Fail to follow through on decisions
• Become rebellious, excessively nonconforming
• Ignore deadlines and procedures

It is natural for ENFPs to give less attention to their non-preferred Sensing and Thinking parts. If they neglect these too much, however they

• Not take care of the details and routine required for implementing their inspirations
• Overextend themselves – have trouble saying no to interesting possibilities and people
• Fail to apply reason and logic to asses their inspirations and decisions

Under great stress, ENFPs may become overwhelmed by detail and lose their normal perspective and sense of options. Then they tend to focus on an unimportant or distorted detail, letting it become the central fact of their universe.

The MBA Jargons

I am in the process of compiling the most widely used MBA Jargons. I will come up with the list soon. However, for a taste, the toppers on the list are

1. Value-add
2. Competitive advantage.

I personally feel more than the two stated above, the most frequently used jargon here is the 4 letter F word - 'Fcuk'. A conversation between two MBA students goes like this
'Fcuk!! we have Fcuking classes back to back tomorro. There are 4 fcuking assignments to submit and 2 fcuking cases to study man.. and fcuk can u believe the fcuking classes start at 7 in the morning tomorro?'

I have asked one of my colleagues in astonishment if he really didn't feel a tinge of hesitation before using that word. And bang goes the reply 'Y should I? Afterall all of us have gotta do it at some point in our lives'.

We will miss you

Though am not an aficionado of cricket, I for sure admire Kumble.
Seldom are the moments when the game becomes larger than life. The pic below speaks of one such moment..





Kumble gets Lara with a broken jaw !!!

50 best innovations of 2008

TIME's picks for the top innovations of 2008 range from a genetic testing service to an invisibility cloak to an ingenious public bike system to the world's first moving skyscraper. See the list.

FAIL Camp

This link has just caught my attention - http://barcamp.org/failcamp

Isn't it just brilliant ?? Will post more on it after I attend it.

a Nightmare

Four spoilt brats, a lavish Italian dinner and a long drive. Just when everything was looking so nice and beautiful, you bang into a press car at 12 in the midnight. Two damaged cars, 4 helpless souls and one opponent who is charging you with every possible crime, stares given by every soul who passes by were enuff to kill all the fun we had till then.. An hour and a half of negotiations with an adamant person who adds in weird conditions is even worse..

Whateva, all 4 of us consentingly decided to bury the incident and all the fears along. But how would I bury it without my blog knowing it??

Marketing eh??

I have asked Sups to get me an umbrella from Bangalore(dunno y i wanted if from Bangalore). She calls me in the evening to check out if I still need one and thus goes the conversation

Sups : Hey Siri.. Do you still want me to buy that umbrella?? (lots of noises in the background)
Me : Hey sups.. I wouldn't need one coz the locals say that it wouldn't rain any more in chennai..
Sups : Alright then.
Me : what u upto?? Marketing?? errr... (Instead of saying shopping)
By the time I realised the folly, disaster already stuck..
What followed - hehehehes and hahahahas for a long time...

I think am really havin nightmares now..

It’s a Mad Mad world !!!

Yes it’s a mad world out here.. Starting 7 in night and ending 8 in the morning here’s what we need to do

1. Read one marketing case and prepare for the end term of marketing management which is at 8:00 AM in the morning.
2. Understand how markets with asymmetric information work (meaning read read and read) and make a presentation for tomorrow.
3. Read a strategy case on ‘Orthoteks USA’ and make a presentation for tomorrow.
4. Read TWO cases in optimization techniques and be ready to solve them on some dumb software.. huh.. how I hate this.
5. Submit an end term report on one global topic before 5:00 PM tomoro as a part of evaluation for ‘Business government and society’

With so much on my plate, I am at my all time best. Believe me I am so glad and elated !! Buwwwaaahh !!!!

Stop the Earth.. I wana get off !!!

Life has been moving at escape velocity for sometime now. I am still trying to figure out what I have learnt and what I have not. In the mad rush of assignments, mid terms, end terms, projects etc etc I don’t think I have learnt anything in the end.. While this saddens me to some extent, there is always a silver lining. I have started liking the subject ‘Strategy’ so much that I am reading too much of it now. I am least bothered about what assignments I need to submit. I catch up with some book on strategy and enjoy away to glory.. Probably this is the only subject I liked so far and the only one am njoying reading..

Amidst all this academic chaos, E1 section has launched its T-shirt and it was so much fun… Picture Speak now

Is this what they call it these days?

Most of our revelations, realizations and enlightenment happen at the chai tapri. Oflate there’s something that made me so glad and at the same time gave me a feeling which you would understand by the time you finish reading this blog…

Scene 1 - At the tapri

KD’s wife to KD : Chalo chalo, tumhe BGS ka assignment karna hei. Kal presentation hei…
Rest of us : Eh???


Scene 2 – Again at the tapri

DB's gal : I am not getting the name of the prof who says ‘…………………………’
Me : Who the hell is this? I don’t know any such professor..
KD’s wife : Why, isn’t that Prof Nagarani, HRM systems prof?
Me : May be (totally zapped)


Scene 3 – At the tapri

Gan : Hey, you need some info on Assessment centers, wait.. My gal is working in the the HR team. We can get some info from her.
(Before even I could take stock of things, he dials in the number, starts with a kuchi ku talk and hands me over the phone. I was preparing for giving her an intro, in the meanwhile)
Me : Hello
Gan’s gal : Hey Sirisha. The list of books that you have sent across to the class is so impressive. I need to get my hands on these books sometime. I ain’t getting enough time to read oflate, you see…

Is this what they call ‘Women Empowerment these days?’