MIT Sloan

Alright. So I am pretty good with seeing patterns in life! I have been accepted into the Sloan MBA program and intend to take that up.  The director of admissions called me yesterday and let me know. It was really neat. For once I cant think of any way to express beautifully in words what it means to be offered admission at Sloan. Many people asked me how I feel about it. How does it feel to have been offered admission to one of the top 5 MBA programs in the world?

Pretty normal actually. The feeling is not one of effervescent joy. Nor is it pride. If I have to pick an emotion, I would pick gratitude.  When I look at my life over the last 10 years I am amazed. I remember my English teacher at school writing on my answer sheet. “This boy has absolutely no imagination. It seems he cant think beyond a few lines for an essay.” I remember my Geography and History teachers telling my mother. “I pray that he takes his exam seriously, otherwise most probably he will fail the board exams.” I remember my physics teacher saying that “It seems that he has some sort of mental block”. I remember some members of my family telling my mother to take me out of school to an easier syllabus because I might not be smart enough for the ICSE standard in India.

I am grateful to my mother for never giving up hope in her son. I am grateful for her teaching me to spell. Trying to hammer into my thick skull the difference between “weather “and “whether”. I am grateful for her constant encouragement, her incredible belief that somehow at some point I will get serious about life and studies. Above all I am grateful for her being there when I lost hope.

I am grateful to my brother for thinking that his brother can accomplish whatever task he set out for himself. When someone as successful and talented as he thinks highly of you, you really start setting high goals for yourself.

I am grateful to my grandmothers for their prayer. I don’t understand  how the metaphysical world works. But there is something beyond what I can comprehend. Some strange and mysterious force whose power can be harnessed through prayer.

I am grateful to my family and friends for being there for me when I needed them the most. A kind word, a bed to sleep on, some food. At times some of my desires were very basic.

I am grateful to my mentors, professors, (ex)bosses and coworkers. I would never have had the opportunities I had, if they hadn’t prodded me in the right direction, written a letter of recommendation, answered a phone call.

I am grateful to my ancestors who lend me their genes and gave me a healthy mind and body. We stand on the shoulders of giants.

Finally, above all I am grateful to my father who, both while he walked among us and later, watches over me, introduces me to incredible people and finds me fantastic opportunities in life.