Revelations from the Tapasya of PGSEM

Choosing PGSEM
Almost three years ago, I was writing the CAT, and was one of the thousands of IIM aspirants. The motive was clearly to be in one of the IIMs, not because I wanted to be Mr. Moneybags, but because only the best can get in. I aspired to walk into one of the temples of knowledge as a student and change the course of my life.

I obtained a CAT score of 97.08 percentile, which was good but not good enough to get me a PGP seat. Having been married by then, I assumed it was God's way of helping me choose my path. PGSEM stood out as the best option given my financial condition, family life and that score in CAT. I applied for PGSEM and got admitted to the course.

The Journey
I began the course in June 2007 and finished it in September 2009, in two years and a quarter. Different aspects of this journey are narrated below and I know for sure that many fellow PGSEMers have a similar story to tell.

Support at the workplace
Let's first focus on what's happened in my life during this period. After joining PGSEM, for stability's sake, I decided not to change my job till this course was done. SAP Labs management provided the support by accepting that I won't come to office in the morning on Fridays. However, the management found added the following riders to their acceptance.

1. I have to work for four hours extra every week to make up for the Friday morning session
2. If there was a conflict in work and studies, I must promise to always choose work

At SAP Labs, we have a flexi-timings by policy. This means that even without having a pressing issue at hand, many employees come late to office and continue to work late, if needed. Therefore, my absence on Friday mornings was not an issue at all, and it was rarely noticed during the course. Today, I just wonder why my bosses had to reiterate the two points mentioned above.

Unfortunately, however, I had the toughest projects of my career while pursuing PGSEM. Therefore, I ended up working for about 60 to 72 hours every week on my projects. Needless to say, apart from the class hours, I never gave more than 14 to 15 hours a week on my PGSEM studies. In some quarters, this was as low as 4 to 5 hours, too.

Support from wife
My wife had a long standing desire that whenever our first baby comes, it should be in our own home and strictly not in a rented accomodation. By mid 2008, we had completed three years of marriage and we decided to extend the family. Naturally, the first step towards this was to buy an apartment. I spent several Sundays, the only days of the weekend, trying to identify a property and location that my wife would like. Satisfying a woman is always a daunting task.

After two months, I had shortlisted some apartments and took my wife for a visit. However, she didn't like any of these. I had to stretch my budget and then after a few more quicker iterations of a week each, we finally settled on a 3 BHK apartment on Hosur Road. Meanwhile, my wife was also expecting and I had to add several trips to the hospital and some trips to the apartment site to my already busy agenda.

However, the understanding that Annie showed during this period was exemplary and made me look very small at times. She went to visit the gynaecologist alone on some occasions because I didn'thave the time. Moreover, she handled calls and enquiries from the loan agent, carpenter, builder, etc. because I wasn't receiving the calls on Saturdays. Of course, I was in the classroom and couldn't receive those calls. You definitely need such an extremely understanding wife in order to do PGSEM.

Reflections
By November 2008, we had moved to our new home and on 27th April 2009, Akshaya was born. My grades in PGSEM suffered a little because of this jugglery, but I maintained the minimum grade of 2.75 that was required for me to take 4 electives every quarter and continued to slog through PGSEM as well. To be honest, I think all the four spheres (House Construction, Family Extension, Office Work, and PGSEM) suffered because of the other three. However, I'd discuss only PGSEM here. Personally, I feel that I did not do full justice to the courses I took at PGSEM because of all the pressures. Having said this, on the other hand, I'd also say that whatever learning I've gained has helped me in different ways. I'm listing below the top 10 benefits I've gained.

1. My ability to withstand pressure has increased manifold.
2. I've been able to filter out unimportant activities from my life
3. I've tremendously increased my ability to read quickly and understand
4. I'm more confident of handling unseen problems in life
5. My understanding of economics, finance, marketing etc has improved a lot
6. My social standing has got a fillip; people take my opinions more seriously
7. My wife has already seen my worst negligence towards her, so is happier with the change in me after the PGSEM got over
8. After PGSEM, I feel that I have a lot of time for everything that I want to do
9. I've become more interested in reading books and am building more knowledge every day, even after PGSEM
10. I've gained courage to speak to anybody, anywhere

I haven't listed a prized position or a huge pay packet in the list of benefits. However, in my humble opinion, the journey has been beneficial. Because of the changes listed above, I believe, I shall be able to achieve better (more satisfying) jobs and also better pay packets, sooner or later. As some fellow PGSEMers say 'It takes years for one to understand the benefits of PGSEM'. I've already been able to list some and I know for sure that there are many more which are in my blind spot. Maybe, I'll unravel many more as a walk my journey of life. Whatever be it, the course of my life has been changed by PGSEM, forever.