If someone were to ask me to describe ISB in a sentence, I would comfortably say that ISB is about testing your readiness at every corner. But these are beautiful corners, serene corners, poetic corners and lively corners. If you like the symmetry of lines, geometric shapes that form out of these lines and how people beautifully fit in between those shapes, you’ll know something about these corners. And I will not forget them just as they won’t forget me. But it wasn’t easy to find this poetic justice. I’ve had my share of soul searching to get to this point and I’ll describe them as I see it by stepping outside the lens of bias

A year ago, I came to ISB by chance; I wasn’t ready to be here. Now, that I’ve come to understand the beauty of this beast, I’m not ready to leave, at least just not yet. So, what transpired in between? I guess, people happened; from all walks of life, tapping their toes, running their skits and dancing to their custom tunes. They walked into my life when I wasn’t ready to accept them; but they pushed me, prodded me and forced me to understand their being so I could upgrade my software; I’m just glad I didn’t have to wear tags for each version of my upgrade

Classroom happened; there were those who couldn’t sit straight for more than a minute, there were those whose chairs would literally beg them to show mercy on the springs, there were those who would boldly turn the classroom into their bedroom sans the snores and then there were those who would know which class had the highest class participation scores. But they all had character because they stood for something; something I lacked and that’s what they taught me in these eleven months. They taught me that dress codes don’t matter, Armani Acqua or Bvlgari Aqva doesn’t matter and even age doesn’t matter but smiles matter and laughter matters. So, I learned

Professors happened; I didn’t understand the statisticians one bit. They just ran too fast; that seriously dampened my hopes of studying at Wharton one day but hey, there was still Columbia and Harvard I could look up to. But then, the economists, marketers and the finance experts ensured that panic happened. I lost track of my grade point average there for a few terms until I realized that I have to bring them back up to have a realistic chance of graduating with the rest of the class. So, I learned

AA’s happened; Caught between the egos of the professors and those of the students, there were those who stood firm and then there were those who got caught in the cross fire. In between grading papers, quizzes and class participation scores and responding to spasmodic queries, they too gathered their souls together to become friends. So, I learned

Emails happened; Spams aside, creativity happened. There were those who sent emails like studs and then there were those like me who joined the other side of studs. You see, I thought I was here for a purpose and that purpose turned sour gradually. But I found the greatest gift at the end of it all. So, I learned

Sarovar & Jujus happened; there were a few stimulating conversations interspersed with many moments of solitude. These moments of silence were filled with a million seconds worth of music. If you’ve known the difference between listening to music and feeling music, you’ll know what I mean. In between these conversations and music, I found my broken voice repair itself. So, I learned

Events happened; from a distance, I watched the students dazzle the stage. It takes a certain degree of confidence to be comfortable in your skin to reveal yourself to the world that way. For someone who loses sight of the way he feels with each fleeting moment, finding confidence in my own skin has always been a challenging ask but watching this enterprising bunch of entertainers gave me hope. So, I learned

And then recruitments happened; it came like the death trap with the noose tightening ever so slowly. With every passing day, the joy and glow made way to fear and despondency. Some owned it like they belonged, some faked that they belonged and made it nevertheless and there were others like me who were in no man’s land. Age can do that to you at ISB especially if you’ve crossed thirty. Hell, I’ve hit forty. So, I learned

When I believed that I’d learned everything I came here to learn, miraculously love happened. I was so sure I wasn’t here to find love but sometimes love doesn’t come with choices. Life forces you into that state without your knowledge and then one day the feeling reveals itself. I fell for the gentleness of her heart, I fell for the effervescence of her thought, I fell for the mystery of her smile, I fell for the gaiety of her laugh and I fell for the purity of her soul. So, I learned

With each passing day, a part of me is being left behind. I’m happy that I don’t need that part of me anymore. I’ve learned to smile and laugh despite the mundane worries that beset me and I can only thank my good fortune that people at ISB happened