It was, kind of, a big step when I suddenly decided to drop my job and go down MBA street. Out of the blue.
Well, the ground was probably being laid down for some time, with personal and family issues, and work matters - growth, the future, etc., battling through my mind for more time than I care to remember.
It's been a good life, starting work with one of India's best known companies in Pune and then going on to work and live in New Delhi until the year 2000. Great colleagues (well, some not-so-great ones too, but we'll ignore them here), great work, good friends...getting married to my engineering school sweetheart in 1996...the birth of our lovely daughter Ayushi in September 1999...
And then, the UK assignment offered to me in the middle of 2000. Some deliberation later, we moved to the UK in September 2000, and have been here since then. This proved to be a great move, because it offered great breadth of exposure and wonderful international experience, something I would have missed out had I stayed on in India.
Arnav, born in January 2006, brought further joy. He's nearly a year and a half as I start writing this, and will probably not even miss me while I am gone (yes, Archana and the kids are staying on in Coventry, in the interest of her work with the University of Warwick, and of keeping the finances going). Ayushi, fortunately is old enough to understand the concept of going to school, though I am not sure she understands why I need to go to school at my age.
Getting back to the subject of my career, I had my mind set on an MBA this year, and to save from having to relocate (first to South Africa, then, India), I decided to resign. The timing wasn't that great, unfortunately, there being just under a year before the start of the MBA year when I took the plunge. It also took a lot of careful thought: am I too old for this now? Will I be able to cope with the hard work required, nearly 14 years after I last took any exams? Is it worth the monetary risk at this stage? Am I being too hasty in sacrificing a good job for this, many months before it all actually starts?
On the upside, the situation gave me enough time to prepare well for the GMAT, and to focus on the MBA applications process. And here I am, looking forward to going to Oxford this September, confident that this is going to be the beginning of a great future, whatever happens!
Well, the ground was probably being laid down for some time, with personal and family issues, and work matters - growth, the future, etc., battling through my mind for more time than I care to remember.
It's been a good life, starting work with one of India's best known companies in Pune and then going on to work and live in New Delhi until the year 2000. Great colleagues (well, some not-so-great ones too, but we'll ignore them here), great work, good friends...getting married to my engineering school sweetheart in 1996...the birth of our lovely daughter Ayushi in September 1999...
And then, the UK assignment offered to me in the middle of 2000. Some deliberation later, we moved to the UK in September 2000, and have been here since then. This proved to be a great move, because it offered great breadth of exposure and wonderful international experience, something I would have missed out had I stayed on in India.
Arnav, born in January 2006, brought further joy. He's nearly a year and a half as I start writing this, and will probably not even miss me while I am gone (yes, Archana and the kids are staying on in Coventry, in the interest of her work with the University of Warwick, and of keeping the finances going). Ayushi, fortunately is old enough to understand the concept of going to school, though I am not sure she understands why I need to go to school at my age.
Getting back to the subject of my career, I had my mind set on an MBA this year, and to save from having to relocate (first to South Africa, then, India), I decided to resign. The timing wasn't that great, unfortunately, there being just under a year before the start of the MBA year when I took the plunge. It also took a lot of careful thought: am I too old for this now? Will I be able to cope with the hard work required, nearly 14 years after I last took any exams? Is it worth the monetary risk at this stage? Am I being too hasty in sacrificing a good job for this, many months before it all actually starts?
On the upside, the situation gave me enough time to prepare well for the GMAT, and to focus on the MBA applications process. And here I am, looking forward to going to Oxford this September, confident that this is going to be the beginning of a great future, whatever happens!
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