First rough draft

Before i share my progress i want to share the Sad news!!! CK Prahlad renowned management guru passed away. Indeed sad!! CK was known for his theory - "fortune at bottom of pyramid", applicable in many emerging economies. Also, CK was esteemed faculty member of University of Michigan {Ross B-school}.
May he RIP.

Coming on to the next update -- wrote first rough draft of Career progression and why MBA essay. Must say it looked horrible. Way off the word limits, hardly giving the personal touch and mostly bragging about things that i had already mentioned in my resume.

Its very imp. that an applicant does not repeat the same things as mentioned in his/her resume. Resume mostly reflects "WHAT" part of your story. i.e What an applicant has accomplished. Every school asks for a copy of resume along with the essays. So, ad-com members would be aware of "WHAT" part of the story. I believe that through essays ad-com members are more interested in knowing the real person behind those accomplishments. Essays should answer "WHY" part of the story. i.e Why you made certain choices, why you were able to achieve certain things {as mentioned in your resume} and obviously why an MBA makes sense for you?

After writing the first draft i have decided to think hard about -- "Where i am coming from?", " Why i made certain choices in life and what i learnt from those experiences", " Where do i see myself 5 years, 10yrs from now and what's the motivation behind that.". I guess if i will answer these questions then i will be better able to answer Why MBA in the stipulated word limit.

Also don't forget to be specific in your essays. I think once we have enough degree of specificity in essays we won't have to worry about being unique ;)

Nominated -- Clear Admit Best of Blogging{BoB}

Come 2nd friday of April and clear admit announces nominations for best of blogging in the MBA blogosphere. I feel privileged because my blog has been nominated along side some of the very best blogs for this years BoB. There are 2 categories -- MBA applicants and MBA students { i wish next year i make a switch from applicant category to student category }

You can find the complete list of nominees at : BoB Nominations 2009-2010 . Next comes the voting phase where the nominated bloggers, celebrity judges and Clear admit staff will cast vote. 50% consideration is given to blogger votes and 25% each to celebrity judges and clear admit staff votes. Ballots are due on April 30 and rankings would be revealed on May 4th. There are lots of prizes to be won.

Clear Admit's blog has huge repertoire of information when it comes to GMAT prep, Applications, school selection etc. Kudos to Clear Admit and all the bloggers who have added value in MBA blogosphere.

I wish all the fellow bloggers lots of luck. {Free drinks for those who vote for me ;) }

Beat the GMAT Scholarship!!

Just wanted to draw the attention of fellow bloggers to the Beat the GMAT scholarship. There are 6 scholarships valued at approx $8, 500. The winner will get a GMAT prep course with one of the leading prep companies.

All one is required to do is to register himself/herself at BTG site and write few essays. The good thing about participating in this competition is that you get to think hard about why MBA?, why GMAT? etc. Also one of the question forces you to think hard about your story. How your story is different from others and how you are more deserving than others. Writing these essays will already propel you into the next orbit of your journey to a top b-school.

The essay questions are available here: BTG scholarship Essays, Deadline is May-20-2010. Winners will be announced within 10 days of the essay submission deadline. One can redeem the prize by as late as June-2011.

Prospective GMAT takers don't miss out on this opportunity.

INSEAD vs US b-schools

Yesterday Miss "S" threw some questions at me, forcing me to think hard. Though i could answer most of them but found myself struggling while answering others.

Miss S:  why Kellogg or Booth and why not INSEAD? Your ultimate goal is to move to strategy and INSEAD does as well as top US schools when it comes to placing students in strategy.

Me:  i want to do an immersive program and a 10 month program is too short to even fully live the MBA experience.

Miss S: But consider the ROI. INSEAD offers highest ROI. You have to forego only 1 year salary and the total amount spent on tuition and living is also less in case of 1 year prog.

Me: Agreed!

Miss S: Forbes 2009 ranking. Have you seen them?

Me: Yes..Salary for INSEAD class of 2004 in 2008 was $218, 000 and for Kellogg it was $165, 000. INSEAD students take 2.5 years on average to repay their education loan while Kellogg students take 4.4 years.

Miss S: that's a big difference..

Miss S: So why not INSEAD? It s going to offer you greater diversity, access to same set of recruiters, it has campuses in multiple locations. I assume INSEAD would offer you similar courses and would have great faculty too.

Me: That's true but INSEAD is too big. 900 {is it 900 or 1800? 900*2} students passing out every year. Thats like a factory output

Miss S: rubbish!! Ultimately they are going to divide you in sections and that's what will matter to you. Is the batch size any how going to affect your learning?? And INSEAD is a great school {top 5 in every ranking}, so having a large alum network is a plus.

Me: that's right!! But INSEAD is skewed towards consulting. What if i change my mind during MBA?

Miss S: Have a better look at their employment report. You will get the answer.

Me: But INSEAD is not that well known outside Europe.

Miss S: People who are going to recruit you and people who are going to work with you will know about INSEAD. How does it matter whether your friend from high school or girl next door doesn't know about INSEAD.

Me: Thats right too!!!

Miss S: see, if you can get into INSEAD you will do as well as you will in case you go to any other top US b school. But you will repay your loan faster and can start enjoying sooner.

Me: I will definitely discuss this with my fellow bloggers and gain some insight ... you have confused me :'(

I know Kellogg students take more time than those at INSEAD to repay their education loans. But i would like to carry Kellogg/Wharton badge for the rest of my life. Maybe because my parents, my friends hold these brands in high esteem {And i don't know how good is this reason for choosing a particular school.}. I think all of us have unconcious fascination towards some particular schools. I never feel anything about Stanford or Berkeley or SLoan but the mention of K/W/Booth/Ross/LBS etc sets my pulse racing.

But the 2008 salary for class of 2004 is a big differentiator, K students earning $165, 000 and INSEAD students earning $ 218, 000. Money matters after all :) .... I have still not fully accepted the idea of applying to INSEAD but i will surely explore this great school before i take any decision.

Why MBA ..Which School...Why Now??

As i move ahead towards my MBA dream, i am forced to think hard about the following questions:

1. Why MBA?? -- In my previous post Why MBA? I had mentioned few reasons that motivate me to pursure an MBA. But specifically linking an MBA program to my career goals is a bit tough job. For this reason its an absolute must to be crystal clear about your short term and long term career goals. Once you have done so get in touch with student ambassadors or b-school students {who have similar career aspirations as you do} to understand how an MBA has helped them in realizing their goals. I have found a very interesting pattern in that a lot of people do not stick to the same career goals that they mentioned in their essays. Thats fine also, pursuing an MBA will expose one to various career streams and being flexible is a good option. My why MBA story to get into a b-school can be very different from my Why MBA once i pass out of the school.
An MBA can help you mingle with people from your target industry, can give you a platform to interact with recruiters of your choice {Mckinsey, BCG, Bain don't recruit everywhere..}. You can develop certain traits that your future job might require. Also being an engineer i can never expect to learn economics, accounting or marketing in my job so an MBA can help me in getting a hang of these subjects.


Which b- school?? --No matter which school i try to explore i find the same courses offered in the "CORE" and almost similar sounding "Electives" {Barring few}. Every school boasts of a great faculty and pioneering research. Every school offers almost similar clubs such as conculting, marketing, I-banking etc. and every school talks about developing leaders.

Then there are few differences too -- Harvard and Darden - case centric...Kellogg, Ross -- great for marketing and team work is very imp. ... Wharton - -emphasizes a lot on innovation...Then there are schools with small class size {300-400/ batch} and then there's H/W {800-900/batch}. Also US and european MBA's differ in many other aspects too. {I am not getting into details of european vs US schools as i am focussing on US b-school only for some reasons.}. Location of a school is another imp. factor..Cornell, Tuck and Ross are at an disadvantage when compared to Columbia, Kellogg, Wharton, Harvard etc. Sloan and Haas are tech centric..Chicago lets you choose all your courses except one right from 1st year.

Why Now?? -- .. Need help !!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

WWW - Weekend Without Wallet

Friday - Mar-19-2010

I went to a mall on Friday and realized that i was not carrying my wallet. Thank goodness i realized my stupidity well before parking my car in the mall's basement parking. It was not a good idea to go back and get my wallet from the flat as it would have taken me a lot of time in doing so. I decided to park my car in a housing society near the mall. I told the security at the gate that i was there to meet a friend and parked my car at the visitor's parking {saved cool 50 bucks}. Post parking my car i walked down to the mall .

Walking down to the mall made me sweat and i really wanted to wash my face. I saw "The Body Shop" showroom right across me, i entered the showroom and pretended as if i was seriously thinking to buy something. I picked up a "face-wash" tester and i used it in mall's wash room. To moisturize my face post this cleaning i again used another tester at "The Body Shop".

I really liked this idea of testing the stuff before you purchase it. Baskin Robbins was my next target. Tasted choco chip, coffee, black currant, nutty buddy and black forest ice creams then made a face as if none of the flavour tasted good. Applied Bvlgari perfume from a tester at the "Shoper's stop". Must say that Bvlgari is good.

Crosswords provided me another opportunity to read a book at no cost and sip free coffe from a nescafe dispenser. Read "Dhirubhai ambani's biography" {nearly 90 pages} from the book Business Maharajas. It was an amazing story and a must read for anybody who is serious about entreprenuership.

I had spent cool 4 hours at the mall and then decided to head back to home.

Introspection -- Essays

The most important stage during MBA application process is of "INTROSPECTION". One has to be crystal clear about the reasons for pursuing an MBA and reasons for choosing a school. 2 years and $150k would mean a lot to lot of people. I have started giving a thought to essays and bumped across the following piece of advise that i found worth sharing with all the fellow applicants:

{Its important that one gives a due thought to each of the following questions.}

1. Are you a leader in a true sense? A lot of aspirants limit leadership around their team leading experience. Even though it is true to some extent, it hovers around a lot of other areas in your candidature. What is it that makes you a leader in life?

2. Did you ever take an initiative and exceeded expectations of the people around you ? What led you to take that initiative? How did you chart your strategy, and involve your peers in realizing the overall goal for the benefit of the organization or body you have been or were related to?

3. All of us face resistances and friction when we implement ideas? How well do you understand this, and what do you do to perform in the wake of resistance from people who are either associated with or affected by your ideas?

4. Have you managed a group of people? Did you make them realize their full potential?

5. All of us follow prototypes in our day to day lives. Have you ever thought outside the boundaries and worked as a designer who thinks creatively?

6. Are you keen on contributing to the lives of others?
You are a sharp and a dedicated individual at work. However, it takes a while in getting people around you used to your ideas and style of working. How well can you communicate with professionals working with you, and make them understand your goals for the organization?

Ross -- Amazing website

For long, i was trying hard to research some of my prospective schools. But i was finding it really hard to explore the schools. Sitting in India, thousands of miles away from schools, i found myself ill-equipped to research the schools. What a fool i was!!  If you have access to internet and a burning desire to explore then you have got everything that you need to find out more about your dream schools.

Let me come back to the school in question - "Ross". Ross has structured its website in an excellent manner. All the information that an aspiring MBA can vouch for is present in a user friendly layout. Even if you have very vague idea about your future career prospects, Ross can help you give a better insight into various career streams. You will have a sound knowledge of curriculum that you will have to take in order to pursue a particular career option. Then you can explore the faculty for each of the subject that you want to opt for.

The detailed employment statistics for past many years speak very highly of Ross. Over 70 student clubs and organizations are there to cater to your interest.

How to structure your career search is another question that Ross' website answers beautifully. The website also gives an amazing insight into the core curriculum and relevance of various elective courses. MAP is highlighted in a big manner on Ross' website. Multidisciplinary Application Program {i hope i have put it down correctly} caught my eye and the experiential learning experience that MAP would provide to any MBA student is awesome.

Also, what all the candidate should highlight in his/her application is also mentioned briefly on the website. Ross is very similar to Kellogg in that it has a very good Marketing and consulting placement. Ross offers a good General Management MBA option and is big time on my radar now.

I don't think that my small haphazard article has done justice to the topic of this post but i would suggest all my fellow bloggers to experience the Ross website themselves -- ITS AMAZING!!!

Fellow Illuminati in at ISB and interviewed by Booth!!!

Awesome!!! That's how i will describe the last week....

1. I went to Goa with Miss S and few friends...that was one great trip. Biking..Beaches...water sports..Dolphins...Sun bath..Trance Parties...and *censored censored* ;)

I think life is good when you are with your loved ones and friends...and one enjoy the life to the fullest whenever possible...

2. Fellow Illuminati gets an admit from ISB and gets interviewed by Booth Alum -- one of my dearest friends and co-founder of NGO "Illuminati" got an admit into ISB Hyderabad {his dream school} and got interviewed by a Booth Alum. i hope he cracks into Booth too. {I will share his interview experiences soon with all my fellow bloggers}

3. Got my bonus -- {That was peanuts...nothing to be happy about ..but still i got some money to spend in Goa :) }

4. Happy Holi to all the bloggers may this holi bring brightest colors to your lives....
played holi with my friends and had a jolly good time....


Happy holi once again....

SC Notes - 2

In continuation of my previous post:

19. you don’t pay in a job but you pay for a job – OG10-109


20. In English it is idiomatic usage to credit someone with having done something.- OG10-111

21. the correct idiom is better served by x than by y

22. after when is unidiomatic: one word or the other can be used to establish temporal sequence, but not both together. OG10 -124

23. you can't 'demand X to do Y'. – UNIDIOMATIC (subjunctive) {Demand that x do y}

24. it's wrong to say 'preferred X over Y'. the correct idiom is 'prefer X to Y'. take note.

25. the idiom to mistake x for y.

26. Considered as is unidiomatic but Regard as is idiomatic

27. GREATER THAN VS MORE THAN in formal written english, if you are talking about an increase in a single statistic, you use GREATER. if you are counting things, and NOT referring to 'the number' or 'the population' or any other single statistic, you use MORE
the population of filipinos is greater than it was 10 years ago

there are more filipinos than there were 10 years ago

28. the sentence form X is why is unidiomatic (X is the reason why would be idiomatic og10-177

29. 1) idiom : support from vs. support of
support from : is used when you get support from something(someone)
support of : is used to express that you support something
ex) I rallied to the support of my country.

30. because is better than since when explanation of a cause is given.

Idioms/ SC - Notes

Found one document where i had jotted down some of the idioms/notes:

1. the idiom is "believe x to be y." – og 10- q 9


2. the infinitive to be is more appropriate than the limited present-tense is in referring to an event that occurred long ago but has been recently discovered – og 10-q9

3. rates of is incorrect; when rates means "prices charged," it should be followed by for. – OG 10-Q13

4. estimated to be is correct – og 10-q14 –estimated at is unidiomatic

5. the idiomatically correct expression distinguishes between x and y – og 10 –q15

6. the phrases on account of and because of are unidiomatic; because can independently introduce a complete subordinate clause

7. idiomatic expression worried about rather than worried over -- worried about is preferable when describing a condition rather than an action. – OG 10-42

8. none the less ... than in D and no less... as in E are unidiomatic; the correct form of expression, no less ... than, -- OG 10-30

9. the same to X as to Y. – OG 10-54 --- UNIDIOMATIC FORM - the same to X just as [it would] to

10. The phrase have a danger is unidiomatic – OG 10- 63

11. because an adverb such as twice cannot function as an object of the preposition by. – OG 10-72

12. seem is Followed by an infinitive (to indicate), - OG 10-95

13. : x forbids y to do z or x prohibits y from doing z

14. Use "a native of" when you're talking about where a person was born, for example: I am a native of Detroit.
Use "native to" when you're talking about a category, characteristic, or species, for example: Tigers are native to India.

15. Rather than vs Instead of
Rather than shows a judgment. One choice is preferred over the other. It is better somehow.
instead of merely expresses a replacement of one thing for another.
I would rather have ice cream than apple pie because I like ice cream better.
But if there weren't very much ice cream left, and I wanted to save some for tomorrow, I might have apple pie instead of ice cream tonight.

More to follow....

God..Friends and Me

For long i have been contemplating about my relation with few so called "Friends" and with "God". How come i mixed up the topic of friendship and god is a topic of contention.

I have seen my faith in god taking various shades and so has been my relationship with my friends.

As a kid, i was made to believe that god is a supreme power and looks para-normal. God would punish me if i committed a sin and would reward me for my good work. This thought didn't last long and i started believing that irrespective of our actions god loves us. He is magnanimous and forgiving. But once i started facing the real world and faced the real challengesi had to believe that we do get punishment sooner or later.
Slowly and steadily i started thinking of god as one who is similar to me. I still adhere to this thought pattern.

Now, i would slightly change the topic to friendship.A lot of time we we mistake our acquaintance or our peers for our friends. Its not hard to feel frustrated when these people don't live upto your expectations.

Most of you might have guessed that i am trying to vent out my anger for someone. I am not a kind of person who can go out and bash up people. I really cannot do that even if i want to { i have done that in the past but with time i have mellowed down}, so letting out the steam here on my blog.

I really get bogged down when my so called "friends" call me up only to seek some help. It is not that i don't want to help but i feel that this relation can't be friendship. These people would never call me to ask "how am i doing", or they won't hang out with me. I have enough friends to hang out with and it could be that my so called "Friends" might not find me interesting enough but they won't respond when i try to get in touch with them. Now, this is something that i don't like. If i am there for you my friend then you ought to respond when i need you.
So, what do i do..i call it quits. Its good to be a little selfish. As i am done with the post mortem of my failed friendships, i realize that my relation with "God" is going in the very same direction.

I pray to god but i am always asking for one thing or the other. I am a thankless fellow, as soon as i get what i want i hardly give a party to god. I am not responding to his calls.

This sucks!!! and No doubt as i am moving away from my so called "friends", god would have by now...moved away from me...

Many might argue that god is too magnanimous to behave like that. But for me, my god behaves in a similar manner as i do.

Today, when i look back. The life seems good. All the troubles that bogged me once seem trivial. I am glad that i am alive but i am sad that i never thanked god.

God..i love you...i do..i want to give you a hug and say thank for all that you have done for me. I will keep on bothering you with my silly thoughts but from now on i will try and meet you often..i will try to talk to you often...i will try not only to talk but also to listen to you.

My Name Is Khan - Movie Review

What has happened to you mr. Wallace? Off late you are reading books, watching movies and are not bothered at all about MBA apps.

Well, i didn't apply this year and 2010 deadlines are far away. I am doing the basic ground work but just want to ensure that before i start the battle i am fresh. So, i am doing what i feel like doing. ;)

My Name is Khan -- MNIK

The Plot: The movie has a very weak plot, as is the case with most of Karan Johar films. The plot revolves around the repurcussions of 9/11 attack on US and how this attack affected the lives of common people. Director has focussed on a man named "Rizwan Khan" who suffers from Asperagus syndrome. Rizwan is played by Shahrukh and if for a moment i get unbiased i will say Shahrukh has done a decent job {3/5} though i find his acting monotonous. {If i get biased i would say like all other Shahrukh movies MNIK sucks {1/5} and i wanted to leave the hall after interval but after all i had paid for the ticket and i have all the time in the world.}

Rizwan is shown as a super talented person who knows everything about the universe. You name it and Rizwan has the answer but he doesn't know a shit about Al Qaeda. Anyways, why Shahrukh worked as a salesman when he could give any scientist or an engineer a run for his money was something that i could not understand.

And why in the hell hero always finds his dream girl always available is another thing that i could not understand. But this is peculiar to Karan Johar genre of movies.

I liked 2 songs "Tere Naina" and "tera sajda" apart fom these two songs music was below average.

Coming back to the plot, the hatred towards Muslims in after math of 9/11 attacks turned Rizwan's life upside down, his love {Played by Kajol -- who hardly had a meaty role} asks him to say something to President of USA. and our Hero sets out on a mission to follow mr. President {i didn't know that travel itenary of US president is out there on google.}.

After some struggle our hero becomes super-hero as he saves town of Georgia from a hurricane {wish we had more Rizwans and govt. wouldn't have to care about natural calamities}. Finally the US president wants to meet mr. Khan and amidst all the melodrama Rizwan khan meets the low cost duplicate of Mr. Obama.

Like all other Karan Johar movies the movie had a happy ending.

A lot of incidences were picked up from Forest Gump but overall the movie didn't have a gripping plot.

Acting: its an out and out Shahrukh Khan movie. Kajol , Vinay Pathak and others are wasted. SRK is ok and is not much different from his other films.

All in all if you are Shahrukh Khan fan then go for the movie else you might repent spending money on the ticket.

its 1.5/5 if u re not SRK/Kajol fan but if you are then its 3.5/5.

Chicago Booth Alum -answers some of my queries

I had written a post earlier that Chicago Booth is one of the best schools with one of the best faculty. But after my interaction with a guy i decided not to apply to Booth. Somehow, i stumbled upon 2 alums of Booth and my view completely changed.

I had imagined Booth students to be ultra-competitive and non co-operative. I would say never make an impression about a school basis your conversation with a single student. Explore many forums and then decide.

Here's an excerpt of my conversation with a super cool Booth alum:

Q: how are the students at GSB? are they ultra competitive or
collaborative? I would prefer a school with a strong inclination
towards team work {That's why Kellogg is my fav}.

before i answer your questions, please remember that this is just my opinion, and i very well might be wrong. and not everything i will say will work for you because i write from my perspective and our profiles (and timing of application) were very different. now to your questions.

i dont think gsb students are ultra competitive. i dont think we are overly friendly as well. the fact that we are more of a commuter school i.e. people travel from various parts of the city and not evryone lives in a close vicinity means that you can never get a experience which a school like darden or tuck might offer. but if you live in a popular neighborhood, there are enough people around to coordinate with, and have beer with. and although we arent necessarily always mushy about our teamwork, there is a lot of teamwork in the school. people collaborate for not just school work, but for competitions and a lot of businesses get started with a collaboration of students who had never met before school. i think that is testament enough that we like to work with other smart people. that doesnt mean that you will gel with everyone, simply because a big school like gsb attracts all kinds of personalities. but there are a lot of people whom you will like and enjoy being around. i found my classmates to be fun, smart, having a point of view, and relatively easy to work with and be around.

*QUES: Will Job switches go against me??* {I have 3 in 5 years}

i dont think 3 job switches is a big worry. you should explain why you made the switch in your career goals essay. it will help the adcom understand that your career moves are well thought after, and not just because you wanted more money (honestly there's nothing wrong in that, but i dont think it sells in a bschool essay).

*QUES: Does Booth promote entrepreneurial spirit? or can you suggest any
other b-school? Its really hard to explore b-schools sitting in India.
I am trying to explore websites and call students but till now I have
only been able to hear back from few students.

gsb is big on entrepreneurship these days, and i think that has been the case for quite some time. you should explore the course offerings, and what's going on in the polsky center. also get in touch with the co-chairs of the EVP club
(http://student.chicagobooth.edu/group/evc/index.htm) - i think it is one of the most popular clubs on campus, is high profile as well because some star professors are involved, and a lot of money is also being pushed into the group and students who want to start ventures. the new venture challenge is a big attraction on campus every year.

*QUES How would you describe your experience at Booth? Given a chance to
go back in time would you again choose Booth or will you prefer some
other college??

my experience was very nice and i think i will suggest gsb to many, although not everyone. the school has its own personality and you have to gel with that. and since i have not seen another school i cant really answer if i will go to a different school if i have to redo my experience. i believe gsb was fun, intellectually stimulating and energetic - all of which i wanted in a school. there are only 2 things which i would have liked to be different - a little less focus on finance and econ (and that is already happeneing with many new things coming up in other departments, but chicago still remains a finance&econ powerhouse, that is our strength and i wont want to change that necessarily). secondly, our alumni network in india isnt as high profile yet, but that's because chicago didnt focus on admitting indian students around 20 years back. this has progressively changed quite a bit, and i forsee our brand name in india to be better each year. overall, i think gsb is a great school, and depending on how you shape your experience there you can achieve anything - it's actually a lot up to the student.

2 States - Book review

Read Chetan Bhagat's latest novel "2 states". After i finished the book i had just one question in my mind: "Mr. Bhagat, you started your writing career brilliantly. Why are you writing just for the sake of writing?"

2 states is spun around the same old issue of inter caste marriage. Its like eating the same old butter chicken but with a different garnishing. Mr. Bhagat says that he wants to send a message across by means of his book. Except for a little flavour of that message the book failed to evoke any emotion towards the message that the author wanted to convey.

The book lacks the plot, Narrative is brilliant towards the begining but is mere average towards the end. The narrative of the book till page no. 154 is ultimate, i felt like kissing the hand that wrote such a hilarious narrative. But post page 154, the book was pathetic. I found it hard to put the book down once i started but after page 154 i had lost interest in the book.

One can read the book if he/she is a die hard Chetan Bhagat fan otherwise go and watch "Ek Duje Ke Liye", its far far far better. 2 states does not seem to be the product of mind that crafted " 5 point someone".

Chicago Booth Faculty -- Lecture -- Financial Crisis

On Friday {Jan-15} i had the opportunity to attend a lecture by Raghuram Rajan. Raghuram Rajan is the Eric J. Gleacher Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business.

Dr. Rajan is also currently an economic advisor to the Prime Minister of India. Prior to resuming teaching in 2007, Dr. Rajan was the Economic Counselor and Director of Research (in plain English, the Chief Economist) at the International Monetary Fund (from 2003).

There were some 32 Booth alums also present. Raghu spoke on "The Financial Crisis and Beyond : Challenges for India and the Global Economy."

Unlike other people Raghu was not blaming Sub-prime alone for the Financial Tsunami that de-railed the global economy in 2008. Raghu shared other factors such as "US Educational System", "Export oriented economies such as Germany, Japan, China", "Compensation system of big banks", "Competition among CEOs" etc.

According to Raghu the rising gap between income levels of High school pass outs and that of people with higher degrees forced the US govt. to frame certain policies that led to this Financial crisis. There was an oversupply of people who were high school pass outs and this oversupply led to a net reduction in their remuneration. While, people with degrees such as M.S and M.B.A saw their salaries rise by approx 25%. Moreover, there is a continued under-supply of people with higher degrees in US and this is creating a greater than ever rift between the earnings of two income groups.

The problem started way back in 1991 when un-employment rate rose above 10% in US and George Bush Sr. lost the election. The congress forced Fed to cut the rates so that economy could be revived. Congress believed that reducing the fed rates would have a positive effect on the economy and the businesses. As the surplus liquidity would increase the spending power of lower income groups.

In effect the reduced interest rates forced people and businesses to take risk and invest the money in instruments that were traditionally considered risky. Also Mortgage backed securities were developed by leading US i-banks such as Merril, Bear Stern, Lehman etc. In nutshell, the reduction in interest rates provided liquidity to people who in turn invested this money in products such as CDS, MBS etc {Collaterialised debt securities, Mortgage Backed securities}.

To add to the woes the compensation system allowed the traders to take bigger and bigger risks. For, there were big rewards if a trader made money but no penalties if a trader incurred loss. Raghu proposed that the compensation system needs to be altered to bring the sanity back to the market.

Raghu was particularly critical of Bear stern, Lehman and Citi group for placing big bets in 1990s. The bets placed in 1990s paid off but laid the foundation for future problems. By 2007 things got out of control and BS, Lehman and Citi were the biggest losers. Also, Raghu pointed to the competition between CEOs of big i-banks. He was critical of John Thain because Raghu believed that John conciously or unconciously competed with CEO of Goldman Sachs over the compensation. John matched his and his traders compensation with that of traders at Goldman but failed to produce the profits equal to Goldman.

Finally, Raghu drew the attention of audience towards the export oriented economies such as Japan, Germany and China. These economies were highly dependent on US for their own well being. When US sneezed these economies caught cold. This over dependence of three big exporters led to the collapse of global economy. The consumption in US suffered and led to problems for Japan, Germany and China.

Raghu was also critical of China throwing jabs at US. He believes that US engagement in wars was preventing US from acting sternly against China. If US simply imposes an import tarrif on Chinese goods, the Chinese economy would be in trouble.

Post the lecture there was a brief QnA session followed by the networking reception.

Statistics -- GMAT

I guess all of you must be familiar with the formulae of Mean, Median and Standard Deviation {S.D} ... even if you are not its fine!! Good news is that GMAT does not test your knowledge of formulae involved..Statistics questions do pop up in the exam and following tips might come handy:

1. Standard Deviation gives the dispersion or spread of the data around its mean
* simply means that if standard deviation is large data is spread over a greater range around mean...or a lot of  the data points are not close to the mean value

2. Adding or Subtracting a constant value from each term in the set has NO EFFECT ON SD

3. If each term in the set is multiplied by a number > 1 then SD increases

4. If each term in the set is multiplied by a number < 1 then SD decreases

5. If each term divided by a number > 1 then SD decreases

6. If each term divided by a number > 0 but number < 1 then SD increases .
let us say we divide each term by number 'n' , 0 < n < 1 then SD increases

7. Changing the sign of all terms in set has no bearing on SD..

8. If you are given multiple sets of numbers and you have to find out the set with largest and smallest SD just look at the set where the difference between the terms is greatest and the set where the difference between the terms is smallest respectively..

{ i hope the wording is not confusing, i know it sucks brevity per se :) }

Romeo - Juliet by Braveheart

Written for someone special, who has already got the flower and read this post :)

Many things happen in our life “by chance” and few “by choice”,
We had met “by chance” and are still together “by choice”,

“By chance” I got this flower for you and as I kept it on my Car’s dashboard

I noticed dew drops on its petals,
“By chance” I heard a sigh, it was this flower who was crying,
“By chance” he started talking and told me that you are looking at my tears and not the dew drops,
“By chance” I had mistaken tears for dew drops,

The story that I am sharing with you is “by chance” Romeo’s story,
“By chance” the flower that you are holding is “Romeo”, { i gave her  the flower }

“By chance” Romeo spoke to me and “By choice” shared his story
Romeo was a seed few months ago and so was Juliet,
Both were colorless, without any fragrance and had no feelings
“By chance” a gardener sowed both of them next to each other.
“By chance” both of them got Sunshine, Rain and Mother Earth’s Lap

“By choice” both decided to Blossom,
“By chance” both blossomed
“By chance” Romeo grew up handsomely
“By chance” Juliet grew up beautifully

“By chance” Romeo and Juliet grew up together
“By choice” they started loving each other
“By choice” they touched each other when breeze swung them,
“By choice” they spent sleepless nights under the blue Moon,
“By choice” they danced together when it rained,

“By choice” they PROMISED TO BE TOGETHER FOREVER

One fine day, “by chance” the gardener who had sown Romeo and Juliet, plucked them,

“By choice” he sold them to a florist,
“By chance” the florist put Juliet in a bouquet and Romeo in a bucket full of water
“By choice” they kept on looking at each other,
“By choice” they cried,
“By chance” I bought Romeo; “by chance” I mistook his tears for the dew drops
“By chance” Romeo shared his story with me and “By choice” I went back to florist
“By chance” I was too late…Someone took Juliet away
“By choice” I was silent and “By chance” Romeo understood what my silence meant

“By choice” I decided to bring a smile BACK on Romeo’s face,
I decided to take him to Juliet and the way Romeo had described Juliet

I thought of someone who resembles his Juliet,
“By chance” its you …..

“By chance” Juliet had pink cheeks like yours
“By chance” she was as innocent as you are
“By chance” your fragrance compliments that of hers’
“By chance” Juliet was as gorgeous as you are

Romeo won’t last more than 3 days and will leave us to mingle with Juliet
“By chance” would you mind keeping Romeo with you?

“By choice” Smile…for you will touch Romeo’s soul….
Smile…for you may realize that life is short….

Smile…for you may smile now when you are with me…

2010

New year brings a lot of resolutions. People make all kinds of promises to themselves such as "I will cut down on junk", "i will quit smoking", "i will study hard" etc etc.

For years i have been making resolutions and breaking them at will. So, this year i have decided not to create a wishlist. I would live each day to the fullest. I would be a kid again and will get excited when i see the rainbow. I would write on anything and everything that would make me happy.

I would enjoy every sip of my coffee, every bite of my pizza. I would do what i love to do rather than simply piling on.

I will focus on 2-3 things that make me happy rather than running around aimlessly.

With that i wish all of you a very happy and prosperous 2010...

2009 -- Memories

There are 52 weeks in a year and i believe that i should have 52 memories at the end of each year, memories that can titilate me in the years to come. 2009 was a year where i conjured up some of the great moments and just wanted to record some of them on my blog"

1. My trip to Mcleodganj with Miss S...we went to Monastaries..travelled to remote places...

2. GMAT -- dated miss G...finally kissed the sweetheart

3. Trip to water park with Miss S on her B-day-- now that trip was awesome...

Dont want to paste the pics ;)

4. Dec-26 -- miss S and i had a blast today-- cloud no. 9 ;)

5. Back Injury -- :'( -- taught me patience -- never to go over-board -- realized  my weaknesses

6. Dad's new car -- pa bought his new car and was really excited --
Van huesen shirt -- $60
Chevy - $15, 000/- {i didn't make the payment ;) }
Watching the content smile on your dad's face -- price less

7. Bro becomes a doctor -- {but i wont go to him for the treatment -- old foes you know :) }

8. Visiting my Alma Mater with friends -- Tears of joy :'( -- miss those days...

9. Starting this blog -- Realized that i can write --

10. Got my passport {how can i forget this}

11. Registered my NGO --"The Illuminati" {and so is the name of this blog}...

With this post i bring an end to my blogging for the year. Wishing you all a very happy and fruitful New Year....