>Graduate’d

>Tomorrow, 2nd july marks the completion of my one year. This one year has been a rollicking time, travelling across the country, meeting numerous people, doing things I never ever thought of, and as they say, getting into the corporate groove.

Last week I was in Mumbai, for my graduation party (yes! After post graduating!). The new batch was there with the same dreamy scared curious eyes, the older batch (ME!!) trying to show off Who is the boss? N everyone else more or less the same. This got me thinking. One year has passed, how fast time passes away. It has been 12 months that I have been receiving this pay cheque in my bank account – month on month. That is a good long time for introspection.

It has been on roller coaster ride right from the day go. Right from the outbound training in garudamaachi to the present ASM stint handling north karnataka has been one helluva ride.

The travel across the country along with fellow management trainees, each one stud in their own league. Going around, right from the southernmost Kerala to see the cocoa plantations to the Himachal to see the factory and CSR. Getting to know my batchmates even more better in the process and making friends for life. Who had thought that these would be the people I would talking to and cribbing to on a daily basis?

The first stint in Delhi metro. Whoa! I was the cynosure of all eyes. People generally get random far off obscure places in their initial years and here I was in DELHI metro – the capital of the country for my first sales stint. Those four months in delhi just went on like a whiff. Staying with Abhinav, thivahar, preteesh and Sashi in the south delhi house, trying to adjust to live out of campus and fit in into the corporate life. (yeah! Puneet I am not forgetting you!) Those wonderful all night chats and weekends with that someone special! It all seems like a beautiful dream now.

Then in November just as the winters started kicking in delhi, I was parceled of to Chennai. Yes, my next stint was scheduled in Bangalore( once more Metro! I must really be lucky!). Bangalore metro with its young crowd and happening life was simply amazing. Friends here, and hanging out and doing crazy stuff which I had never ever thought off( Remember Ahen, the bus ride to the airport!) and the wonderful climate here just mesmerizes ones senses.

Now after one month in Bangalore, any one would fall in love with it and this thought that I was just training here was sure killing me. I will soon have to leave this place to take over some territory. Which territory would it be? Where would I based out of for the next two years? How would my career shape up? All these thoughts just took over my entire mind, until that one fine night in Chennai.

“Congratulations. Welcome to the South branch. You would now be handling North karnataka”, I still remember those words. My joy knew no bounds. I am not too sure if it was more for the posting being announced? Or was it that I would be based out of Bangalore? Or was it the challenging territory I was given? well, a mix of all i would say!

It is all still very fresh in my mind, that chat I had with Ahen that night from the hotel room in Chennai. The yellow smiley ball really proved to be lucky huh!

From then on, it has been no looking back. It has been six months that I have been posted, and now “graduated”, it has been, to say the least, a fun ride. Hoping for more!

And yes, it felt good to be graduating once again!!!