A tryst with my destiny

Some motivational Thoughts from various people

2008-12-19T00:16:00.001+05:30

Logitech BTG : USE YOUR TIME and HIT HARD in the BEGINNING and FINISH STRONG and keep moving...GMAT places some tough questions just to tip you off the balance and demoralize you and steal your time. Don't fall into it. Just smile and say WHATEVER and move on...that's okay! And try not to get hit in a row..just like a computer game...Keep that LIFE BAR green

What a way to put it...

(1) Immediately write down the topic and scope after reading the first paragraph of a given passage. Doing so will help you think about questions relating to the main point or main purpose.

(2) Try to go into an RC passage with an attitude that you are excited to learn about the information it contains. It takes some practice, but this strategy helps you maintain your focus while you read.

(3) Read linearly. That is, try not to read sentences or parts of passages over and over again. Doing so wil slow you down dramatically and actually confuse you because the ideas in the passage are not being read in logical order.

(4) Do not skim, but read quickly. This is a personal strategy. I find that I digest information better when I don't gloss over too much detail.

Psychology of the exam

2008-12-16T11:29:00.002+05:30

I think I messed up owing to following reasons.
(1) loosing my cool during the math section, and guessing on too many questions due to lack of time.
(2) Doing really good on SC, but doing blunders in the initial sections of the test on Critical reasoning questions, and doing pathetically on Reading comprehension questions, not being attentive enough to focuss throughout the verbal question, for verbal I need to be extremely alert in order to succeed.

Only a few weeks to go before my 4'th Attempt at GMAT, I am doing timed practise, you can't shy away from yes/no DS, and inequalities, along with absolute value questions. If you do them well, you can be assured of a 48 in Math... which is all you need really, and in order to get a verbal above 40, you need to be extremely fresh, not tired, and extremely focussed, and practise better techniques on tough CR, where you falter, and practise more RC, under timed conditions. Give GMAT PREP couple of more times. My timetable is under preparation.

Shall I start with RC?

2008-12-11T18:30:00.002+05:30

Time to take some RC in hand... let's see how I do on RC and CR, will try to complete OG11 RC at least 3 hours today. Will keep you guys posted on the status. Only difference will be the approach will be timed, and will be coherent with Stacey Koprince's tips on BTG.

Maverick's re-engaging

2008-12-10T11:30:00.003+05:30

Never Say Die...

Loosing is not a defeat unless you let go. Thanks to experiences of many people who have tamed the beast, I have following comments about my last test day.

(1) Verbal on actual GMAT is way tougher than any of the practise tests.
(2) I was sweating, and my timing completely messed up in GMAT QUANT owing to some really tough questions and my ego of not letting them go, also the test center had a lot of distractions like the AC was not working, they had to turn it off and ON adjust temperature all while my exam was going on, I feel like demanding my money back, I am going to launch a complaint. But I don't think that was a good reason for failure, cause most problems were during Quant, and I did not do really bad on it.
(3) I had all the symptoms of "Anxiety" viz. Sweaty palms, shorter attention span, distorted sense of passing time, panic, reduced concentration. Need to control these, mostly they caused all the havoc. There was nothing wrong in my preparations, I am confident that I am 700+ material. My english is not bad enough to fetch me a 28 in GMAT Verbal.
(4) I fell in traps during the verbal, and I did not apply the techniques I learnt. I was never pressed for time. Need to practise RC, and need to be even better at SC, and CR.
(5) First few questions _ my notions about these made me lose a lot of time on these questions.

Strategies to Re-engage.

(1) The anxiety I experienced was not "Stress" it was panic, it is normal during an exam, have to understand that it is the essential adrenaline rush, which is needed to do well on the exam.
(2) Believe in your abilities, have good level of confidence, and do not worry about the result, because your next attempt is going to be just for yourself. Not anyone else.
(3) Have to study the traps on the GMAT very carefully especially on the Verbal.
(4) Try to get things first time right. Re-reading questions and passages I waste a lot of time.
(5) Have a solid strategy, considering a real life GMAT scenario. What kind of questions will you skip totally. What kind of questions you will skip if you are hard pressed for time, decide how you will react to particular type of questions?

and, No matter how many attempts it takes, I am going to screw the GMAT! I have 1 more year, and I can take the GMAT 10 times at least If I need to. Hey GMAT, guess what, maverick's re-engaging you!

Sorry guys

2008-12-03T23:31:00.000+05:30

Sorry Guys, I did not make it. My Verbal was 28. And I have nothing more to say at this moment.

Abhinandan

Continuously taking GMATPREPs

2008-12-01T22:20:00.001+05:30

Have been continuously taking GMATPREPS for last 5 days, and I have been happy so far, with the preparation levels, I have made myself a certain set of guidelines by which I will try to write the wednesday's exams.

Just thought should put up a word here. Will come back with the detailed de-brief of my affair with the GMAT.

Towards the end, Let me tell you, that GMAT is smart, and you should give it due respect. Hope everything turns out to be well.

Peace,
Abhi

D day is four day away... My last attempt at GMAT

2008-11-28T19:51:00.003+05:30

Progress so far. Not very exciting. All I am doing is taking a test every morning at 10-2 which is my official timing this Wednesday for the test, and I am analyzing my results for the rest of the day. The only difference on Wednesday would be that I won't get to analyze. My feat so far? Not so great...

GMATPREP Test2_first attempt = 590 Q44 V28 ; Something terribly messed up.
GMATPREP Test1_first attempt = 690 Q48 V37 ; Things improved overall.

First test, weakest area was speed, I was not doing well on time, also, I was getting all worked up so making mistakes, second day it improved, and I was doing better in Math, firs time verbal messed up bad due to RC, my only problem seems to be I get a little emotional, and panicky. I think in reading comprehension and CR questions, you should not let your "ear" fool you, many a times the answers given by your gut feeling are in fact most of the times wrong!

Also, during the second test, something else that helped me was for RC questions checking if options I chose were out of scope. You won't believe I made only 1 mistake in RC in today's test. And only 3 in CR, all other 10 were in SC, that too probably because I did not realize most of them were parallelism errors.

I am not going to cram in these last 4 days, I am going to take it easy. Let whatever is going to happen, happen. I am prepared for it.

Wish me luck readers...

_Abhinandan_

Princeton CAT 3 Q44 V40 680

2008-11-24T13:49:00.003+05:30

Finally, some action. Although it was a steal because I knew at least 3 sentence correction questions, I am a little relieved at my verbal score. I know the next step. In the quest of perfection for Verbal. I need to get every SC and CR right. If I manage to do that, my verbal score will breach 40, and If it does, my chances of reaching 700+ are closer.

So far I have taken the following tests. And the outputs have been as follows.
PCAT 1 = 620
PCAT 2 = 650
PCAT 3 = 680
PCAT 4 = 670
PCAT 5 = 610
MGMAT1 = 710
MGMAT2 = 680
MGMAT3 = 690

Next stop GMATPREP, alongwith killer SC and CR accuracy, and a bit of work on the Number properties, and inequalities. Let's see how it goes fellows. Will keep you posted.

Q43 V31 610 Princeton CAT 5

2008-11-22T18:15:00.002+05:30

Dumb day, Dumb headache, and dumb performance. I wasn't too sad with the math part, although it could have been better. I am hurt with such a low verbal. The first time I ever took PCAT i had 600, which was better than this. Reasons are not many, in fact only one.

(1) I did the first two questions wrong on the verbal.

(2) My sentence correction accuracy was a pain; about 60%. I don't know why that keeps happening.

Tomorrow 10AM another day, another time. Let's hope today was just an aberration.

I am not giving up.

Some of My SC Errors on the latest MGMAT : Could be an interesting read...

2008-11-21T02:37:00.001+05:30

Sentence correction errors
==========================

1. The Daughters of the American Revolution, a volunteer service organization, admits as members only women who can prove lineal descent from a patriot of the American Revolution.

I removed word only; which was wrong; because the result sentence is different in meaning than the original one.

Lesson learnt: Make sure meaning doesn't get changed when you choose an answer.

2. Agatha Christie's travels with her archaeologist husband inspired her to write several mystery novels; travelers to Egypt can still stay at the Old Cataract Hotel, the model for the hotel in one of Christie's most famous books.

--> Here Agatha christie is a possessive noun, be alarmed when you see it, because only possessive pronouns can refer back to possessive nouns, object pronoun such as "inspired her to" may not refer to possessive nouns, hence this is incorrect.
Refer to MGMAT SC Page 55

3. The author Herman Melville and the poet Walt Whitman are icons of American literature, greatly beloved by generations past and present.

---> Restrictive and non restrictive modifiers --- the modifiers Herman Melville, and Walt Whitman are restrictive in nature, and they do not need to be set off by a pair of commas

I did a mistake when I instead of original structure, chose a structure as follows : Herman Melville the author and Walt whitman the poet, although this usage is correct, these are non restrictive modifiers and need to be separated with a proper comma in order to be grammatically correct. Need to better understand what the sentence correction question is testing.

Gyan: That Vs Which... That is logically inseparable from the sentence, Which is usually separable logically. Which is usually used for inanimate things. That, Who Whom, used for animate things.
e.g. The team that wins the game will take over first place.

4. The health commissioner said that the government had implemented strict measures to eradicate the contaminated food and, despite "it will try" to prevent the outbreak from recurring in the future.

When the future is indicated from the point of view of the past, conditional is used. In above sentence, "Had implemented" indicates, comissioner is talking about an event which has already occured and ended in past. However, it will try is a simple future tense, which is incorrect. The more correct WOULD should be used. The correct usage will be "that it would try"

5.It was not long after the 1930s commenced that such baritone singers as Bing Crosby and Russ Columbo contributed to the popularization of a type of romantic, soothing singing that came to be called...

Like vs.such as - Like always used for comparisons on the GMAT, Such as always used for giving examples on the GMAT never choose the odd one for the sake of sounding right or wrong, never trust your ear at least for SC questions. The question is trying to test is Like vs. Such as alongwith other rules of grammar, let the 2/3rd split help ya.

6. One study found that although government policy and the industrial sector in which a company operates can influence its productivity and financial strength, management decisions have at least as great an impact on a company’s performance.

The original sentence can be right many times. Also, usage of although always indicates that there should be some part of sentence which should draw comparison. However, I chose, "Decisions by management have a great impact" Here, there is no comparison being drawn,the contrast is not exposed. Also, Decisions by Management instead of Management decisions is pretty wordy.

7. The administration has increased the number of fines for mining safety violations as part of their campaign to protect miners.

I chose Amount of fines instead of Number of fines... I Thought that how can one increase the number of fines, we can increase the amount charged for the fines right? But apparently, this was the silliest mistake, even though my choice was gramatically perfect, it was wrong because the choice clearly said "Amount of fines" whereas talking of fines, they are finite and countable, so it should have been "Number of fines" too bad... Need to spend more time on the Sentence correction questions to try to see what they are testing. But I am happy because all the mistakes I made were in the toughest range.

MGMAT 3 690 Q48 V36

2008-11-16T21:25:00.004+05:30

This was worse than I expected in Verbal. Somehow I couldn't keep my concentration levels high enough in Verbal, and I was rewarded with a low 36. I think I can improve on that one only if I take the test in an ideal setting, which well, doesn't happen at my place on a weekend. Is that too much to ask for? anyway... Frustrations aside, I am still happy to be close to 700. And will not give it too much weightage.

Will let you know how I fare. 3 More MGMAT Tests to go and I plan to finish them as soon as possible. I know what's wrong with verbal. Need to bump up my SC accuracy that too will happen soon. Secret's out. And it's now public. :)

Cheers
Abhinandan

Current GMAT Weaknesses Identified

2008-11-13T23:14:00.001+05:30

CR -
(1) Structure of the argument Questions.
(2) Conclusion/Evaluate the conclusion type of Questions.

RC -
(1) Specific Details Questions, Inference Questions, Passage Tone Questions

SC -
(1) Pronoun Questions
(2) Some unusual Idioms

PS /DS
(1) Inequalities. (Dealing with them currently)
(2) Co-ordinate Geometry Questions ( Mainly related to lines)
(3) Probability & Combinatorics (Will be ignored; as I will skip if I see very difficult question)
(4) Number Properties (Need to brush a lot)

Need to increase overall Math speed. Timed drill on OG would be a lot helpful.

MGMAT2 - 680 Q47 V35

2008-11-11T13:10:00.003+05:30

On a working day. Started at 9PM, and ended at 1AM. Took 30 minutes for Manhattan Math than the 75, because I wanted a good practice. Anyway, by the time I reached verbal, I was pretty exhausted. Just rushed through questions, without enough thought to it.

Q47, V35 ---- Scaled ---- 680 OR 90'th Percentile.

I felt bad considering I was able to break the 40 Mark in Verbal on last couple of tests. But given the verbal section was done from 11.55PM to 1.15 PM, I am not too much worried about the turnout. I am analyzing the test and the questions right now. Will try to give another shot tonight. Math timing revised from 100 Minutes to 85 Minutes. I am taking more time for Math because I feel MGMAT math is unusually tough for 75 Mins.
Wish me luck again!!
Cheers
Abhi

Manhattan GMAT CAT 1

2008-11-07T21:57:00.004+05:30

Manhattan GMAT CAT 1 was a horrible experience. It had all the makings of a disaster. Math questions were so difficult I had to think twice whether I was giving GMAT or CAT. Verbal was not easy either. I am sure I did many of them wrong, but I guess that is the way Manhattan tests you. Following were my scores, which I am more than pleased with. Please note that I took more than normal time to complete the sections due to various interruptions that I had during my exams. I haven't prepared any grid as such, but will simply note down my weaknesses which are especially evident at some really hard questions.

I was pretty exhausted so took a brief break, now will merge back into studies. I will review this test tomorrow, for now I will review my SC Grid weaknesses, and then look back into math mistakes I did in OG quant, and also if time permits I will look into my MGMAT math wrongs, afterall I have to take another MGMAT test tomorrow ( Heaven forbid something wrong happens)

I am pretty happy to break 700 for the first time on any major test. Wish me luck folks. I am going to need all of it.

Cheers,
abhinandan

2 days off at work for studies... Progress so far...

2008-11-07T02:31:00.002+05:30

Friends, I just read a post on BTG, and there is a guy who scored 710 in his fourth attempt, and last attempt. I am in a similar situation, this is my third attempt, and the last one and I just hope I be as lucky or even more luckier than him! :)

Anyway, regarding the US presidential elections, I am really happy that a young leader has been chosen, and he is way closer to the ground realities than his competitor was... and an interesting trivia, the date of Birth of Mr Obama is incidentally same as mine! :)

okay so today was the first day off from work, here is a debrief of today and the plan for next 3 days.

(1) Wanted to take a test today. Couldn't due to power situation in Pune.

(2) Completed the OG11 Sentence correction practise questions and recorded the complete results in the Grid. My hit rate in SC is about 80% and is surprisingly better with the level of concentration I put in.

(3) I am going to practise a little bit of math tomorrow morning, and then start a test at sharp 12 PM if all goes well. I will take MGMAT 1 test.

(4) During the weekend, I will take one of the princeton CATs and one more MGMAT. Rest all the time I will spend on practising OG11, and analyzing my mistakes.

(5) I have digested Manhattan SC completely, and I need to complete the OG10 questions it contains as part of my next level of preparations for SC.

(6) I am going to devise my RC strategy tomorrow based on Stacey Koprince's advise on BTG.

Hope I wake up on time tomorrow and also hope that I get a good confidence boost in the Verbal tomorrow again!

Cheers,

Abhinandan

Unprecedented Princeton CAT

2008-11-02T23:31:00.004+05:30

Guess what? today I gave a complete simulated princeton CAT 4. This was at my princeton review coaching center. Following are the details.

I digested almost 80% of manhattan SC after doing a few timed drills on OG yesterday. I did not do the OG 10 questions which manhattan SC asks us to do because I did not have that kind of time, however, was awake till almost 2AM last night taking notes, and going through my other GMAT notes, I have personally made on paper. After reading all the tips I went down to the center at 11 o clock today, and started with the test. I had an option of skipping the essays, but I decided that whatever I do, I have to build my stamina so I decided I will take every DT from now on with the essays. Math started well, I saw a few percents, fractions, percents, some tricky DS, but I was comfortably marching through them, and bang saw one probability question, stumbled on it for almost 5 mins, guessed and moved on, another one! straight 5 questions from Probabilty one after another. I was totally tense. After came another DS, and it started sailing smooth, I was keeping track of time and was making sure I solve the problems within 2 minutes. Finally Maths was over. I knew I did not do well on the probability questions which were probably all lined up from 12-17...

Verbal... My dear verbal was next. I was very much prepared for this one, my fresh Manhattan SC stint had given me enough courage to tackle the first SC, after which flashed a very scientific RC with 3 questions which I managed to digest, then a couple of tough arguments, which I sailed through smoothly and comfortably, I was keeping tab on time, as well as was writing the eliminations on paper, and striking ABCDE off except whichever I felt was the right answer. I did this only for tough questions later on in order to save time. I saw a few familar CRs and one familiar RC, however, the Arguments were surprisingly becoming difficult, and I had to think a lot more than I normally tend to think, but I kept my concentration levels, and decided to run through it.

I was done with the test finally at about 3, and did wait a moment before looking for the score. Flash came the 670. I was so happy to see the breakup more than the average. I knew I had done bad on the math, so Math was just 40, but believe my good stars I had scored 43 in verbal, which is steller as per my own standards, and I knew probability questions were not a big deal as there was no way I would have seen 5 straight probability questions on the actual GMAT. I was happy, and left the center with a little piece of advise from my verbal tutor. She advised me to go through the OG10 questions at least for the sections which I feel are difficult, she felt the verbal score was really good, and if I can improve even a little, I will comfortably sail past 700.

What a run-down. I was extremely happy, I am going to follow her and do the OG10 for the Sentence correction sections of the Manhattan SC. So far, I am just going to dream that I get at least close to 43 in my actual GMAT, I can't be complascent, as I have to go miles before I sleep.

Cheers to all those who are spending time reading my blog. Feel very free to comment and if you have any suggestions.

Cheers
Abhi

Tuesday Oct 28 2008

2008-10-28T23:11:00.002+05:30

Gave the GMAT OG11 DT yesterday, recorded my results in an excel sheet grid. Here's what GMAT has to think of my preparation levels.

PS - Above Average

DS - Above Average

RC - Excellent

CR - Excellent

SC - Above Average

Worst I thin I did was in SC, wherein I got only 11 correct out of 17. I don't know why I keep doing that, I have got myself Manhattan SC guide which I will study for now, and then take an accuracy count again, when I start practising, mind you, before giving this mock, I had not done any preparations on SC, all I did is some Math practise questions.

Will keep ya all posted. BTW a though came into my mind today about top MBA programs, and how I am going to gather finances and work out other situations in my life, and it is a tougher question that GMAT really, but time calls for only one thing to focuss on, and that thing is GMAT, although not fully focussed, I think I am well on my way. Wish me luck friends.

Cheers

Abhinandan

OG Diagnostic Test begins - Wed 23 Oct 08

2008-10-23T10:26:00.002+05:30

I started the OG DT yesterday to know where I am. OG11 DT is not as easy as questions on the GMAT, but is designed to test your concepts thoroughly. I completed 10 PS problems yesterday, and plan to complete the rest of the Quant section today. So far I got one probability question wrong. I plan to concentrate and get as many right as possible... Let's see what OG DT has to tell about my Quantitative abilities.

I will post a detailed analysis later when I complete the test.

Sunday & Monday

2008-10-21T11:38:00.002+05:30

New Car. First New car! Despite the uncertainties in market, we have booked a Maruti Suzuki SWIFT Vdi 1.3 Lit. Pearl White color. This lady will come into our family in Late December as there is waiting period for the car. I will give detailed specs later. But this car features one of the most advanced diesel engines in the world, and generates a whopping 75 bhp @ 4000 rpm @ 190 Nm of torque. Surprisingly, for a litre of diesel it gives amazing fuel efficiency. about 18 / 23 kmpl with AC on. isn't that cool? Anyways...

From the GMAT perspective it means that I have wasted 2 working days. But today I am back to basics I know one thing now, nothing in my life will move with my full willingness untill I get GMAT out of the way. So wish me luck!

Saturday

2008-10-20T11:06:00.002+05:30

Concepts of Math revisited, ratios and proportions, indices, some of the Geometry concepts also revisited. GMAT notes on SC needs to be printed. Not much preparations needed for Verbal, as reading speed is going to be the deciding factor apart from accuracy in SC and CR. Will keep you updated as I proceed. I am planning a thorough OG Grid of my own too.

Re-Engaging GMAT. G-Day 3'rd December

2008-10-16T23:15:00.003+05:30

Hello Folks,

For those missing my posts, I have been catching up with myself, and my new office, i.e. Barclays. One of the largest British banks for those who don't know. All this time has been a rollercoaster ride. My experiences while leaving HSBC were pretty unique in themselves. I will miss all the fun. My memories and experiences are blogged on http://maverickshaw.wordpress.com

I remember the movie TOP GUN when maverick loses the confidence of flying and aircraft and his wingman is shouting at the back, lets get it man, engage god damn it! come on maverick! engage! but maverick says... "I will engage when I am goddamn ready... You got it?" something of a similar sort happened with me, although this time it is GMAT. After two unsuccessful attempts, I am re-engaging it. There are a few things changed in the game.

1. I am not hasty about going to B-school.

2. I have completed princeton coaching (Read Math has improved a little)

3. I am more determined, as I know this perhaps is my last attempt for GMAT.

But I feel I am ready, and I know I can do it. I am re-engaging. Wish me luck.

Today I revised the Math concepts except Geometry. Will try to maintain a daily blog. The plan so far is 2 practise tests on Weekend, 2 hours Math in the evening, and 2 hours Verbal in the morning. Let's see how it goes.

Cheers people!

Abhin

670 Q51 V31 can you believe it...

2008-08-18T12:33:00.004+05:30

These princeton CAT's are giving me a run for my money... I don't know what wrong have I done in my verbal preparations they are just taking me for a ride... I hope I do better next time.

as far as researching b schools is concerned, I have decided one thing. First things first. GMAT will be first. when I reach my milestone score, then only I will start thinking about further steps.

I read a very nice quote a while ago... "An MBA should not be a GOAL, it should be a TOOL" which should be used in the best possible way and at the best possible time in your career. And I hope I am walking that tight rope of time and making my decisions wisely...

Wish me luck folks, and I know what I need to do to get my verbal score up. Have deadly accuracy in sentence correction and arguments.

650 it was...

2008-07-08T00:13:00.002+05:30

Diagnostic 2 not upto the mark guys, V34Q47 / Verbal was very bad with intermittent mistakes and a 67% CR. I'm not happy, so was the speed really bad... only good things math, even speed lacked in math... I have got to be kidding myself... :(

Wish me luck fellows...

1 Month Down, 1.5 to go...

2008-07-02T11:03:00.003+05:30

Hi folks,

1 month of GMAT prep is gone, and I wanna look back... Math, English, there have been descent improvements in the score, and techniques have been easy to follow, so far is so good. But in order to break into 700 club, a score of 45+ in math as well as a score of 40+ in verbal is required. A week later, i.e. coming saturday, will be another princeton DT, In this season of GMAT Prep, my streak of test scores has been like below...

Princeton DT 1 - (fresh without any prep) - V33, Q40 - 600 / 800
GMAT Prep 1 - (after 2 weeks) - V35, Q44 - 640 / 800
Princeton DT 2 is planned (coming weekend) - Target V38, Q46 - 680 / 800

My improvements over the last week - Increased accuracy in SC, CR, upto 85% and above.Better at Math except geometry, better at certain types of DS, and number theory, percentages.

Folks, they say fortune favors the brave, Hello fortune, here I come...
Let Peace be upon U...
_Abhi_

Tough to Medium-Tough PS, DS

2008-06-24T09:50:00.004+05:30

So you want to touch 49+ in math's... What are things you need to do? well here are a few of my own conclusions, please note that they are applicable for me, so there is a possibility that they might apply to you as well.

1) DS Traps are where we usually fall, they are subtle traps, like duplicate statements, or the statement hiding a particular number property, or likewise.

2) Probability, and sums involving permutations and combinations: These are where most of the people will panic and commit silly mistakes, when you see such a question, pat yourself on the back, coz in all likelyhood you have already done well on the exam, so take your time, practise probability, permutations and combinations, don't fret over if you can't solve it move on... Likelyhood of seeing such questions is really low on the GMAT. But nonetheless, be prepared.

3) Sums involving complex geometry, which may be sometimes unheard of, algebra, arithmetic, or plugin types of sums come naturally to us, these don't unless you have practised them well, do practise all the OG geometry questions thoroughly well. Understanding the "Trick" in each one rather than going the longer way.

4) Do Solve at least 15 different sums everyday, you don't want to relax and bask in the glory of your quant prowess, it might prove dangerous, remember, QUANT is where you can be sure to score, verbal can throw some real bad surprises at you, if you do really well in both, well... you're the man then!

ATB,

Abhinandan.

Practise GMAT 1 : GMAT PREP

2008-06-16T10:17:00.003+05:30

In my revised GMAT Study schedule, I gave my first GMAT Practise CAT today. 10 points less than I had predicted I landed up with a score of 640. Q44 V35.

Following was my analysis of the result.

(1) In Math's I did at least 5 wrong in my first 15, it was patchy, 2 were correct then 1 was incorrect then 3 were correct then 1 was incorrect that way... Mostly I messed up with properties of numbers DS Questions. PS wasn't that bad. However, If i increase my accuracy in the first 15 questions, I think ill surely land up with a good score in Maths at least 46+

(2) Verbal was sheer bad luck. U know why? Because In first 22 questions I got only 1 wrong, and that was the first one!! :( It was a tricky question, i'll try to post its screen print over here when I go home. Imagine even after getting 21 right on the trot, I was presented with 35 verbal score, thanks to a first wrong!... the wrong question was based on "structure of the argument". Well' you'll all know when i'll post it here.

(3) I had to rush in Verbal section after 33'rd question i.e. in about 5 mins I had to attempt 8 questions. It was unreal, I ended up making 7 mistakes.

Anyway... Surprisingly RC, and CR, SC were as good, the mistakes were equally distributed, and I did mess up tricky SC's and CR's. If I do those correctly it would not be unreal to expect score of 680 / 690 next time I take it. And then from there on... Only mantra... work on your weaknesses, move on...

I have about 1.5 months in my hands, and I am feeling that I am going to do it...

All the best with your preps...

Cheers,
Abhinandan.

Comment Reward offer...

2008-06-13T17:32:00.002+05:30

PLEASE COMMENT

I'll double my posts if any one you who read my blog comment on it.. otherwise it is more like my personal diary u know! hehe... Just kidding.. I blog for myself, and amusement and information of others who like to read...
Anyway... Let's come to the core of the thoughts on my mind right now. Verbal ? Maths ? yep you got it... Tomorrow is my Practise test... Here are improvements.
1) Verbal - Much better accuracy for SC, Already good in CR, a little better in RC.
2) Maths - Much better with PS, a little better wish DS, PS strategies improved.

Say V36 Q45 or about 650+? My bets on it... Let's see how it goes...

Golden wait for iphone enthusiasts..

2008-06-11T10:20:00.006+05:30

It's Slimmer...

It's Zippier...

It's Smarter...

It's better...

Like everything in today's 2.0 world, welcome to iPhone 2.0, newest offering from Steve Jobs, one of my favourite personalities on the face of this planet. For those who have been waiting for this beauty this has proven to be a golden wait as apple, not really known to slash prices a lot has sliced the price to almost half at 199USD. It will not be a wonder if iPhone becomes the next generation monotony of personal gadgets.

Features... Name it and you have it, right from Location based GPS to faster connectivity and a nice enough camera makes this phone + music supreme device truly unique. Although there are many other smart phones out there with similar technology, the multitouch that apple has offered really needs to be experienced. From my personal iPod touch 8Gb I bought in US, I can tell for sure how much this technology rocks...

So ladies and gentlemen, brace yourselves for iPhone 2.0, trust me it's going to shake the smartphone markets around the world!

P.S. I plan to take a diagnostic this saturday. Reason : I think I have improved a lot on SC, and that should scale my score to at least 35 on verbal. Also some Quant strategies should improve my score on the Quant to 45. The Actual score should be roughly around 78 percentile or 630-640. Let's see where I land up. I think this score is pretty realistic to expect. What say folks? :D

Cheers,

Abhinandan.

Off to Delhi... But in August...

2008-06-06T10:26:00.003+05:30

Hey ppl..

Got a chance to work in the NCR or National Capital Region (Delhi)... A new project in which I will get a good exposure. This will be a good on my resume as I will get a good leadership experience. Due to all the anxiety, and my habit of taking things emotionally, I got nervous a week ago, was on the edge of hypertension. Somehow managed to control it and I don't think much about things these days. "Jaan hai to Jahaan hai..." U knw...

Some things are yet to work out, but I am sure they will. I will also get to work out of Hyderabad for a period of say 1 month. The total duration can be anything from 3-5 months, but it will be mostly on and off from Pune. Anyway... You all know that there is only GMAT on my mind right now. So I am going to give it my best shot. I will not take it untill I consistently score above 700 in my practise ones. Wish me luck folks.

Let the peace be upon you...

_Abhi_

ISB Information Session

2008-06-03T11:25:00.006+05:30

I had a chance to attend ISB information session. A flashy, informative powerpoint presentation, with rich multimedia content is pretty much how I can describe the finesse with which it was presented from one of the members of the Admissions committee. Well for starters here is what it contained.

1. History of ISB being setup.
2. Journey so far.
3. India Story - How India racks up as the world's next upcoming destination.
4. ISB story, Life at ISB, diversity, learning, their various centres of excellence. etc.
5. Admissions - How does it stand in terms of competition. How many applications do they receive etc. How much is the Average GMAT, Why is ISB GMAT takers first choice, what do they see in an applicant, what prospects for lateral shifting people like doctors, army personnell, etc.
6. what to expect, what not to expect in terms of placement, how does years of experience matter, what do employees give weightage to.

The presenter was an extremely impressive personality and he also answered all the questions with a lot of zeal, and wit, he was pretty bold (literally) and still very animated, and he knew what he was talking about.

Here are some important highlights from his presentation which might be useful for the audience of my blog.

1. People with 3-4 years of experience are most likely to get attractive job offers during placement week at ISB
2. Suppose 1000 people apply to ISB, and out of that 400 are from IT, 200 from Arts background, then in a final class of say 100 students, 40 will be from IT, 20 from Arts. The admissions committee tries to create diversity by reaching out more.
3. ISB has been ranked 20'th B-school in Financial Times Global ranking.
4. Due to this fact, as opposed to about 5000 / 7500 applicants last year, they estimate the number of applicants will go up for the co' 2010.
5. "Indian IT junta" who comprise almost 42% of their current class size, is differentiated form one another at the time of admissions on the basis of following factors. (1) Their GMAT (2) The undergraduate institution where they come from.(3)

As of now me keeping busy with work and many decisions I have to ponder about... And most importantly, I have to take those decisions, because a hard lesson I have learnt is, the more complicated you make your own decisions, the more complicated they deal with you in return, think enough, and take simple decisions.

Let the peace be upon you all...

P.S. All logos and images are the copyright of their registered owners.

Cheers,

Abhinandan

Reading Comprehension problems

2008-05-30T10:00:00.003+05:30

I have recently discovered that my reading comprehension accuracy is pathetic... I mean on tough passages, I can go wrong upto 60%! Isn't that unbelievable... All this time, we all think that our reading is good and it's better than our speaking sometimes... However that is not true. We learn to read very early, but never try to improve our reading accuracy and efficiency. on GMAT land, you are tested every bit and piece for it.

I went to http://www.readingsoft.com/ to test my skills and I found that I was an average reader, just a little more than a completely hopeless reader. My reading speed was 253WPM and my comprehension accuracy was about 65%. I think I need a lot of improvement from here. I am going to do the following things for this matter.

1) Start reading articles from nytimes, forbes, businessweek, WSJ, etc.

2) Start learning strategies of fast reading and try and get my accuracy of RC up.

3) Hopefully these things will translate into better results.

I don't know where I am heading, but I get a good feeling that I am working on my core weaknesses, and not like my last 2 times on the GMAT, where once I was half prepared, and other I was down with an infection, this time I will go on my G-day only if I am confident enough. And I know I will be.

Shall keep you all posted about ISB information session.

Peace...,

Abhinandan.

Systematic GMAT...

2008-05-29T11:40:00.003+05:30

Here are a few new things happening in my life...

1) I'm looking for a change at work... Not really a switch if that's what they call it, I love my company and the brand value it offers, but I'll look for something more challenging.

2) I have joined the Princeton Review's GMAT classroom program, payed an outrageous amount for that, but I hope the Systematic GMAT preperation helps me, and so far I am happy with it. Let's see how I do in about 2 months time after which I plan to take it again.

3) Most of my time now a days is busy, don't get time to meet friends on weekend, but I am doing alright.

4) Many exciting opportunities seem to come, but they never seem to take a real shape, or I am not pushing it hard enough, I don't want to, because I have other priorities right now.

Currently, sentence correction and PS seem to bother me enough. And hey, I am also attending ISB information session on June 1'st at the Taj Blue diamond Pune.

Hope for good times ahead.

Cheers,

Abhinandan.

News, but not so good...

2008-05-09T13:42:00.003+05:30

Folks,

SUNY Buffalo it was, where I applied, got an admit, and had accepted it by paying 10,000 INR. Unfortunately, received a feedback from the fellow indian students over there that, the institute was just an average B-school, with no real scope of getting good jobs or internships. A lot of things were at stake... This comparison of things compelled me to take a decision with my family that I will not attend UB SOM. I will give the GMAT Again, aim at a better score, and target the next 3-4 years my best to get into a "Top B-school" which is preferably 1 year. Although things on the personal front are pretty weird too, and from a place where I stand, it seems increasingly difficult to obtain what you call a balance in my schedule and life in general.

I hope everything turnes out to be good. Moreover, I have another chance at the GMAT, where I think chicken-pox infection played a big spoilsport. This time around, I would not like to have any exceptions for a descent score. What B-schools am I targetting now? Nobody knows.

Perhaps, I will decide after I get my GMAT report. Which is the right thing to do I guess. I will keep blogging my journey through all this on a regular basis now.

I am currently on a lookout for GMAT coaching classes, some in question are Veritas (career launcher), IMS Deccan, and Princeton review amongst others. I will take a decision about which one to join by this weekend. Also have a phenomenal startup idea in my mind, which I plan to work on if I get some time.

Ok this is getting quite lengthy and monotonous, so is my work at office... Looking for a change, but I love my company, and will try and stay loyal.

Education Loan Blues...

2008-03-27T15:46:00.002+05:30

The struggle has now come up to a point where I have to hunt down on the Educational loan. I thought it would be easy. But turned out to be a nightmare. A few Indian private banks are more than rude when people ask for "arts and social" loans like an educational loan. The major reason being it's not a logically profitable loan for them and risky too. But the government underlines the fact that they are necessary for the betterment of the society.

Although, it is a fight and eventually I may win it... You have to go through lot of undue torture. Here are some of the responses of a few pathetic bank managers...

Bank of Maharashtra - "Loans? Don't ask for them at least for 2 months... Don't you see the pile of files for approval" - and I say "forget it..."

Canara Bank - "Please go to the bank where you have a salary account. Unless you have an account with us for 6 months we cannot give any loan"

HDFC Bank - "We can give it... But with some conditions!" Thankfully they live upto the offer they make, althought they have strict terms, there was an absence of rudeness.

Anyway... We have to fight when the time calls for it...

Hopefully we will see what the fight yields in the next couple of months.

Untill then,

Bye..

Abhinandan.

Got in!!!!!!!!!

2008-03-06T17:26:00.002+05:30

I can't believe I am accepted for the class of 2010! The school name still remains a secret... but....'dah.. most of you already know....

I am very happy.. and equally worried... now start the cumbersome procedures....
Will keep ya posted...

Cheers...

Will know by Feb the 29'th

2008-02-25T10:17:00.003+05:30

The interview is scheduled on 29th feb, and is making me more nervous everyday. If they say no, the next 3-4 years change for me completely, as I will have nothing on my mind except my current job. If they indeed say yes to me, then come a whole lot of anticipations and the probability of leaving the job... It is all very much complicated and worrying for me as well as everyone else with me...

But they say only thing permanent in life is Change...
and that is sure going to happen in my life, pretty soon...

More keeps coming...

For everything else there is mastercard

He he

Regards,
Abhi.....

Finally, a decision awaits........

2008-02-11T13:52:00.000+05:30

Another 15 days, and I would come to know about the destiny of my career...

Well... That might sound a bit alien to all of you who do not know that there is a B-school I have applied to this year, and my logical choice makes sense with both my dreams as well as my financial capabilities. It is my choice, and my safest bet. The application is complete on February the 1st, and I am supposed to know what is my result on February the 29th..

Meanwhile, I continue to have nightmares in the night, as well as I find it hard to kill time these days, though i try to be focussed at work, I hardly am, but yeah, I do alright... At home, nobody seems to understand the kind of positions that I am in, and continue to make caustic comments which hurt me more than often. But I am determined towards my goal, and I know I am going to make it this time.

On a more personal front, this blog can act as my expression, and will make me feel better as I make my way through the lonely waiting game...

Thanks for taking pains to go through my blog....

Cheers All...
Abhi...........

Long time no see

2008-01-12T23:38:00.000+05:30

Almost been 5 months since i have posted on one of my most favourite places on the net...! my own blog...! Well times been missing out on itself, and I have been spending most of it doing things which I have always on my mind... My international MBA and related musings. But life takes you in a direction where you never want to go... About 30 odd more days and the decision of my fate should be out.....

Meanwhile, lets wait for whatever is to come my way...

Cheers,
Abhinandan

New York University : Stern School of Business

2007-08-06T05:56:00.000+05:30

NYU Stern

Quick Facts

1) Located in Greenwitch Village, within New York City, this school is one of the best in business.
2) Average GMAT = 700

3) Average Acceptance Rate = About one fifth of applicants who apply seriously, do get an admit.

4) Class Size = About 400

5) $ 170000 Total Cost Alongwith Spouse, inclusive of tuition, and living expenses.

6) A Comprehensive Loan Programme available which will allow you to borrow entire expenses, with or without a cosigner.

7) Reputation within New York City = Excellent, but not as good as Columbia.

8) Reputation within United States in general = Excellent, but not considered a good value for money.

9) 35% Women, one of the highest ratios in top business schools, makes the environment ermm.. More Challenging.

10) Application Deadlines - November, January, March, for first, second and third deadlines respectively, ALL are advised to apply in R1.

11) Option of Summer Start = A short brush up for the select few who need it from 2nd week of July to August 2nd week when the MBA pre terms begin.

12) Option of Dual Degree at HEC France, one of the premiere MBA programs in France.

13) Application Components

a) GMAT b)Employment History c) Resume

d. Essays

i. Professional Aspirations - How do you see yourself 10 years from now type of Essay, tells stern, what the graduate aspirants are looking for from the degree.

ii. Fit With Stern - Why do you think Stern suits you, tells stern, that you are one of those mobs, who are applying just looking at the businessweek rankings

iii. Personal Expression -Your life's story.... Hmmmm You know folks I have already started writing this.... Seemingly enough, this is not an easy task... Trust me on that one...

iv. Additional Information (Additional explanations if needed)

e. Activities and Achievements

f. Professional recommendationsg. Statement of Interest (Scholarship Endowment)

I have tried to condense the matter as much as possible... I Don't like the way I am not able format this post...! Nonetheless, doesn't matter...

but bottomline is - It is in New York City!

See ya folks,

Abhinandan...

UB SOM Buffalo NY

2007-08-02T04:18:00.000+05:30

Some moments at the Univeristy of Buffalo or UB... Not that pretty, but this program has been ranked as one of the best value for money. Business week has ranked it as 4th best value for money. I went to UB with a fellow colleague who graduated from there, and was working with HSBC. Mike guided me through the classrooms, buildings, facilities, on campus housing amongst other things, it was good to see the nice facilities despite the low cost of the school, but certainly, it was not spic n sparkle as you would notice at any other hi-fi place in the United States. Buffalo is very cold in Winters, and November to March about 5 months of a year, it is snow, snow and more snow. But people are used to it... Fortunately I didn't get to experience any. Nonetheless, the Campus is good, though not as pretty, but it has everything that you need. The Niagara Falls would be just 10 minutes away, Nearest city being Buffalo, (which indeed is a good place to hang out and enjoy evening dinners etc.) Another one would be Toronto under about two hours drive from here, is also one of the most happening cities on the planet. Unfortunately I don't have all the admission tips, statistics etc. about this school, but Stern is supposed to be up on the list, so be it... i promise i shall put it up soon. My work is really making me feel lazy as soon as I come home.

NYU Stern....!

2007-07-28T01:27:00.000+05:30

This beauty is beyond words...

Keep watching this space, for an all inclusive article.

Abhi...

A Serious Blow to my tryst...

2007-07-20T20:26:00.000+05:30

Well not yet!

But this nice article below, will certain send shivers if you are one of the International MBA aspirant. As neatly put by Simba... who is probably a Duke MBA by now, the dynamics of this whole thing is changing.

http://simbarulez.com/riding_h1b_rollercoaster.html

But im sure, there would be a recline to this tension soon....

Keep walking... "is my motto of life...

Abhi..

My comments on Simba's article...

Hello Simba,

A really nice article. I can imagine the kind of stress you must be going through.

A hectic and consuming course, followed by post MBA worries, one should reconsider the financial implications for sure...

It is actually shattering to know that such things have happened.

However, if you take a global standpoint, the United States (Being here at this point i realize this even more) Is dependent on a global high skilled workforce, there is so much dependency on these, that americans probably don't have an alternative but to find a way out to satisfy (Their own needs). Considering the average american population age which is a lot on the higher side, with such decisions, not only the industry will suffer, but also their "Superpower" status.Anyway, do u think colleges which offer MBA's cheaper and better will be a better choice?Not an easy risk to calculate,

perhaps risk calculation should be taught in schools soon....

All the best,
Abhi...

2007-07-16T09:34:00.000+05:30

Heads Up to all who are applying...

This might give you a lot of insight into what people are really expecting out of you when you write a B-school application.

http://www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/news/video/dawna_clarke_tips.html

You should thank donna, coz I think she's been a great help to us all...

Ciao,
Abhi.

Sweet 17 B-schools (The Chosen ones by Abhin)

2007-07-15T09:54:00.000+05:30

Hello Folks,

Welcome to my first post in the MBA Blogger series....
My Money is surely on one of these schools higher up the better!

1) Stern
New York University... My Dream. Very tough to get in, not that highly ranked, but proximity to New York City gives it the edge it needs. Pretty costly; but who said business education was cheap? :) With a partner look forward to dishing out that buck... around 150,000$

Know why I mention "Dream" over there? You bet!

2) Columbia

Another NYC Favourite. Columbia business school is situated in Harlem, in area called Morningside heights in New York City, This school is ivy league and considered world rank 3, and imaginably very very very tough to get into.

Costing would be approximately same as NYU Stern, though this one is Ivy league, and tougher to get in, so forms my second choice... but anyway One and Two are my hot favourites.

Below are a few other ones.... We will surely go over each and every one in detail... Right from the applications packet, till the alumni.... All the information will be right at this place....

3) Cornell
4) Chicago
5) Dartmouth
6) Yale -
7) Sloan
8) Anderson
9) Kellogg
10) Ross
11) Fuqua
12) Darden
13) Simon
14) Haas
15) Johnson Cornell
16) Broad Michigan
17) Tepper

Look forward to individual profiles soon...! Take care....
Please feel free to comment....

Cheers,
Abhinandan

MBA Blogging Starts

2007-06-26T05:47:00.000+05:30

Today is the day!

I'll mark it long on my calendar for from today onwards I am going to take the most important decisions of my life....

MBA blogging is going to start today... I know for many people this blog might become interesting, for others it may become boring. But nonetheless... We will have The B-schools, The Ivy Leagues, The European Crusades, we shall have one, and we shall have them all...

You are all welcome to comment and express ur agony / praise to everything that I write in here....

Go M B A!!!!!!

Cheers,
Abhi.....

Niagara (Maid of the Mist) & Letchworth State Park, New York

2007-06-20T04:15:00.000+05:30

This is me at the Niagara falls observation deck with blue river below and arch bridge behind me... The view from above is breathtaking. We went to the world famous Maid of the mist ride. Where we experienced the Mist of the Niagara falls with chill winds, and arrogant roar of the water which surrounded us as if it was angry with us! :)
This is me at the Letchworth State Park... New York's Largest state park... This place is called as the Grand Canyon of the East a huge valley... with Beautiful river gorges, and rafting places, surrounded by thick forest Greenery is truly unbelievable. You've got to visit this place once in your life. For me summer was the best time!! :)
This was Mitsubishi Galant, 2.5L this sleek little beauty had a overwhelming pickup, almost 0-60miles in 10 seconds flat that is 0-100Kmph in 10 seconds flat... which is amazing... and most importantly, you can / have to drive at those speeds here in the United States... This is the second card I drove, the first one was Chevy Aveo.. which was just a smalltime... Ofcourse all of these are rented... But a good experience, and most of all convinience. I am trying to find out all about NYU Stern.... Looks interesting... And folks, do not wonder, if my blog, soon gets converted into a MBA blog... Don't worry I shall make it very interesting for U....Take care you all...Abhi.

7 weeks in America n counting...

2007-06-11T05:15:00.000+05:30

It's been a long time since I have landed in America. What have I done so far? How do I feel? How am I? How is my work? How is life? There are so many things that people ask... After a hindi and marathi attack, here I am posting again... Sorry for being away for long folks. I will try to answer each one of these as carefully as I can. You know what? Its been evident to me lately, that I often speak more than is necessary, and so is true in writing. I remember an english professor once telling me, that what is written only counts if it conveys the meaning regardless of how much's written.... I will try to follow that from now on.... speak less, concise and clear.

Its been almost 7 weeks since I have landed here... America has been a home away from home for me, mostly because, I have an opportunity to discover myself, which I didn't get back home. That doesn't mean I want to be away forever. Well, after a long long flight to new york, I almost felt like giving up... and had decided well in my mind that I would never come here again! and that terrible night in new york (I missed my flight because the domestic Airline overbooked!!) I was given a star accomodation in one of the new york city hotels for next day flights..., when I had missed my flight, it made me feel as if, I was lost! Though i truly wasn't.Still during all this stress, I was awestruck by the courtsey of the people, professionalism, the ease with which technology was being used, and the ease with which america seemed so advanced, and developed. I was too surprised by number of ethnicities in New York the very first day I came here, I came with a british, spoke to an airline staff who was african, went through security, the officers seemed spanish, went into the hotel where I had to stay for the night, and met with a french lady to attend me, and show me my room, and finally had a dinner with a pakistani old woman! We call India diverse, but this nation is truly cosmopolitan... The ease with which all these people were integrated into american culture was truly representative of how the modern world is fast moving towards, migratory societies, and civilizations. And I knew finally, that I was too one of these people! Coming back to buffalo, was a slightly better experience, I had all the time when the flight borded, and landed safely in buffalo,

Could smell fresh air... And chill.... as soon as I got out of a relatively small aircraft. I got my bags, and was searching for an exit outside the airport... Finally managed to call one of the colleagues, and he obliged to show up after a long wait, I was already tired, and had spent an aweful lot of money in NYC where I had a 25$ dinner, as I had no other option but to buy it, and the airline food (Emirates) wasn't good enough for me... Thereafter the payphones, water, and everything was a big waste... Finally I was glad to see a friend, who had got a friends car ( I was really impressed to see this spanky new Malibu ) The surprises started here! Right from the way the seatbelts started the alarms if they were not put, to the enormous amount of road network that was around the airport, which was I should probably say very beatiful indeed. I was taken aback by driving speeds (which almost made me motion sick ) and was glad that I was given to make a phonecall back home. Finally landed at the place where I was supposed to stay. I was quite surprised with the apartment, facilities that it had to offer, and the food I had (considering I was in the US) after long 51 Hours travel, I cought some sleep... and felt much better, but had to go to office the next day... 8am - 5pm.. the office routine with anytime calls and production problems has become a routine now. And I have gotten used to many things... Like The opposite direction of everything that you can think of. Right from Screwing unscrewing a nut bolt, to lock-keys, electric switches, driving so on and so forth... I was not so impressed when I saw the TV channels, they were pretty boring, I mean they still are... You will find loads of weight reduction programs, and M Tv reality dating shows, and small comedy serials, which are at least better to watch, and some channels which broadcast the same movies over and over again! One more thing... It was cold... 2-3 degrees at night... and about 10 during the day... Farenheit temperatures.. Everything was so weird. I got used to it finally, but I confess I am better off with indian metrics (SI) than this Mile, pound, and gallon metrics... Finally grippling during the first week, I managed to settle down, started cooking food for myself, got a mobile phone from the office, and was able to speak home, and elsewhere, didnt have to worry much about money as I had found that there were ways you could make cheaper phone calls ! :) and also good food at home... and even if you dine out, I knew I didnt have to shell out 25$!!! So finally I was all set! ( Being 'All set' is an extremely irritating american phrase which you will find right when you step out of the plane which has landed in the United States. ) a few more things that you might get irritated with could include, the how are you's and I am doing fine's and whatsups... and a lot of these american jargons which will make you feel sick at the end of the day... one more includes 'hmm hmm' when you want to nodd in assertion of something.. it bothers... bt who cares anyway... So at the end of the first week, I was all set!!

Later got settled in office as well, though everywhere you have to be ready to face politics, ego issues, and other things not to be discussed on blog, I knew i was apt for it. First good thing that I have done is I had rented a car, and drove it myself around 90 miles total for a trip to niagara falls US. It was a wonderful experience to drive here, and equally tense, but I think driving here is more of a pleasure. Clicking so many photos was a waste... after sometime you may start feeling its the camera whos come to watch and not you! so sick i have become now a days!! Anyway, also had a chance to go on a long weekend to new york city, the pictures and all the fun can be seen on http://picasaweb.google.com/abhinandan.shah

One more thing, so far the places I have been, I have seen a HUGE lot of indians. There is something that irritates me about it... The prevalence of indians everywhere, is just too annoying sometimes, I dont seem to figure out why... and everything (well almost) everything that you will see in the US, right from electric bulbs, to electrical appliances is made in some different country, mostly CHINA! So you go to clothing store only to find out that 30% items over there are made in India!! Anyway.... But its beautiful.. The lifestyle is simply amazing, and uncomparable, no wonder so many desi's have come here, and settled, and america despite so many visa restrictions seems to have a room for all of them. But the weather here though picture perfect right now ( summer) isn't good at all all round the year with snow cover almost for 5 months! people dont usually get out of their homes, and are obese!

Food! Lots of different veggies, unfamiliar ones, familiar ones, frozen paratha's and roti's have become a way of life now, frozen food seems to be a part of american culture!! I cant believe that I drink milk from the same can of milk for straight 15 days! That is simply ridiculous. But believe me, you can still trust the food, though I smell it 5 times before I have it... :)

The american passion for work is also amazing... Nothing is considered bad or good here, there are very little / none ego issues while working here. You will find a techy guy doing the same work for straight 25 years, and not complaining a word about NOT being a manger... Jobs are very valued as well, the people are more courteous in smaller towns and cities, and almost rude in major cities (like NYC).. well NYC is a different story all together... But I loved that city as well. Could well be a choice for my MBA! Going up and down, I come back to MBA... Don't I? Oh well... forget about it as of now. :)

Though everything seems hunky dory, somewhere at the back of my mind, I feel pretty helpless for many things related to me, my personal life, and family. There are certain things that you just dont understand, and they continue to trouble you like I would say forever.... and when it is not taking you anywhere, you feel like there is something grose which is missing from your life....

Though there are ways you cant even think about them by keeping yourself busy, doing online shopping, spending time on the laptop, making food, and for some other people who dont abide themselves by any restrictions, it means enjoying.. meaning getting it all in the form of liquor, non-veg food (yuks...) , spiced up stories, watching movies, commenting, and finally having a 'good time'...!

Well I kinda feel odd about everything at the present, and dont know what future holds in store for me, as of yet, I feel I really need to take care of my clothes, as they are really messed up for going to office tomorrow!!

cya folks,untill next time

Abhi..

2007-06-03T10:04:00.000+05:30

My First Video Blog....

एम् बी ए पर कुछ बातें और...

2007-05-26T05:39:00.000+05:30

जी हाँ ब्लॉगर डिज़ाइन किया गया है हिंदी के लिए एवं इसको मराठी में भी इस्तेमाल किया जा सकता है पर ये बहुत हई कठिन एवं परेशानी दायक चीज़ होने के कारन मैं अपनी राष्ट्रभाषा में अपनी भावनाओं का अनुवादन करता हूँ । हाँ तो हम लोग क्या बात कर रहे थे अम्म्म ह्म्म्म... एम् बी ए ! आय टी में आना बहोत से लोगों के लिए एक इत्तेफाक होता है मगर मेरे लिए वो सोचा समझा जाना डिसीजन था । अब यहाँ मुझे लगता है के मैं कई लोगों से बेहतर हूँ लेकिन मुझे अपने करीएर पर पूरा कण्ट्रोल नही मिल रहा है । मैं अभिभी नही जानता के मुझे ५ साल के बाद क्या करना है? किस चीज़ से मैं सबसे खुश रहूंगा । ये जान ने का सिर्फ एक तरीका है। पोस्ट ग्रदुअशन करना । किस्में करूं ? इंजीनियरिंग तो नही कर सकता क्यों कि वो तो मैं पहले से हूँ और अब और टेक्नीकल चीज़ें सीखने कि जरूरत नही लगती मुझे। मुझे पता है मुझे अपने कारीर से क्या चाहिऐ। वो है संतोष एवं स्थिरता । जो आय टी में बिल्कुल नही है । नही नही, अबतक हुआ नहीं खतम, देखिए, अपने यहाँ भारत में ऐसा कुछ करना भी बहोत ज्यादा मुश्किल हो चला है आजकल। किसीसे पूछना जो कैट कि तैयारी कर रहा हो । वो आपको बतायेगा यहाँ पे अच्छी बी स्क्कूल से एम् बी ए करना कितना मुश्किल है। जिंदगी में मुश्किल चीज़ें करनी होती हैं करनी पड़ती हैं हमेशा, पर मैं इस मामले में कुछ और सोचता हूँ। मुझे लगता है यह भीड़ होने के कारन सब प्रॉब्लम हो रही है । बहोत ज्यादा लोगों को वो करना है क्यों कि वो करने के बाद भविष्य उज्वल है ऐसा एक समीकरण बन चूका है। पर दुनिया में देखा जाये तो भारत के सबसे महान बी स्कुल वर्ल्ड रंकिंग में बहोत नीचे हैं। इसीलिये, इंटरनेशनल एम् बी ए मुझे ४ सालों से आकर्षित कर्ता आ रहा है। उसके लिए प्लानिंग तो चल रही है, बहोत सारे विकल्प मेरे पास खुल्ले पडे हैं लेकिन बस सोचने कि और कुछ करने कि जरूरत है।

बाप रे बाप कितना बोरे कर दिया मैंने.... आप इस मामले पर क्या सोचते हैं? आपकी सोच कमेंट के माध्यम से मुझतक पहोचाइये। आपका कीमती समय देके ये पोस्ट पड़ने के लिए धन्यवाद्। मुझे अब मेरी बैग पैक करनी हैं क्यों कि कल सुबेह उठकर एअरपोर्ट होते हुए न्यू यॉर्क तक पहोचना हैं। मैं मंगलवार तक वापस आऊंगा। तबतक के लिए, अलविदा।

जाते जाते एक चीज़ कहना चाहूँगा, जिंदगी में सबकुछ कभी नही मिलता... इसीलिये अगर आपको लगता है के आपके पास बहोत कुछ है, तो दूसरों को थोडा देने कि इंसानियत जरूर रखियेगा ।

अभिनन्दन।
२५ अप्रील 2007

MBA

2007-05-25T04:59:00.000+05:30

खरच हे ऍम ब ए आहे तरी काय ? म्हणे मास्टर इन बिस्नेस एडमिनिस्ट्रेशन ! कसला मास्टर आणि कसला काय हो, आमच्या मेनेजर ला बघून तर असे वाटते कि मास्टर इन बिस्नेस एडमिनिस्ट्रेशन नसून मास्टर इन बडबड आहे ! किती बोलायाच हो ? समोरच्या माणसाचा थोडा तरी विचार करावा ना? खरोखर! असो! सगळे तसे असतील अस नाही ना ... हाच विचार करुन मी पण एम् बी ए करणार आहे। नाही काही खास कारण तर नाही पण माला आईटी आवड्त नाही ना म्हणून काही ना काही करावच लागणार ना ? शोधा म्हणजे सापड़ेल अस म्हणतात ना तस् सद्ध्या शोधत आहे !! बाक़ी मराठी नंतर ....

Career

2007-05-18T03:50:00.000+05:30

Enough of Abstract posts, My blog is moving towards meaningless stories which hardly mean anything interesting.... Okay! here is something new... My perspective on a very interesting topic.

Career...

The word has many people left spellbound when they think about it! Well, yes, that includes me as well. So, what does career mean to you? For me it is still a riddle im trying to solve. One word means so much... A measure of your achievements, often that of how successful you are, or how much you earn, how people respect you... All those are external measures. But to ourselves what does it mean? How good you feel about what you actually do? I think career for yourself is, your own measure of your success in whatever field you are. Your willingness to continue, and your attitude to be competitive enough. How do you define achievements? For me it is very relative. My dream is to be something unique, to do something which no one else has ever done before. Something which makes me feel special, I don't bother what people think of my career. I don't want to be something stereotypical, something run of the mill....

Well you people must be wondering what makes me think so? Because I belong to software engineering (BFSI) domain. Is it a good career? I would say NO. It pays me well, takes me places, people feel good about what I am doing, but I don't. Honestly. Reason to worry? No! Because it was my decision to come here, rather than coming here by an accident. The story is very short and sweet... An engineering aspirant in me always loved and was fascinated by Computers. When I completed my junior college, I hardly had any idea what was in my plate, having scored less than my expectations, I was just hoping I dont screw up at my university admissions. There were few choices in the technical side, and I loved computers, so did people! but when I took admission into the computer engineering course, the industry was down under, and dot com bubble was burst, throwing people out of their jobs in a frenzy. I wasn't worried, though 4 years, things will change. No I really didnt have that much vision, however, just for the heck of it, I went forward, because I liked computers. Didn't even know what kind of jobs we had at the end of engineering degree. Just knew that I was going to be a computer engineer. Kind of made me feel excited you know! I mean hello!! 'Computer Engg.' almost everyone was talking about it. Parents were happy to tell people... I had an admission into an entirely new college which was very far from my home. First few years, my engineering dreams turned into nightmares. First Year and Second year were a trauma, had absolutely no idea what those subjects had to do with computers, but later realized, engineering is all about analytical skills, and thats what was 'supposed' to be polished by these subjects, amm what they did is a different story, but the way things turned out, I had determined that I will flare up and never turn my back, and always be successful. I did achieve that, I learnt that 'triumph' in my engineering. Also, learnt to achieve against all odds, I am sure it will help me a lot in my life.... In third year, came to know what people do after engineering. heard big names, and was awestruck by how much people get paid, and the big corporates, always made me curious as to what made them so big, dollar factories?? Suddenly one fine day I got a job, at one of the MNCs my interview was so fun, that I almost attended it as if I had nothing to lose! I was happy... Parents were, no need to say anything about it... I loved my work, was always unique in what I did, but had little control over what I did, well, thats how it works in big corporate houses. Days passed and here I am, wondering, I worked for almost 2 years, what did I achieve so far? Am I happy? and the answer I am getting from deep within is NO.

This is me at the US office...

Something still creeps in my mind. I want to talk more about it. maybe some other time...

So...Career.... What does it mean to you? Something which you do for living? something which makes you special? Your passion? Your bread and butter? Your personality? Your girlfriend's pride? :D too much ha?

hmmm... So what does career mean to you... ? Would love to hear comments....

By the way, I am in the United States right now, gives me some time sometimes :D to come here and scribble over blogger like a diary. Would love to write about americans sometime as well, I will present only my perspectives.

See you later folks,

Abhi.

2007-05-17T10:33:00.000+05:30

क्या करें क्या ना करें ये कैसी मुश्किल हाय!
कोई तो बताये इसका हल मेरे भाई!

अरे वाह! अब तो हिंदी में ब्लोग करने में बड़ा मजा आएगा सब लोग मेरा ब्लोग हिंदी में पढेंगे ना ? ये कितना आसान है ! जब आप हिंदी में ब्लोग करने कि कोशिश करोगे तो बहोत ही मजा आएगा कर के जरूर देखियेगा अच्चा अब मुझे नींद आ रही है तो मैं सोता हूँ जल्दिही मिलते हैं

अलविदा...

आपका अपना,
अभिनन्दन.....

Tryst with my destiny or a Twist with my Agony?

2007-03-27T10:13:00.000+05:30

Ever wondered why you exist? amm well some people might say... "Yeah! But who cares ?" I guess we should. Since long I wanted to touch base on this topic. It seems now is the right time...

So what is a tryst? Well...Something like a date with someone... You know meeting someone!

So what could possibly a tryst with someone's destiny mean? Interesting enough! Now you are getting a feeling of what I am trying to say. But it's a deliberate attempt to consciously understand the path we are taking towards our destiny.

Many times life throws things at us, so fast, that we move on just catchin what it throws at us, not knowing quite what to pick up... Life can throw many things, opportunities, dangers, rags, riches, useless things, hopeless people, amazing friends, love, relationships, .... many things, but is there something really in your hand? Well think again! many optimistic friends would think that there is, but i feel unless we deliberately control things, normally things control us, and it always works that way... Point is, I want to get a hang of where my life is taking me, and where I am, why do I feel good or bad about things, what makes some things so special to me, what makes something very meaningful ? I need to find answers to all those questions.

At one point in life people become very philosophical... isn'nt my time arrived yet? You bet!

what do you think folks? You know where you are headed? Ahead? very well... Look forward to my next one...

Abhi OuT!

Ho Ha India! Ha Ha India!!

2007-03-23T08:04:00.000+05:30

The titled campaign ended up so funny that, Indian's were actually Ho Ha on the field and all the world watching them bat was "Ha Ha" but for most of the fans, this was as tragic as someone dead in their family!

What are the reasons for this? Well media says many... Following are the few which I feel.

1) The politics - The BCCI is the richest cricketing council in the world. Obviously, there are a lot of politicians hovering around the BCCI. There is simply so much money, that every political gun has a dream of becoming BCCI president.

Because of the politics originating at the source, the selection process is flawed. No, I must say is extremely flawed. Instead of giving chance to players who were best suited to play the world cup, our selectors relied on "Experience", which failed to show up on the field. I believe public should be involved in the selection process, instead of sending SMS to programs like Indian Idol, we should do a sms campaign for selecting a better Indian Side.

2) Money dear! - There is enormous amounts of money revolving around the players, in their early stints of careers. The players are given celebrity status in One match! We don't even bestow so much on our beloved bollywood stars as much as we do on these cricketers. I have no hassles with accomplished cricketers who play wonderful cricket, despite doing whatever to earn money. Cricket is about hardwork. Hardcore cash is about less work and more lavishness. The equations are very simple. At least the young guns of Indian cricket of the likes of Dhoni, Irfan Pathan, and others shouldn't be allowed to expose so early to this dirty poison. Yes we need to ensure they get a lot of money, but it should be "Only" through performance. Even mediamen should ensure that they include in their campaign only consistent performers.

3) Non performing Assets - Virender Sehwag, Robin Uthappa, Harbhajan Singh, Ajit Agarkar. They were never in absolute rocking form before they were selected. Then why were they selected? What is the purpose of selecting these NPA's for the team? Only the selectors know! Robin Uthappa is an extremely simple case - an overnight star became permanent member of Indian World cup squad only with one good knock on his home ground, on a not so good attack!

People and their emotions are extreme I agree, but the way cricket is managed in our country is certainly on the anvil now, and people need to hit at it. I believe that people should have more voice in this increasingly failing management of Cricket in India.

More uncertainty...

2007-03-14T13:49:00.000+05:30

When all things around you are pointing at something, and you don't understand even if it's real or not, you feel extremely uneasy, and uncertain. But then there is a purpose for everything. So taking cue from previous advise, to take one thing at a time, I am leading time, to complete things. Maybe in near future I might have to face something very different and very unusual. Might be equally exciting, but it will be tough, errm rather, very tough. But who said I wasn't tough!

Suddenly things start looking different. You start realizing new priorities in life. You pause, look back on what you did in the past, and know that, you have been through a lot, and there will be time, when you will want to redeem all of that. Whilst destiny beckons, and opportunities shore at bay, you still have a good deal of hesitancy floating in your mind. You tell yourself, that you are much better than that, and can take any challenge. You tell yourself, that this is just a start, and there is a long way to go.

You feel for some people, some near and dear ones. Select few. You don't know what consequences are going to be for what you feel and are going to do. But nothing is in your hands. So you just have to wait and watch.

Your mood changes too often, sometimes you feel so neutral, you start feeling that you have become antisocial (not exactly in that sense) but... and also you have lost all sensitivity, but it is so taxing to the brain that most of the times you think, you don't want to feel further.

Anyway, I guess, not thinking is the only solution to all above problems. I will stop writing anything meaningless now. Here is a link for a type of meditation. Try it folks, it really works.

Simple Medition

Cheers,
Abhi.

Uncertainties of Life...

2007-03-11T17:44:00.000+05:30

Life, So uncertain... Is hardly in peace. Despite all efforts to keep calm, and stop thinking about things, many anticipations negatively inhibit mind sometimes, and put a limitation on free thinking that one can do.

Best option is infront is, to take one thing at a time, and concentrate on it, while not thinking about the other.

however, uncertainties add to a lot of miseries, and end up irritating you. Ideally, one should attack them if he can, or else, just plain ignore them.

Monday was something like the same. When you are waiting for something, it often makes you wait more, and things which are hardly expected ofcourse come as a surprise! There is a lot of uncertainty right now. Soon you will come to know what I am talking about.

Yesterday, I was very happy in the evening because my niece (2 years old) who was in ICU intensive care unit for almost 10 days now, miraculously improved and is responding to the treatment. I prayed a lot for her. And god has obliged. Good God! :)

I might have thought about starting back my GMAT studies again, but really didn't think about it, because of some uncertainties looming over my head. Today brings a new day, hopefully a few more good news to make me feel good.

Untill a new post tomorrow, its chao!

Abhi.

Sports adventure

2007-03-10T15:41:00.000+05:30

Sunday was a sports adventure right from Cricket, to the winning title.

Cheering, Organizing, treating the tastebuds, shouting slogans, and shooting photographs, the Payment Systems Cricket tournament was a lot of fun. Played some cricket off the ground, and by body is still making me repent all those moves I made yesterday. .

Here are some of the snaps that you would love to see from the tournament.

Interesting Saturday

2007-03-10T12:12:00.000+05:30

Hi All,

I am back rather early, well saturday "the whole of the day" was leisure... I watched two movies.

1) A beautiful Mind
2) The butterfly Effect

Both based on quite similar things, have really impacted my mind deeply. Just a few thoughts on these below....

A beautiful mind

Gem of a movie, every person who likes to introspect his own mind should see it. Russel Crowe a young and a very talented mind, goes through things that are beyond even our imagination. He is an expert in cracking any encryption, code, just looking at it!

Some imaginary characters change his life forever, nobody believes them, though they are almost realistic, initially he lives the virtuality, but later his life becomes a mess.

Jennifer Connelly is in the class where he is a teacher, they fall in love... Everything wrong going with Russel Crowe is unknown to this lady, who doesn't know that Russel is actually pretending to himself, unknowingly and is extremely ill, mentally. After a lot of pain, and chaos in their lives, they learn to live together, and slowly life starts coming to normal. It's still not easy, but Russel spends his whole life just on the strength of his love, keeping away from his imaginary buddies, and wins a Nobel.

Enthrilling throughout. The end of the movie is fantastic. Convey's a lovely message, which says, the answer to most complex queries in life often lie in very simple solutions. In Russel's case it was Love. If you want to see what acting means, watch this movie. No wonder it won oscars.

The butterfly Effect

A similar movie... Classes apart as far as acting and the screenplay goes. This tells you how minutest things in life can have mammoth impact on our lives. Based on various parallel Universes, this movie mentions how a young chap tries to live his life in these, with a set of journals, and finally lands into what he is looking for.

A must watch movie if you like watching something different.

Untill the next blog folks...

It's goodbye to you all.

Do let me know how you like these movies.

Cheers,

Abhinandan

Destiny shines, future glooms

2007-03-09T10:22:00.000+05:30

Destiny shines, but the future glooms, doesn't know where it is heading, doesn't know what to do, but the time moves on. And you move on with the time...

:) That was just a thought of the day. Many things have happened ever since in my life.

My first GMAT attempt has been a little disappointing, those who visit pagalguy.com, would already know of my GMAT adventures. But this has given me enough confidence to tackle this whole MBA beast with full preperation. I have formed some firm opinions about the whole MBA thing, but now I have to support them with some achievements, hopefully by god's grace, I will have enough patience to manage my expectations, and achieve my most important dream in life.

Okay, serious things apart, here is some fun...

here are some funny pictures from my office...

Here is Bill at the Coffee Table, extremely talented, and funny, Bill is a source of inspiration for all of us within GMG.. Always.

As you can see above, Myself and Meena with other folks, Meena is getting married on 26th April, and our trio (Me, Asit, Meena) is sort of broken, but we shall keep in touch, and be the best of friends forever. She is moving to San Jose with her Husband Santosh who is a very nice fellow.

Here is Asit, My best friend in here. He is sharp, he is cute, and he is ummm little mischevious, as well as mysterious. You don't know what's going on in his mind, but is fun to be with. Likes to crack PJ's like other GMG'ians, and when it comes to work, our future Solutions Architect is undoubtedly the best. I and me have got different plans, but being a friend, Asit helps me a lot, and there is a lot to learn from him.

That's a littlebit about my office. Will tell you all a lot more when I return.

So untill my next post...

you'll know more of a young and an ambitious mind on a tryst of his destiny.

Comments are most welcome.

Cheers,
Abhinandan.

A Young and an ambitious mind

2007-01-29T09:35:00.000+05:30

A young and an ambitious mind. What is it? Desire to do good? To achieve things? To be better than anyone else? To earn a lot of money? To find a pretty girl in life? NO. An ambitious mind is all about feeling. An elated feeling which keeps one motivated to do things, which are better, and keep getting better... Wow, such a lovely feeling it is, when you dream something, and then take efforts on it to achieve, and succeed finally! Success doesn't come easily, but comes, and thats what gives you courage and vision to see more dreams, be more ambitious and sets your mind on desire fire, on a journey called L I F E.

A mind which is on a constant lookout for something new, something exciting, and keeps marching ahead in the positive direction. Because it is young, it doesn't have any fears, nothing to loose, everything to win.

This is what I was, since my early childhood, saw dreams like a normal child, but always dreamt on, never stopped. Untill I grew up, and slowly started realising that, dreams are not as easy as they seem to fulfill. I knew it takes tremendous commitment, as well as luck on your side to have things turn your way. Money, is also a big huge factor. I knew that money would always come as a barrier for all the big dreams that I have ever seen. My Aim was, and still is to rise upto a level where I can see myself in mirror; eye to eye, and then say that yes! today you are someone who you always wanted to become. And that day I shall cherish all these small memories of my childhood, early teenage, and the struggle I am going through throughout my twenties.

So now you know a young and an ambitious mind!

There is more to come...
_Abhinandan out.

A tryst with my destiny

Some motivational Thoughts from various people

Psychology of the exam

Shall I start with RC?

Maverick's re-engaging

Sorry guys

Continuously taking GMATPREPs

D day is four day away... My last attempt at GMAT

Princeton CAT 3 Q44 V40 680

Q43 V31 610 Princeton CAT 5

Some of My SC Errors on the latest MGMAT : Could be an interesting read...

MGMAT 3 690 Q48 V36

Current GMAT Weaknesses Identified

MGMAT2 - 680 Q47 V35

Manhattan GMAT CAT 1

2 days off at work for studies... Progress so far...

Unprecedented Princeton CAT

Tuesday Oct 28 2008

OG Diagnostic Test begins - Wed 23 Oct 08

Sunday & Monday

Saturday

Re-Engaging GMAT. G-Day 3'rd December

670 Q51 V31 can you believe it...

650 it was...

1 Month Down, 1.5 to go...

Tough to Medium-Tough PS, DS

Blogroll

Practise GMAT 1 : GMAT PREP

Comment Reward offer...

Golden wait for iphone enthusiasts..

Off to Delhi... But in August...

ISB Information Session

Reading Comprehension problems

Systematic GMAT...

News, but not so good...

Education Loan Blues...

Got in!!!!!!!!!

Will know by Feb the 29'th

Finally, a decision awaits........

Long time no see

New York University : Stern School of Business

UB SOM Buffalo NY

NYU Stern....!

A Serious Blow to my tryst...

Sweet 17 B-schools (The Chosen ones by Abhin)

MBA Blogging Starts

Niagara (Maid of the Mist) & Letchworth State Park, New York

7 weeks in America n counting...

एम् बी ए पर कुछ बातें और...

MBA

Career

Tryst with my destiny or a Twist with my Agony?

Ho Ha India! Ha Ha India!!

More uncertainty...

Uncertainties of Life...

Sports adventure

Interesting Saturday

Destiny shines, future glooms

A Young and an ambitious mind