Cracking that Selection Process- Your Dos and Donts (ICICI Fellows Program)

Okay… I have been receiving quite a few queries from aspirants for the ICICI Fellows program through various channels inquiring me on how they should prepare for the psychometric tests, the assessment day or what are the “right responses” to questions in a telephonic or personal interview etc. Some of them even mentioned that my earlier blog post have inspired and motivated them into applying for the program…. So let me clear some of the doubts… and let me try and do it in my own incorrigible way…

Firstly, my earlier blog post wasn’t intended to inspire or motivate aspirants… I am glad it did do it though (atleast that’s what you all claimed on your emails and messages ;) ).. I had meant the post as a satire- exploring the lighter and more humane/humorous side of the fellowship program- to tell you all that there is a fun experience to be had; even when you are working on “serious” projects which can bring “serious” changes to people’s lives…. So thank you for appreciating the post- I hope you would be able to connect with it better once you decide to join the program…. J

Now getting back to why I started writing this note… What I am made to understand- the selection process will be divided into 4 parts from now on… 1) an online written application 2) a telephonic interview 3) a psychometric test 4) an assessment day with GD/PI and Group activities….

The results for the first stage is already out and all who have cleared are now either going through the telephonic interview or having done with it awaiting the psycho test and assessment day… so the questions on what to do in these 2 rounds?

Telephonic interview: Not sure if this is elimination round (will try and check it up for you all), but then two of the queries which you will most likely be asked in this phase is “What do you know about the ICICI Fellows program?” and “Why do you want to join the program?”….

Now the responses will obviously have to be according to your own areas of interest and your own understanding and aspirations…. There is no right and wrong reason why you would want to join the program, you need to be honest about it…. Just steer clear of responses like “I want to join the program because I really want to be an ICICI Fellow”, or “I want to be associated with the ICICI Brand” or “I don’t really have a plan in life, hence this program will help me figure it out”… none of these responses are categoric enough to explain your thought process, or your commitment to the community you will work / share your life with. It doesn’t really reflect your openness to go through the experiential learning phase which this program is all about…

Being an ICICI Fellow will mean different things to different people- make sure you have your list ready on what it means for you … if you haven’t got one already sit down with a pen and a paper- think with a logical mind and jot down your aspirations and how you think these 15 months can help you achieve them or atleast get you started… make sure you don’t start thinking about “sacrifices” and “glory”- they are by products, not the product in itself…

Also remember- this program doesn’t provide a job with the bank at the end of the 15 months…neither does it assure you a job post completion anywhere else… at best I am hopeful you wouldn’t want a job at the end of the 15months anyways… So steer clear of those responses and ideas if you have had them in your mind…

Psychometric Test: A new introduction to this year’s assessment format is the psychometric test; doing away with the aptitude test which we had gone through. I hope most of you know what a psychometric test is all about… if not, time to ask Google… I did check quite a few website and think this one gives you a bit balanced view of a psycho test (check link)…. Mostly psycho tests are designed to check the way an individual reacts to various scenarios and how he perceives himself and how people perceive him… this is a key component of the leadership program- you need to be able to take a lead in a situation- leaders don’t sit back and claptrap- they take the first step. This test is for the panel to check your ability to handle situations, be a team player and act as a leader…

Ways to score on a Psychometric test: You will hear a lot of criticisms about psycho test- many say that it is quite easy to cheat in such tests. To some extent it is true- yes there are ways to cheat in psycho tests. But I know of foolproof ones as well… most of the advanced versions of psycho tests are actually designed to ensure you don’t cheat… so you will have similar questions asked to you in different manners with similar multiple choices as your most “probable” response to a situation. Through this the psycho test actually checks if you are faking or whether you actually are being genuine… So my recommendation:

1)     DO NOT FAKE and DO NOT TRY TO CHEAT… THE COPS WILL INEVITABLY CATCH YOU J

2)      Try and click the answer which comes to your mind first and instinctively. Do not try and overanalyze a question trying to guess what is the best answer (to be liked by all)… instead be honest and try and click the one which YOU are more likely to do… this way you will pass the trap of those trick repeat questions. reading one question 2-3 times will apart from wasting your time, will also make you run the risk of over analyzing the questions, in which case being honest with your answer may not be possible (though it may be purely unintentional from your side).

Assessment Day Tips: Assessment day is likely to consist of Role Plays, Activities to check your team player (and leadership) abilities, Group Discussions and Personal Interview. Again the most important thing to do during the Assessment Day…. Please BE YOURSELF… you may want to be like a certain Gandhi or a Obama or a Shah Rukh Khan... but on this day most importantly play the role that you play in your normal life…….. And try and brush away those instincts of picking up fights like our Bollywood Khan’s … If you have certain opinion about something- EXPRESS… remember, there is no right or wrong opinion- its only how people perceive it or rather how YOU MAKE people perceive it. The trick in Group activities is to play and support each other- No Blaming if someone goes wrong… just point the mistake and encourage the person to rectify- picking up fights or wanting to bash up those who make a mess should happen outside the interview hall…. Or better be totally avoided :)…

For GD again plenty of websites to check on Google… I don’t want to elongate more here… Just make sure you HAVE an opinion and do not be afraid to VOICE it…infact being heard and being acknowledged is the greatest virtue in GDs… AGAIN- DO NOT SCREAM AND SHOUT LIKE MTV ROADIES- those guys will probably never make it to this fellowship anyways… and stick to your opinion if you have the conviction- flip-flopping should better be left to the spokespersons of our political parties…

Personal Interview- Be prepared- you might be  asked some very personal and awkward questions… be honest in your responses- again- DO NOT FAKE- even if you are the next Aamir Khan… you wouldn’t do yourself any justice. You may get into the program faking, you will hardly benefit from the program once you are in it… also as advised earlier, be very very clear on why you would want to join the program… incoherence for this one may be a cardinal sin….

Lastly, I wanted to end stating that I sincerely believe that there is a leader in each and every single one of us…. There is a confident speaker, a dreamer and a achiever in all of us… some of us realize it…. Some are just too lazy… remember you aren’t gonna compete with the others in the assessment hall… the only competition on that day will be between the best and worst of you… and whichever side wins decides your chances….

I personally believe that the development sector is in no need of hypocrites and people who join it for the reasons of false sentiments and splendor they find in poverty and their enormous sacrifice to join the sector instead of taking up more “lucrative” opportunity… if you feel that way then do yourself and your country a favor… stay away from this program…

So all the best to you all… nothing to worry about…. As long as you are being honest and being yourself.. I guess your chances are brights… if you are the nervous and introvert sort- Dont worry, work up your confidence and be clear with your thought process... that always helps....

 PS: All the opinions expressed above are my own personal opinion... and is not necessarily that of the program. I have expressed the opinion based on my own personal experiences in various interviews and through being part of the program.. So all the best to you all...

some failures... and some positives

“Why, Jon, why?” His mother asked. “Why is it so hard to be like the rest of the flock, Jon? Why can’t you leave low flying to the pelicans, the albatross? Why don’t you eat? Jon, you are bone and feathers!”

“I don’t mind being bone and feathers, Mum. I just want to know what I can do in the air and what I can’t, that’s all. I just want to know”

                                                                                        - Jonathan Livingstone Seagull (Richard Bach)

Around 7 months back, I decided to fast track the learning curve of my life… and I decided to do so through a process called experiential learning. Unlike the formal process which you refer to as education and which I find tiresome and ghissa pitta, designed to make a dim-wit out of you, I felt it was time to learn new things by actually doing them, by experimenting with truth the way I have never dared to do it before…

Stupid that I am, I felt that this process of experiential learning will be one of those inflexion points in my life… a journey which will teach me the unknown, groom me to take on bigger roles for that one big vision/dream which has been elusive for the last 26 years..

Now, I can go ahead and narrate the story of what I have done in the last 6 months; what form of time pass it amounted to, how the poor melts my heart and how frustrating it has been most of the times…. But then, this story isn’t about all that. It’s about time I reviewed my last 6-8 months, my learning’s and what is has done for me…

1)      Life is difficult, extremely difficult: When all of a sudden, you limit your spending and try to save every Rupee that you possibly can, life can sometime become unmanageable…. As a fellow working in rural development, and as an entrepreneur, let me tell you that there is absolutely no fun in living on a meager sum of money- never mind that I still earn a > 10X multiple of the official poverty limits set by our esteemed Planning commission….I am learning to simplify.... someday I think I will manage to live without a cellfone, internet and all the other essentials of life..

2)      Be Open: I remember that on 8^th August,2011  Rahul Nainwal (founder,  ivolunteer) mentioned during the induction program (of ICICI Fellows program): “trust the system”… while I smiled at it then and I still smile at the thought today, the reason for the smile has changed. I think I have learnt to trust the system …. I needed to mature as a person, and I think I am slowly doing that. I don’t say the system is good or great- like all other system, it isn’t perfect and has tremendous scope of improvement- but then, I think I have benefited from it quite a lot.

 I however, say this with a disclaimer: the learning is entirely upto you as an individual, you need to be smart enough to make mistakes, stupid enough to be honest about it, and greedy enough to focus on your individual development…. Your mentor, your coach and the rest of the junta will fail to help you if you fail to help yourself… owning up to my faults is perhaps my greatest learning in the last 7-8 months… I am finally confident enough to say that I am at fault when I am at fault…

3)      Social Work/ Developmental Work: I hear lots of people say “I want to join the social sector coz I want to help…. “, the only 2 words I have for you is “Go Away” (apologies for not using expletives…), The “I wanna Help…” model doesn’t work in social sector… we have had this attitude for too long which has resulted in too little… we ass-u-me too many things about rural needs… I realized this when I went for my first field project… Oh boy….. Was I an idiot? I totally made an Ass of myself with all the assumptions I made… but on hindsight I guess starting off foolishly wasn’t exactly bad…

4)      Connect: I am a decent communicator… I speak pretty okayishly… but I suck at connecting with people… and if it happens to be in a different language and with a village community- I am a disaster…. Well- I am still lost when it comes to connecting… need to figure out how to connect better… anyone? Any tips? Suggestions? Coaching? Well being a total failure in terms of connecting with communities isn’t a great sign….especially if you aspire to be a leader someday…. Need to sort this out asap….

5)      Problems Vs Opportunities: I am always told that I crib a lot… the only response I have always had for such accusation is a single word: “So?”…. I crib because I care...because I want, desire and aspire for better stuff… and why is that bad? I have a serious issue with our Indian mentality of “adjust kar le”... my question is “kaab taak?” While I continue to remain a critic of everything around me and continue to complain, I think the maturity I have gained over the last 7-8 months is to view these problems as opportunities…now I know that solutions are available, that solutions can be created and I am ready to take the accountability and role to solve them…. I say that with arrogance and humility….

6)      Patience: Of all the miracles I have been part of in the past few months, I guess the greatest is in my ability to be more patient these days. Rural development sounds neat, but I hope the systems were more efficient. Work in this sector seldom move at the speed and pace I have been used to. I can now sit and count till 100 without getting frustrated (I have tried it)…

I can think of many more positives to be honest… but then I wouldn’t want to pen it all down. As my learning curve continues to be on the rise, I have just promised to keep experimenting…. There has been days when I thought that I would like to quit…that I should have stayed back in the corporate environment, that this rural lifestyle it a pain…. But those days got outnumbered mostly… I wasn’t really successful to a great extent in the last six months…. Too many failures…too many mistakes… too less responsibility and too many days of joblessness... But then there were days- quite a few of them which made all the above possible… which helped me be more confident and which is helping me be someone more than who I thought I really was…. I guess had I not taken this step, I would have always been guilty of not doing all the good I could do in my lifetime….

And that flirty feeling called Happyness…

I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have. I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong.

- Abraham Linclon

Few Weeks Ago

Q: What will you do if you set up your own business and run into a loss?

Ans: Sir, I am hard-working, I have never ever seen money, a loss is okay…I will work harder, save some more money and restart my business…

….

Q: Do you also do agriculture? How much land do you have?

Ans: *looks down…blinks for a moment..* looks away towards the wall and says in a low voice… “Around 1 acre... we are tribals... we don’t own any land, I cultivate illegally by clearing some forest land, if there is water…sometimes we lose our entire crop as this is prohibited and forest officers drive us away…”

…

Sukhlaal demonstrating his creations to Marcella
D'souza, Executive Director, WOTR

Q: Why do you want to learn welding and fabrication work?

Sir, there is a person in my village doing welding work and earns decent money, I want to learn to support my family…

Q: Why welding? Why not anything else?

Ans: Sir, Teach me any skills…I don’t mind.. I just want to do a good job out of it and sustain myself and my family. I want to become successful…

The soft spoken Sukhlal had cracked the interview…I somehow liked the guy’s no frills and honest responses. I had done a bit of background check on him prior to the interview, from few of our staffs members (Sukhlal worked as a daily labor in Watershed Development projects)…and was surprised to hear positive feedback about his work commitment. I was however hesitant about his lack of confidence while speaking… he rarely ever looked up: looking down, being soft spoken, giving you an obscene amount of respect- these are some of the characteristics which I always seemed to find amongst the poorest of the poor section of the village communities… 

Sukhlal was desperately struggling under the burden of poverty… needed some kind of a livelihood to survive, to maintain a family of an ailing mother, a young wife and a younger sister…

Once I had completed my interview session with all the applicants, I called the four selected candidates inside the cabin to announce the good news... That they will get an opportunity to train and work with us for a while… that we aim to add skills and provide them designs, technology etc of newer agricultural tools for the village markets…

While I was speaking to the group I realized, Sukhlaal was trying desperately to hold back tears… and then it dawned on me that those bloodshot eyes, and locked jaws were actually a level of determination and desperation which I have never experienced before… I felt a bit ashamed of myself for some unknown reason… 

Post the session, I softly put my arms around his shoulder, and pressed it lightly, as if to assure that all is well…. How was I to know, what would be the impact of this gesture?  Sukhlal for some inexplicable reason broke down into tears…

I am bad with all these tear business; I don’t quite like to see people cry...Especially an adult older than me…. With tears rolling down his eyes, he explained that he has traveled for 8 hrs and 300 odd kms to attend this interview, that he had borrowed money for the bus ticket and did not have enough money to go back home. He mentioned he had no idea how he would pay the highly subsidized course fee for the training, as it was still higher than his 2 months wages…but he kept on assuring me that given the chance, he will do good… 

I am sure these incidences are common to all of us involved in the social sector , but for me it was the first time I was experiencing this… I assured him that we will work something out, that he just needs to report for the training program and made a mental note to check whether some funding was available to provide a scholarship for him…fortunately, I had already arranged for the fares to be reimbursed…. 

I looked at the watch, it was 5:55pm, i packed, put on my jacket and decided to leave the office… all of a sudden the thought occurred to me, that of the 9 candidates I had interviewed, only one had a jacket… 3 of them had come bare foot and they all stayed 5-8 hrs away from Aurangabad…. With limited bus service, I had no clue how they would return home that night and what plans they had to tackle the wintery chill… I breathed a sigh and walked out of the room… head held down….

                                                                                                                                                           

Today:

I visited the training center with my organization lead to check the progress of these guys. I had been away to Mumbai for few days and was going to the training center with low expectation. I was taken by surprise when I reached there… these 11 guys have not only made incredible progress in the last few days, but also looked as happy as a gang of school kids playing football… they proudly displayed to us their creations- stools, farm tools, weeding machines, cutting machines etc…they were making them all and this progress  had taken only in 8 days…

I looked out for Sukhlal and found that he was enthusiastically displaying his shoe rack to my mentor… his posture was erect, voice strong and unwavering… It was an incredible feeling to see these guys hooked onto a dream which I had envisioned 5 months back… to inch towards rural enterprises, to create more job opportunities, to spread more smile…

'Happy'ness is a small word…but it seems to take an incredible effort….

5 reasons why you should join the ICICI Fellows Program-things which no one tells you…

The Applications are open… and we are hiring for the batch three of the ICICI Fellows programme… so if you are a wannabe  Change Maker… an aspiring leader and a socially conscious and mentally stable lost soul in search of that one big dream of yours… its time you apply to the ICICI Fellows programme and TAKE THE BIGGER STEP.. Here are a few reasons, which I feel it good enough for you to leave your dream job or college and hop onto the bandwagon of social change:

1)      Grooming the wannabe Grooms: Yes, you got it right…this program is just a perfect set up for all you wanna be grooms. While the program does talk about Leadership development, management training, experiential learning (all of which is true!), this is possibly one of the most ignored aspects of the fellowship which has never been marketed … incase you are one of those lazy bums, or stinking rich beta who has never washed his clothes, cleaned his room or cooked his own meal….your rural stints will teach you all that and more…most importantly it comes with an overdose on patience and tolerance… and think about it? Which girl wouldn’t want that multitasking guy who can not only lead the family and society, but also do his own cleaning up and washing and cooking and all that. The added USP is that you end up with your patience level touching bizarre highs… as you are mostly gonna be spending days alone in the village with limited exposure to people sharing your thought process, you are by default getting an experience in patience and tolerance at a high degree… 

2)      For those Heavyweights/wannabe lightweights: Wanna lose weight? Have tried gymming, aerobics and all the other mantras with little success? Join our program….. we have a fool proof weight loss mechanism built into the program which you cannot escape… those long walks in your villages everyday in terrains which make all your muscles ache has been customized based on your fat content…in addition, village diet mostly consists of leaf and vegetables and less of those fatty carbohydrates and starch… you are assured that this weight loss program will keep you healthy and fit….

For the fit, ajile and slim (Hritik like) ones… you wouldn’t need to pay your regular gym membership fees to maintain that great physique… it comes inbuilt and free in the program… 

3)      Escape route from that irritating girlfriend: Stuck with that control freak girlfriend? Want an escape route? Want to avoid her till you get your priorities sorted? Sounds tempting?

While the training and classroom sessions are hectic enough to ensure you neglect your social life… the rural placement stints will ensure that you forget it totally… limited cellphone and internet network connectivity will ensure that you can avoid those irritating “I love u bolo naa” calls at ease…and you always have that infallible excuse of “poor network connectivity” to justify yourself… sounds like heaven? Join in and experience it firsthand…. 

4)      Hate managing money? Wanna avoid those high credit card bills? Are you always broke by the 7^th of every month? Are you always getting credit card bills longer than Mamata Banerjee’s political speeches?

For those financial disasters you have so nonchalantly committed it’s time to make amends… your stipend makes sure that it will discipline you of your spending vices and  honestly, you rural settings will catalyze your savings spree…so what are  you waiting for? Forget those long bills and non-sense shopping for the next 15 months…

5)      Nature lovers unite: Are you a nature lover? Do you find pleasure in watching birds shitting from tree tops and smelling gobar in the fields? If yes, you should DEFINITELY join in… infact an incredibly lucky few might even get to answer nature’s calls while in perfect harmony with nature, the  birds, the animals and oh…maybe a few snakes here and there… sounds like bliss? Your kinda game? Do join in and spend the next 15 months in the laps of nature which heals your soul and touches your heart…

If the above reasons aren’t enough for you to think about joining the program… feel free to drop me a note/tweet me/mail me/ fb message me.... lets talk about a career which you never dreamt aspiring for, but will wanna flirt with once you are part of this program…

So what are you waiting for? Take that BIGGER STEP… LEAP… JUMP……. WHATEVER…Just apply here

PS: the above tips are exclusively for male applicants...as i never really understood the female gender... so the only compliment i can provide you is: thanks for making the world so unreasonable and yet so much more beautiful :)

Disclaimer: the above post is only a reflection of the lighter side of the ICICI Fellows program, and does not intend to showcase the program in a negative manner. I believe that all the above experiences have been invaluable to me and is helping in shaping me to be a better person and leader in the days ahead. While applying for the program, getting selected and then joining in have itself been a great journey, I believe that the exposure and experience I have got in the last 5 months will be treasured by me throughout the rest of my life… and ah! yes yes… as we often say… I AM PROUD TO BE AN ICICI FELLOW DESIGNATE…

Rapist on the loose

House hunting is always difficult…but  now it seems I can get through to IIMs with lesser effort than this… after 6 weeks of  attempts outnumbering the hair in my head, and turning up with miserable results every time, it seems like we have attempted the mere impossible… I wouldn’t be surprised if India wins the hockey gold medal in London 2012 Olympics*, but I will be terribly surprised if I find a room in Sangamner in the next two weeks…

And with that, I am now realistically facing the prospects of being homeless in the very  near future…

The enormity of this challenge is compounded by several factors which count against me…

                                                           

1)      I am single…* and I used to be glad bout it!*… (sigh)..

2)      I am manageable to look at…and have a skin complexion which clearly discriminates me according to their standards...

3)      I have a criterion of a clean lavatory to be available either attached or near the room….

Now I can still compromise in the 3^rd factor…but on the first two, I have no control…. I just can’t help it… While house hunting in Sangamner, the first thing people ask is whether I am single or married… and can you even comprehend the shame of a 26 year guy having to say he is still a bachelor? There definitely must be something wrong about this guy which he isn’t revealing….

A typical conversation with a potential landlord goes like this:

Me: Do you have a room?

Landlord (potential) : are you bachelor or married?

Me (smiling): I am a bachelor (sic)

Landlord (potential) : what’s your age?

Me(faking another smile): 26 years

Landlord (potential) : *looks away…thinks for a few sec-the guy is 26 and unmarried-must have some past history which he isn’t revealing*… and you still aren’t married?

Me (another fake smile): No

Landlord (potential) : Sorry I can’t rent out my house to a bachelor…I have a daughter/mother/sister/wife/or any female relationship which you can care to think of…..

Me (frowning and thinking): *WTF…am I a bloody rapist on the loose or what?*

But honestly I don’t blame these guys… they belong to a section of society where guys marry at 22, girls mostly marry even younger … one interesting observation which stuck me a few days back is: in the last 1 month or so…the villages I have been to, I have either seen girls in school dresses (if they have one) carrying books, or I have seen girls tugging their kids along…. There just doesn’t seem to be any girl which doesn’t belong to any other category….at least not in public places… weird? expected? Something to worry about?

Whatever it is…seems like homelessness is the only option I am staring at right now…so incase you know anyone or have any contacts in Sangamner who is willing to rent a house…please let me know…till then, the only thing I can do is curse Nepolean…. It was easy for him to say the word impossible doesn’t exist in his dictionary….but then...Clearly he had never hunted for a rented house in Sangamner….

*India is still struggling to qualify for hockey in London Olympics 2012, but hopefully they will qualify and go on to give us a Chak De moment to cherish…

Making of my life...

Was watching Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara today for the second time and was touched with this piece of poetry at the ending.. a little bit of googling tells me that Javed Akthar has penned it (ofcourse-who can can write such beautiful stuff?)....check it out:

Dilon mein tum apni
Betaabiyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum
Nazar mein khwabon ki
Bijliyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum
Hawa ke jhokon ke jaise
Aazad rehno sikho
Tum ek dariya ke jaise
Lehron mein behna sikho
Har ek lamhe se tum milo
Khole apni bhaayein
Har ek pal ek naya samha
Dekhen yeh nigahaein
Jo apni aankhon mein
Hairaniyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum
Dilon mein tum apni
Betaabiyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum

A few months back i was undergoing a dilemma about my life on similar lines...I have always wondered  what i wanna achieve in life...and like everyone else with time my answer keeps changing...however, one thing i realized is that i want to experiment..its my life..and for some reason i dont want it to be the boring corporate types i was leading...i needed a change and a fresh new perspective to it...

I have always been interested in working in the social sector (not that i am too fond of the term "social")...and I came across an opportunity to experience this sector first hand through a Fellowship program i got selected into...I was scared...believe me... quitting a job which I enjoyed and absolutely loved doing was not the exact plan i had in mind (but honestly i dint have any plans in mind)...

Somehow i made the decision and here I am... 2 months down and i am absolutely cherishing the experience so far....With hindsight now i think i should have done this earlier...the freedom, the flexibility and the passion with which i manage my work now is incredible...

Finally, i think i am knowingly or unknowingly breaking away form that cocoon in which i had isolated myself...i can feel it..i know it deep inside me....and it helps...possibly staying and working with the grass root people disciplines and humbles you a bit ... 

I was always impatient at heart... but finally I am seeing those dreams which urges me forward each day....

finally, i am learning to live life like the free waves of wind which the poet talks about...to receive every moment in life with open arms and view them as new opportunity and new beginnings...

I can possibly safely say "Zinda hoon mein"...so don't just count me out...not just yet...