The results have started to come in. NMAT (raw scores) & IIFT are already out. (Soon the CAT and other exams’ results will be out.) Various forums, sites and Facebook groups are flooded with posts regarding results. While some have made it, many are disappointed and broken. The hard work which was put in seems to have gone in vain. Some would have done well in mock tests but couldn’t replicate it on the D-Day. Some would be regretting their strategy on that particular day-How they could have done some easy questions which they left due to lack of time-management or something and missed the cut-offs just by a whisker. Somewhere in the back of our mind, we have that guilt that we could have done better. With every other day,even though the pressure to do well the next exam (XAT is nearby) is increasing exponentially, the interest ( and confidence too) to read is decreasing. In a way, we have been put down by our failures.
To be realistic, we have just started our professional life. We have a minimum of 35-40 years of professional life more. Even if you are the luckiest guy, success (in whatever you do) in the first chance is impossible. There will be many instances of failures. Failures which will create a different world for us: the world where we feel ourselves incompetent to others, vouch for sympathy and blame our luck. But what we do after failures either makes us a winner or a loser. If we accept the challenges and work hard to achieve our dreams, we are winners. All of us have a winner in us. Yeah, you are a winner. You don’t believe me? Let us do a small activity to prove it. Think of the most difficult problem you “had” faced in life (not what you are facing now). You overcame it. Didn’t you? So if you can overcome the most difficult problem of that time, it shows that you are capable and a winner. You just need to believe in yourself.
Every coin has two sides. So have the problems and challenges we face. Normally, people look at one side. They see what their short comings are or what they did wrong. You know what it will do gradually? It will create debris of incompetency in your mind. Therefore, each time you face a problem, also do make a note of good things you did. For example, how you solved a problem in a better way which no one else did, how you fared better in some sections and scored much. Feel good and confident about yourself.
So this New Year, instead of taking resolutions which remind you of your incapability of the previous year (in a way), just celebrate with whatever good you did: Making someone smile, Helping someone unconditionally or anything.
Happy New Year.