MICA’s Competitive Business Leader Sushant Sharma shares his journey of being one of the Top 100 Corporate Leaders!
We used to interact with our professors who helped us a lot in every competition. They used to be extremely welcoming when we sought their advice. Especially, professors at MICA were extremely approachable. At times, we just used to call our professors when we had to immediately submit our solution for the case.
We mostly stuck to a single team as everyone added something unique to the team. Towards the end, we also teamed up with different people. I believe that there is some unique combination that completes a team; at times, to ace a competition, all you need is a complete team.
There were days when we didn't sleep at all. We finished our assignments and started working on the cases post our submissions. I think, after going through these competitions, I have more structured thinking and I value creative ideas more than anything else.
When we were in the first year, we took part in the Mallennial Challenge by Bestseller. It was a long competition that involved multiple submissions. Our journey started in October 2017 and the finals were held in Delhi in February 2018. When we started, nobody backed us to win this; we did not either. All we wanted to do was challenge conventional thinking. In the end, we gave a stellar presentation of our ideas and passionately defended our ideas in the Q&A round. This would always be the sweetest memory; although, we won so many other competitions.
According to me, just dedicated hard work is not enough. One needs to challenge conventional thinking. The jury wants to listen to your idea because they believe that your thought is not restricted and you can think in multiple dimensions.
In the end, just enjoy your journey at a B-School. It will be a joyride. Take part in a lot of competitions. Best of luck!