When I decided to share some of my thoughts on Great Lakes, I began to think what do I write about? Should I write about the serene campus or the one year that went in a jiffy even before we could realise, or about some of the amazing friends I made here? And then there I was musing over a hot cup of coffee when suddenly a sense of guilt started conquering me. Sometimes we tend to overlook things that are too obvious, don’t we? One such integral element of my B-School life I inadvertently was missing out from my list was ‘The Gurus’.

Talking about the cause and the effect – If I reminisce my little moments of glory, success, pride and happiness, it would be like rejoicing the “effect”. It would be unfair to forget the “cause” behind all those defining moments of my life. Had I not received the able tutelage and mentoring from the faculty at Great Lakes, this whole journey would not have even germinated, let alone be a memorable one. I attribute the “cause” solely to the guidance of the extraordinary faculty of my alma mater.

Friends for Life and beyond: I will rather call them my mentors for life and beyond, for the exemplary stature and honor they possess. At the onset of this beautiful journey, I was not sure of what major I was going to choose and was struggling to stay afloat under the floods of confusion. However, the very first course of Marketing Management not only showed me the specialization but also the path I was going to pursue in my life and introduced me to the world of marketing and gave wings to my creativity, thoughts and writing.

The timely inputs from my mentors while I participated in various competitions, the depth of learning hidden behind their subtle sense of humour enthused to no end. I urge the current students to read between the lines and search for their mentor who will help shape the trajectory of your future, life and beyond.

Time Management: The faculty at Great Lakes can inspire you with the sheer amount of energy they exude. Being my first teachers of time management, I was taught how to respect time first before attempting to manage it. I would say this is where my mentors added tremendous value to my life by simply channelizing my efforts in right direction. Twelve months and my faculty knew how to keep us occupied every moment and helped us realize the worth of every minute spent in the campus.

Knowledge from all corners of the world: Over the course of a year, we had the honor of being taught by some of the best management scholars of the world – from Stanford, Kellogg, Yale and Miami. These were some of the mentors who have left a lasting impression one cannot forget easily.

Fortune favours the Brave: Even today, I do not miss out on an opportunity to go back to my professors for their advice and guidance. Often, we need to make lot of presentations and come up with intriguing ideas at work. And many a time, it has been a personal experience that one big idea which made all the difference to our presentation would be the one suggested by them. What more could one ask for? These are mentors for a life time and it is only a matter of keeping your promise and reaching out to your gurus.

Stretch yourself, Find yourself: Uncle Bala, as we call our beloved Dean, is the epitome of energy and high spirits. He is a living example of how far your dreams could drive you to do things you never knew you were capable of doing. He is a true inspiration to all Great Lakers and has taught us the importance of walking that extra mile. When I say stretch yourself, it still makes me smile to remember that I was reading Swami Vivekananda all through my journey from Goa airport to the Great Lakes campus because I had a viva at 6:15 next morning.

The curtains never go down: The best part of Great Lakes is that the bond with the alma mater or the faculty never ends after you graduate. It is a new beginning and you can be sure of having some of the great minds to guide you to face all the challenges out there. I had the time of my life at Great Lakes and regard this as an opportunity to rediscover myself with the help of my gurus. It’s a long way before my destination, but Great Lakes sure is the place where my wheels of transformation began to roll.

Gajendra Sisodia

Marketing Consultant, Appirio

PGPM Class of 2013

Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai