The session began with the introduction of the Career Camp theme and a short speech by Dr. Trishtha Ramamurthy the founder of the Ekya chain of schools. We were then introduced to the panel which was a set of accomplished personalities in their respective fields. The session was moderated by Mr. Sriram and we also had an opportunity to listen to Ms. Vishwapriya Kochhar an Oxford Scholar, an entrepreneur, and career coach, Mr. Ramasubramanian, a professor at IIIT Bangalore and also Mr. Nikhil Kamath an expert in the field of finance and stockbroking. The panel was immensely diverse, consisting of personalities from different walks of life who shared with us their views and experiences and gave us all a lot to take back from the session.
The moderator, Mr. Sriram posed some very interesting questions to the panel which they answered while reflecting on their respective experience. For example, Ms. Kochhar emphasized a strength-based perspective with a focus on skill development and how career landscapes are open and changing and not as traditional as they were a few years back. She also compared careers in the ’80s and now, and the stark difference. It helped us don our thinking caps and made us realize how things have evolved, and what the generation gap actually means. She also shared some key topics to read up research further such as ‘mojo’ and the Japanese concept of ‘Ikigai’. She made a very essential point about hiring in the coming times, and that companies will now be looking for your abilities-something you bring to the table beside your core responsibilities. I truly believe this is the key to career success in these uncertain times.
Mr. Ram spoke about how the business landscape is extremely fertile right now with immense scope and opportunities. He also mentioned that in this competitive world, in any domain or field, a jumpstart is required, and in order to be among the top players of the game and earn those extra perks, specializing in that particular field is helpful. I found his advice to conduct a basic study and analysis of the peaks and drops of careers and find out what is stable, extremely relevant. This is because in the ever-changing world often careers that are considered ‘hot’ for some time, often become ice cold and irrelevant. Mr. Ram shared with us what he enjoyed most about his work. The fact that he gets to choose what he wants to do every day resonated with my requirements for my future career. Although, I’m still contemplating if I aspire for a Ph.D. and academia like him.
I was intrigued by Mr. Nikhil’s statement that schools often teach students how to make money but, what they don’t teach you is how to manage it. He encouraged us to focus on strengths and overall holistic development rather than focusing on one quality and stressing about it. Mr. Nikhil shared his career exploration journey. After trying several odd jobs, he got into the stock market until he realized this is what he enjoyed the most and it finally helped him achieve great heights. His story truly inspired us to actively explore options before choosing and made us aspire to become young achievers like him.
Resources like books and key words shared by the panel and pointers on how to thrive in this immensely competitive world were all very helpful. All in all, it was a well-planned event and highly informative. As a student, it was my first experience of attending a live panel discussion and I found it extremely relevant. I look forward to attending such career events in the future.
By: Gunnikaa P. Gupta and Nikhil Chander of IPUC F
