Finance influencer Sharan Hegde had given up his IIM dreams three years ago. Little did he know that he would return to the same institution as a guest speaker.
"Life has come full circle," Sharan Hegde wrote in a long Instagram post, recalling the time he had given up on IIM.
Hegde, who has over two million followers for his Instagram page financewithsharan, in which he explains financial prudence, investing, and basic economics to people, mostly through funny reels, was invited to be a guest speaker at IIM for more than 100 women entrepreneurs recently.
"3 years ago, I gave up on IIM, and now I am at IIM," he wrote, sharing a photo of him at the institute.
"As I stood on the stage with the mic in my sweaty palms, I had a big smile on my face.
Why?
Because until a year back, I thought my preparation for CAT was a waste of time," Hegde wrote.
Speaking about his struggles to get into IIM, he said it was a tough journey as he juggled internship and studies, and weekly mock exams, all while living on a stipend of Rs 5,000 in Bengaluru.
When the results were out, he had scored 98 per cent and he didn't want anything other than IIM.
"My misplaced ego was such that either IIM A,B,C or nothing. I now realise that was stupid- since later on a huge part of my professional journey was shaped by incredible colleagues from other IIMs"
He eventually got into Columbia but dropped out of it as well. "I dropped out of that as well and eventually ended up giving a goddamn talk at the place where I wanted to go in the first place- IIMB. I smile because life has come full circle."
"Whatever happens, happens for good. You just need to know how to see it from a different perspective and make the best out of it," he wrote as the "moral of the story."