When I was in college, all I ever did was
- Order chai-samosa at canteen.
- Judge people who passed by.
- Watch a tons of TV series.
- Sleep till 11am.
- 2% attendance at lectures.
- Pizza and Coke.
When I was in the bus, going home after final semester exams, I was wondering that, what is something I'm taking back home? And what am I gonna do with it?
Some beer memories? A good collection of movies? Awesome but unsuccessful friends?
Return=0;
There was a junior of mine I'd like to mention here. I don't remember his name but all he ever did was jumping here and there in the campus. Everywhere I look, there he was. In Treasure hunt. In Science exhibitions. In plays. Guitar. Badminton. Blood Donation. You name it.
I, along with my group, sitting in canteen always used to say, “what a cunt he is, right?”
He was like those selfish guys, who thinks they're walking on sunshine and everything's a dream. Engineering is creative and all that bullshit. Typical edgy engineer.
And that's how we named him “cunt”.
The name got famous. It spread like wildfire. Everyone started to call him that.
But, he didn't stop what he was doing.
Mocking became his daily routine among all the other things he was doing.
Let's cut to the chase for what y'all here for.
I got a call after 3 years “Cunt got 12 lpa package, highest in the college”
And what was his senior, a.k.a me doing at that time?
A ₹18k per month job.
This is not a story where I would turn my life upside around after getting the news.
The damage was done.
An image flashed in my mind. I compared —
Me: A lazy man, sitting with his loser friends, judging a well-active guy participating in activities.
He: Improved his communication skills, his leadership qualities, his technical knowledge, his area of expertise only at the cost of a 'bad name' spread in college.
12 lac per anum at the cost of 'cunt' name?
I'd take that deal anytime, if given chance.
What is the best piece of career advice I can give to you?
Academics only aren't gonna cut you up.
If you are pursuing any course,
Participate.
Participate in everything.
If you lose, that's okay. Loss is good.
Atleast you're out of your comfort zone. Now you just gotta find out a new zone.
And a new zone after that.
Make it your routine.