I didn’t do an MBA to travel in sleeper class….

“I didn’t do an MBA to travel in sleeper class”                       

There are a few words that just get stuck up in my head and this was surely gonna be there for quite some time

What happened was that around 25 of us were sent  on a training by the Co. What this means that the Co was supposed to do all our reservations.

But some fellow sitting in the corporate, screwed up and so we were handed over train tickets -  4 confirmed, 3 RAc and 4 tickets in waiting list. Still not sufficient for 25 ppl, a few people decided not to board the train. The rest of us, 11, boarded. 

In whatever place we had we decided to adjust and wait for the TC. After every few stations the TC changed and thus we kept getting 1 or 2 seats.

It was 10:30 in the night and we were a till 2 seats short. Most of the berths were filled for the longer night journey and we realized we may not get any more.

We had one more option. Till now we were all seated in the 3-AC compartment. We had not yet tried the sleeper coach which was just next to us.

I suggested we try that and conveyed it to a colleague. 2 of us would have to go to the sleeper coach if we get a place.

A girl suggested that it would not be very safe for girls to sleep there and so some guys would have to volunteer

To which we got the reply from a guy “ I didn’t do an MBA to travel in sleeper class”

This guy was an engineer..actually all of us were… We were had  MBA’s from the top notch colleges of India. With exciting salaries and a great future ahead we certainly were on the top of the world. I thought why I had done an MBA and travelling in 3 tier AC was definitely not the motivation.

I volunteered to go.

And now we needed one more person.

Everybody looked at each other.

Eventually another girl volunteered. I must mention this that her credentials included “B-tech from IIT Madras and MBA- Finance from IIM Lucknow” 

“ I didn’t do an MBA to travel in sleeper class” resonated in my head and I almost laughed at the irony.

Is an MBA just a ticket, to a “first class life” ?? What ever happened to PASSION, GOALS, MAKING A DIFFERENCE….or are these just “words for interview” ??

What happened in the end??? we got one more ticket in 3rd AC and then me and another friend shared a berth… But the guys….didnt move!!!

Learning the ways of life….sometimes the hard way…..

Abha Deshkar

1/10/2011