Wish I heard this when I was in college

It’s been a year and four months since I graduated (surprisingly well) with a bachelor’s degree in Electronics & Instrumentation Engineering from Bangalore (the up and coming heart of IT for India & South Asia).

Due to my super nerd mode in the last few months of pre-university years, I landed one of the hotties of the university scene in South India- presumably the “top” private university in my state at that time in 2009-10, the infamous RV College of Engineering, Bangalore. Here I found a diverse spectrum of people ranging from:

But the fact remains, there is a certain range which does not fall into this spectrum — the ones who are a little lost in the new city called Life (like ones who are trying to find their way through the Chinese metro without Google maps — yes, it can be really confusing). The silver lining to this though, they have the leeway and the liberty to discover themselves, their spectrum and see where they lie on it.

There are some phrases which you will hear from a mass of that spectrum going through the years or close to ending:

“What a waste of four years dude!”
“I wish I had made better use of my time in college da”
“Best memories of college eh? Mostly when I bunked with my friends!”

And many more versions of the same core message; expressed in different forms.

Coming back to the spectrum; there are those who want to find their own, and then decide where they end up. The ones who are willing to create. The ones who want to do something more than what’s in the script handed to them. And sometimes, even better — make their own script.

Disclaimer: This note hereon is addressed to you peeps who fall into the above.

To you all, here are a few tit-bits from the “Hack-The-Engineering-Life” gift box — which I wish someone gave me when I was starting college. These are things that I only realized after enduring years of college life, and from my other ‘write-your-own-script’ type of seniors.

May be some are trivial, some are essential. Some are obvious, some are not. Some are totally made for you, some are not. Take whatever fits you, use it. Exploit it. Make it better. Share it.

Why should you even consider what I am saying right now?

I am currently living my dream in Belgium and traveled 10 countries (for work) in the last year after graduating; doing what I love. And in college, I was one of those looking for my own spectrum, to write my own script — And it worked for me. Which means, it can work for you!

One thing I absolutely hate — not exploiting the time we have. Really — juice the living crap out of it. 
Why? Because we deserve to! 
And I hope you do not have the historically repeated regret and say the same thing I’ve heard ever so often in college

So, here it goes:

1. Your university or branch does not decide what you will become.

“In India, young people first join engineering; then decide what they want to do.”

This could not be more true. If you did not get the college/branch you wanted, don’t worry. Founders of famous start ups, CEOs, world leaders did not all come from the top 3 universities in their regions or from Electronics/Computer Sciences departments. At the end of the day, what you did in your education is what matters — not only where you did it.

2. 100% Marks or Attendance does not begin to make you perfect:

So don’t crib if you didn't get those 3 extra marks you wanted. Help your friend out if he/she is not understanding something before an exam. 
Don’t say “Dude, I’m revising now, I’ll talk to you after the exam”. 
That’s just you being a dick. Because remember — your internal marks can’t stay forever; your friends can.

3. Explore yourself and travel, now. Because later, you can’t.

This should/can/will be a separate blog post by itself. I cannot even begin to describe the importance of travelling, meeting new people, getting to know new cultures, and learning to adapt in challenging situations. Google all of these phrases separately if you want. You will find shit loads of videos, articles, etc which will be super helpful.

4. Be around people you want to become. Choose your crew wisely.

One idea, that’s stuck with me for a long time — If you are the best person in the room, then you’re in the wrong room. Always be around people who are better than you. They make you want to be better.
You are the average of the 5 people you spend most time with.

5. Learn to connect with people. It’s one of the best skills you can learn.

Have conversations with your professors. They are people too. Do not despise them based on how they are in the classroom; they were once a student like you (sort of) are now.

Speak to your seniors, not just to get invited to Fresher’s parties. Get ragged (within limits), it’s fine! You will learn how to take things easy and not be uptight.

Thank the attenders in the lab, speak to staff in the canteen, smile at the security guards when you enter college. All these small gestures not only make the other person feel nice, but you will realize they can step in crucial moments in your college life and be the deal makers/breakers.

People — that’s who you will forever (until some AI-automation-robotic advancements decide to bitch slap humanity in the face) be working with. Knowing what to say, what to do around people is important, yes. But what not to say or do is even more.
Common sense, is not as common as you might think.

6. Be a part of a team. Be a part of something bigger than yourself.

Continuing from Number 5, This is one of the highest level needs as a human being. Yes,

Take part in teams, be it for sports, theater, gaming, photography, entrepreneurship clubs, debate societies, even if you think it’s some nerd IEEE shit — DO IT!

Working well with people; and getting people to work with you. 
Something that college for-fucking-sure does not teach us is how to work with people. This is one of the most sought out skills even when you want to get employed later (or employ others and be a #entrepreneur)

7. Learn to use the internet. Effectively.

Not just to download games, movies, TV shows, music, Netflix and the other post puberty adolescent content the hormonal kids are into. Internet and the world wide web — the breakthrough in the last few generations for humanity, has already redefined life and social living as we know it. This means, you have access to all the information, people, knowledge, resources you will ever need to capitalize on these 4 years and catapult yourself into the big leagues. 
TED talks, E-books, YouTube channels, E-learning, access to mentors, etc can help you achieve extraordinary things in a quicker duration.

Out of the things you read here, you might have already heard some of them from parents, family, teachers, friends even. Some might be new. Some might make you rethink stuff. Some might come off as plain B.S.
There is no way I can condense 6 years of my experience (and many more from others) into a 7 minute blog post. 
But going back to the core intent of this message — make the best use of these four years they way you want to.

There might be times when you feel that you do not fit into the script you’ve been handed on how to lead your college life. And it is okay! 
If you think you are not making the best use of the time you have in college (or otherwise), know that you’re not alone. I encourage you to explore and speak to people who have been your spot before. 
(More on how to explore yourself — coming soon)

Do reach out to me — I can help you with what I know or better yet, find someone who can. So, welcome to the best time of your life