Handicrafts & Me

Today morning Justyna suggested I take a Career Assessment test to find the right job for me. Normally, I would just take it. But this time, I knew what my ideal job would be - strengthening handicraft value chains to make them more viable to the artisan. Ensuring that she gets a fair share and a little more for the sweat and skill she has wholehearted put into the beautiful artifact. She created it and nurtured it - just like her own baby.

When I look back ten years, I quit my first job at Hewlett Packard. I was trying to figure out what excites me. It was this inherent love for the handmade accessories that made me pursue my masters in rural management. I was a Tier 1 city girl with hardly any exposure to the rural community. I was fascinated by the soft and subtle Mangalagiri,Kalamkari and Pochampally matched with vibrant and intricate Etikoppaka, Jute and Terracotta jewelry. This triggered my interest to dwell deeper and make a career out of it. Guess what, I didn’t even know their names or their places of origin then. That being said, absolutely all my dresses had perfectly matched earrings, bangles, bags, and sandals. Key chains, pencil boxes, pouches, ah, I can go on forever. All HANDMADE – from across the country. I was famous among my peers and colleagues for seamlessly color-coordinating from head to toe. My hostel room had my prized possessions on display. I brought a little bit of my madness to my work desk as well.

It was this craziness which pushed me to travel the country, to see for myself where the piece of cotton or the log of wood or the lump of mud takes life to be such beautiful, vibrant trinkets of joy. And also ponder on ways to keep the family guarded tradition to not die a natural death, and keep reviving them to let the profession be as professional and remunerable as the others.

While at IRMA, I was late to realize the little Garvi Gujari outlet hiding below a famous eatery. Once the treasure was discovered, all my student savings found their rightful abode. The little blue chair I bought, travelled with me from Gujarat to Kerala, to Vizag and then to Hyderabad. I still hold my Kutch leather belt as a prized possession, to be worn only on special days.  

Would you believe that I spent one-third of my salary at a Rangsutra outlet in Bikaner and still felt the need to buy more. I could have bought another Khadi kurta with delicate hand embroidery. Did I forget to mention the black saree with red handwork around the mirrors?   

And that trip to the Jharcraft store in Jharkhand. I literally had to beg the AirIndia staff to allow me to carry my coconut shell painted Warli art hanging, my terracotta tribal girl, my wrought iron sun, all carefully wrapped in kurtas and stoles (also bought in the store) and placed in the same store-bought bamboo boxes. Ah! Those days!

Another favorite is a trip to the Desi Charaka store in Bangalore. What pure delight! The soft patchwork duvets to the elegant jackets and the versatile fabric folders and wallets. What an array of useful and sustainable stuff, at affordable prices.

One of my most fulfilling projects was when I got an opportunity to pilot an Etikoppaka cluster, a Kalamkari cluster, and a Wrought Iron cluster to be sold on an e-commerce platform.  The idea was to cut the middle man and ensure the artisans get a good price for their effort. The only way forward to revive these handicrafts is to ensure the artisans are in sync with the market trends. They should use their skill to create items with a purpose. The added value brings a new life to the product and a better return to the artisans.

As the world is moving towards environmental, social and economic sustainability, these handicrafts made from natural recyclable materials play a more important role than ever before, to stay, and to rule.  Integrating them into the mainstream economy is the way forward.

More choices to make for a Libran, why God why?

Happy New Year. It is 2019 already. And a lot of things happened in the last 3 months. I went to Canada. I started the gym ( well, joined long back, got regular for 3 weeks, break for the trip & re-started in the new year again. fingers crossed) Best part of the gym - going and coming back with husband dearest. Good thing - makes the first quarter of the day productive. Bad thing - dont feel like going out of the house later.
Entered 2019 with a lot of baggage. My applications are pending. SoPs are pending. Bad news - my MDP is not eligible for any of the scholarships I had been chasing. Which means, chances of pursuing the course almost hit a zero. Too expensive. Hopes on TCD, the application has to go in first. Have to apply for courses eligible for scholarships. Huh!
I really don't have much to write on the blog today. I have to work on my SoP. Just wanted to say hi. And also mention about the two-day brainstorming exercise for taking or leaving 38, The Elms. End verdict, health is important than health. ANy day! And the delta R in the rent saving can be used to travel to Europe. Good luck to my Schengen Visa. Heads up to kick-starting of Euro travel!
Before all that, finish applications. And yes, interview on 15th Jan. All Together in Dignity! First one of the new year. Anxious, but don't want to get my hope rising. Bored to hearing - You have a great profile but we found someone with more relevant experience.

 Cheers 2019 - You have to be a career change breaker. Life changer would be a big word :D
Good Luck

Happy Birthday to me :)

One of my best birthdays so far... Smooth, warm, sunny and cozy.
Yes, I am 32. And I am in a position to see how the meaning of celebrations changed with time. The energy levels and the aftermath.

For one, a lot of to-do things have been stricken out. Bobo's burgers.. This has been on my list from the time i heard their advertisement on the radio. I know that I am a big advertisement additive shoppers, but yes, a good catchy advertisement is worth giving it a try. If they put so much effort into the advertisement, they might as well put in more into the product they are serving.
Next, irish coffee and brownie. Ta da.. both in one, topped with whipped cream and chocolate ice. Bliss. Murphys Ice cream was not on the to-do, but glad to have ticked it off. It was worth the cost. May not be the hype. I did enjoy the ice cream conversations. The reflections. And how not having a lot to choose from influences the customer. This is something i do want to explore more into. And the best part, how easy it is for a Libran to not have to make choices. What do I want? Brownie? What is your speciality? Irish Ice cream? Can I taste it? yes. Do you want a scoop of irish coffee ice cream with your brownie sundae? Absolutely! Problem solved. Wow
Red velvet cake. M&S didnt have a fresh cake but this was the best we could find. And... surprise! it turned out lot better than we expected. Moist and just the right amount of sweet. Ticked off. The cake seemed so irresistible, I cut it IST time. New night dress + bday started in the time zone I was born = bday celebrations start. Followed by cake for breakfast.. ah! those times :)
And my long due hair cut! Oh I was so so happy with the hair cut. It just felt so better with my husband's approval. God bless the young man :) He worked hard to make the day special for me. How it means so much to me

I have to pause this jottling for now.. cya in a while

Adding value

It has been about a week since the MBA fever has subsided. Made peace with the decision. Well, almost. It does keep popping once in a while, to check my commitment to my sector and get me in touch with the -areyouwaastingawayyourlife? syndrome or doyouthinkyoucantakechances syndrome. But hell ya, I made some decisions in life and I don't have any responsibilities. I should atleast be grateful enough to not follow the bandwagon and discover my true calling. Proudly Made In Africa knocked the door just then. I really liked their concept. Value addition to the products produced in Africa. Quite similar to the value addition I dreamt off for the handlooms, handicrafts, coffee,cashew, pineapple and all the products which KRuSHE promoted inside India. That is a value chain. Here, it is a Global Value Chain. And that brings me back to the crush of the previous year, GVCs. Value Addition and Supply Chain are sure keeping me excited. Again, pause. If that is what excites me, isn't an MBA more suitable? Well, from my research, I came to understand that switching sectors - as in entering supply chains/procurement wouldn't be easy with an MBA. So, lets say, if i am so interested, why cant I study them online, hands-on on work. I read that PMIA collaborates with the course Business & Society. Again, a slap on the face. Maybe I should have.... Hmm. But again, won't my internship be of better advantage. Bingo! Now, I am pinning my hopes on this unpaid internship. Adding so much value to it that it is going to hurt if i mess it up. Ufff!!
Just in time, I get an offer to MPA with a conditional scholarship of 4000 for 18700. So the idea is to get some experience (possibly an internship) before accepting the offer. God! Why do I have to make so many decisions in life!

Wishing me luck for my informal meeting tomorrow.

Me

Taking decisions, the Libran Way

The last two weeks have been crazy. One hell of a ride of self-discovery. On a  Thursday evening, two weeks ago, I got a call from Susie. Asking me if I was interested in taking up a FT MBA at Smurfit. Then I got a call from Colm, confirming my admission and asking me to accept or reject the offer in a day or two. At that moment, my joy saw no bounds. I was on top of the world. The best news to hear, probably after I got my IRMA admission. An end to all the confusion and uncertainty. I was so so relieved. I just couldn't count my blessings and feel how lucky I was. In spite of a not so impressive GMAT score and initial refusal to a full-time admission, here I was, ready to do an MBA in one of the top 100 colleges in the world, top 25 in Europe and the best in Ireland. Totally totally high!
Praveen was also equally relieved and casually shared his happiness with his colleagues. Bump! First road bump. MBAs in Ireland aren't the same as that of India and the US. You build on your past experience to don't really make a significant career change. With this, the over 10-day long research started. Stalking people on LinkedIn, asking for opinions on Facebook, writing emails in Gmail, having long chats over Lycamobile. Social media and technology have been fully utilised to get an understanding of the sector and my opportunities post the MBA. This got me thinking, why do I want to do an MBA? Bummer. I don't have an answer. Rewind back 10 years, why did I want to do an MBA?  Still, no answer. Why did I want to go to IRMA? I didn't want to do finance or hr or IT or Public Sector. My rendezvous with IRMA was an accidental love affair. The love for the sector grew with every single day. It was a risk taken on intuition and the love for not following the bandwagon.  And the scope and vastness the degree opened to me are never-ending. I enjoyed new avenues the course opened to me, the rawness and the reality. The uncertainties and the no-problem-is-alike scenario.
My stint at my last job ended on a bitter note and probably made it easy for me to leave my country. And the same feeling lingered on, made me write my GMAT and apply for an MBA. Not getting a seat and parallelly getting the official permission to work started a new phase. I made peace with not getting a seat and moved on. Though I was looking at the mainstream MBA openings, only the one related to my sector got me excited. I didn't realise my attachment to my sector till I got my MBA seat and had to give up on my sector. I enjoyed my work because I liked it. I may get a decent job after my MBA but that doesn't ensure that I would enjoy it. Switching careers is alright unless you know that you no longer want what you have and really really want what you are getting into. Mine is the other way round. Money was a definite factor, but when I was writing my rejection mail with emphasis on the inability to pay with the lack of scholarship, a part of me was frightened that if I get a scholarship, I might have to take up the course. I didn't want to get into this with so much doubt and uncertainty. This isn't my true calling. I never had the business acumen or the fire to survive in the corporate world. I don't have it now either. I can't fight my place up. or keep fighting to keep my place.
This saying, the 2 weeks long grind did make me drop MBA off my list. The struggle is yet to decide if I want to take up MPA at this moment or continue looking for jobs. And to keep me from hitting my low. To utilise the time I have and learn new things. I have so many courses in my edx which i want to learn. I have n number of jobs on my indeed and linkedin waiting to be customised and applied. I have this major sine curve hormonal highs and lows. In the midst of all the chaos, I am searching for a routine, and scared of losing the chaos as well.

To more self-discoveries and finding the path, in all the chaos.

Yours
Me

TataCliq

I have been on a crazy ride for the last two weeks. Glued to my phone. Glued to TataCliq. Glued to Westside. Obsession? More than that. Actually, the first couple of days were understandable. I wanted to spend money. And I did. And I felt good. And then there was a brief pause. All good. Goods started reaching home. And then again, in the last four-five days, the itch is back. More about checking if what I wanted were reduced further, or what was out of stock came back to stock, or just, if I missed out seeing something which was good, and didn't catch my eye! I am sure I haven't put so much sincerity and dedication into anything like this, maybe after my MicroEconomics, cause that it what struck my head now. Anyways, I do feel there is more to this obsession than the want or need to buy and own stuff. I think this is about weighing options and making decisions and taking risks. Something I badly miss doing. I seriously don't remember when I did all that. And I feel safe to do this because it is totally my hard (or not so hard) earned money. MY money. I spent over twelve grand already. And I am not stopping. And the worst part, I am not being open to criticism either. I like it, I like it. I just want it. Some items are beyond rational. But, it is being some comfort corner for me. My little secret. Foxhole. Whatever!
I am not proud of what I am doing. I can't be back it up. I know I can buy at least half the stuff here at a higher price, but minus the transportation weight. More than a fraction might not even be relevant till next summer. All said, I still feel for the materialistic merchandise and just just hope the sale ends soon enough for me to get back to my senses. And that the weight doesn't go beyond what I need to be lectured about.
P.S. Flunked the job interview I had put all my hopes in. I did order a bunch of clothes assuming I would get a job and would need them when I go to work every day. I kind of upset me more than I knew it would, I don't really feel like applying for more jobs. I know I have to.  I am skimming through, but the fire did take a blow. Puffff

Till better times, or thoughts or weirder doing,

Thoughtfully,
Me

Give it up, before it gets you in

I am not sure if I am going insane or trying to use it as an escape. I am getting addicted to sitcoms. I was getting kinda low and misty-eyed this morning. Want I was to do was to open up and read some stuff. But I ended up opening the ipad and watching some stuff just to cheer me up temporarily. And then, I was totally getting so hooked up into buying stuff online. Which by the way, I had to just check the Primark website as I started writing the blog. I am giving in to my urge. Letting it take its own course. But it ain't the best side of me. I mean, that huge urge to buy stuff. I think there is more to the urge then just owning stuff. I think it is more of an inner assertiveness to fulfill the spending urge. The financial independence urge. The urge to claim what I have been trying to suppress. It goes without saying that it isn't making me any better. Trying to compare stuff with the costs here, thinking striking a bargain, illusion of saving. I need to admit. This financial crisis is cutting me from inside. I don't feel like buying new shoes and my feet are hurting like crazy after a walk. I don't join the gym coz I have to spend money on it. I am going through an emotional meltdown and it isn't the best thing I can ask for at the moment. And I am suppressing all this either by just stuffing myself with food or watching sitcoms or just playing wordament. It isn't helping anyone. But using my husband's money is only making me feel even more worthless. I know getting the job is the only solution but I am not working hard enough for it. It is all a vicious cycle. I was totally scared by the amount of time I spent on the Tatacliq website in the last three days. I was up till 11, 12 in the night to shortlist the things I want to buy. I had to buy the stuff today. I had to break the chain. A complete transaction didn't get complete peace but did give a momentary break. How irritating it is when you know what the issue is and how you can fix it before you go to sleep and wake up at ZERO every day. Every day, day after day. The days pass and nothing accomplishes. More fat on the tummy. More numbness in the head. And days pass. I was so fucking nervous when I opened my mouth for the interview. I am so scared to even look at the videos after the interview. It is easier to believe that I did ok-ok and be in an anticipatory good mood then see the videos and get feedback and work on my shortcomings. I am just worried about myself. The way I am dwindling downhill. I can not hate myself. But I cant pamper it over and over. I need to pull up my socks. But it is getting the same every day. Huh

I still have dishes to do and make the bed. Havent done a single chore since morning. 

Until later.

eM