"If one door shuts, another opens"
While there is life, there is hope! Shikha Maheshwari is a true optimist who gives her best to achieve her dreams. An athlete, an ex-judo player, a budding corporate professional and dreamer, Shikha has surely come a long way. Owing to her good performance during her internship, Shikha got a Pre-Placement Offer (PPO) from her preferred company. Currently, working with the Signature India Food Private Limited, as their Area Sales Manager, Shikha shares her educational journey, talks about how taking up a sport is crucial and gives a few tips to her juniors for campus placement
Shikha Maheshwari was born and raised in a small town of Bhatpara, Chhattisgarh. However, her dreams were never constrained to that tiny town. Her pocket was filled with big dreams, and with a heart full of hope she was ready to accomplish them. "When one door shuts, another opens," she smiled, "Life is never going to be easy, but if we find happiness in small things, life becomes manageable. If you fail at one thing, it does not mean that the world will come to an end. You will soon find another opportunity to succeed. Growing up, I was love with the field games, which taught me a lot about life. And when I grew up and started working in the corporate world, I incorporated the things that I learnt on-field, and it has made my journey smoother."
Studies and Sports
As a student, Shikha always scored good grades. The town that she grew up in had a school which was about 17 km away from her house. And travelling every day for about 35 km to garner education prepared her for her future endeavours. "Up until college, studying was my only focus. That is because our school did not incline towards sports. I was studious and got good grades," she explained, while further adding, "My every day travel for about 3-4 hours to the school made me realise several things. First of all, it made ready to adapt to any condition. The time I spent on the bus while travelling gave me enough time to spend with my thoughts. This me-time was quite serene. Moreover, I shifted to two more cities for further education which made me realise the value of friendship, understand different cultures and learn new things. These small things have made me corporate ready."
When she entered the college, she got a chance to try her hands on different sports. Her graduation in Commerce was filled with taking part in college festivals, field games and studies. "Studies is must, agreed. But one must also indulge in sports which will broaden their horizons. The perks of taking up a sport are immense. It makes you confident, you can adapt to any environment, it keeps you fit and you learn to be patient and consistent. All these virtues come in handy in your corporate journey." A true athlete, Shikha excelled in 100m, 400m and later she even tried 800m laps. Not just that, she even tried judo, which gave her the confidence to fight her own battle.
Not the end of the world
Be it not continuing with the Company Secretary (CS) studies or leaving judo to take up athletics, these shifts have taught her that when you lose one opportunity, you often find a different one to excel at. When she gave up studying CS, she moved to Pune to pursue her MBA in International Business. "When CS did not fall through, I was kind of heartbroken for a few days, but then if that hadn't happened, I wouldn't have gotten a chance to pursue my MBA. And what I am today is because the way my PG college trained me. Which brings me to the point that whatever happens, happens for a reason," she explained, while adding, "As a teen, I was at my peak while I was playing judo. But while playing a match, I dislocated my shoulder. I was bed-ridden for three months and later, I was never allowed to play that sport due to my shoulder. But then I turned to athletics. And I poured my heart and soul into it and won several awards. That is when I realised when one door shuts, another opens."
"When I got to know that my favoured company was about to pay a visit, I gave it my best to get selected for the internship"
Shikha MaheshwariGiving her best
While pursuing her post-graduation, Shikha knew the importance of flaring well in the internship. "Internship is a golden opportunity to gain experience and increase one's marketability. It gives a student the chance to network and learn corporate traits early in life. If you play your cards well, one can even build resume which can further fetch good jobs," explained Shikha. Owing to her persistent nature, Shikha served her college as the vice president, and discipline and cultural coordinator. These roles helped to build her leadership profile.
She kept an open mind, eye, and ear to everything that was happening in the college. This trait of hers came in handy when her preferred company was about to visit her college. "We knew in advance about the company that was going to visit us. When I got to know that my favoured company was about to pay a visit, I gave it my best to get selected for the internship. I did my share of research, spoke to a few seniors and studied hard. And I got picked for the internship," she said. Getting picked by Signature India Food Private Limited was a dream come true. And since the internship, she has never looked back. "I knew exactly how to end my internship with a pre-placement offer. I worked hard and shined at whatever work was given my way. And within no time, I was handed an offer of a lifetime," she smiled.
It's been 18 months since Shikha is working with Signature India Food Private Limited. She is having the time of her life and hopes that she grows leaps and bounds in the coming years. A few years down the line, Shikha wishes to pursue her PHD to expand her knowledge, discover new things, enlarge her understanding and, familiarise herself with a broader range of conceptions.
As Shikha Maheshwari settles in well in the corporate world, she passes on a few tips for her juniors on how to prepare for campus placement and much more...
Networking is the key : Be it campus placement or the corporate world, networking is one of the skills that will help with several aspects. Before you sit for any company, connect with your seniors who are already working with that organisation. You will surely get some valuable insights which will give you the upper hand.
Keep yourself updated: Read and memorise relevant content to keep yourself updated with the current trends. Courtesy of the latest technology, all the information is just one tap away. Make the most of it, as it will surely aid in your preparation for campus placement.
Be yourself: There is no point in lying during the interview, as the one who is sitting in front of you is well-qualified and can easily catch hold if you are giving wrong information. In that case, just be yourself. Support your answers with real-life instances. It will make a great impact
Body language: During the personal interview, your body language will project your confidence, hence, you ought to present yourself genuinely. A few of things that you should follow during the campus placement rounds is dress aptly, sit straight, don't be overconfident, make proper eye contact, make subtle hand gestures and be honest.
Take up any sport: It is never late to start playing field games. The perks of taking up a sport are immense. It makes you confident, you can adapt to any environment, it keeps you fit, and you learn to be patient and consistent. All these virtues come in handy in your corporate journey.