2020/21 GISB ‘Orientation Week’ – Learning How to Surf

I was recently listening to my new favorite podcast called ‘Wisdom of the Sages’ and one of the hosts shared an interesting analogy. He said that if we want to successfully navigate life's challenges, we just need to ‘learn how to surf.' What this means is that life is like an ocean and the waves are all of what life throws at us over and over and over again.  We can either let the waves push us down to the surface or drag us to a place where we don’t want to go. Or we can learn how to surf; maintain our balance and make best efforts to determine our own path on the face of each wave knowing that the rest is out of our control. 

 

Covid-19 is a tidal wave that is only gaining momentum and most people are either swimming wildly to stay afloat or on the verge of getting pulled under. Over the past six months, I’ve primarily had the experience of just being able to keep my head above water for long enough to come up with a plan to ensure survival before getting knocked down again. There have also been dark moments where I just ran out of energy and felt that I was going to drown. However, something has shifted now and I feel that I’ve hit a point where I am coming to terms with this unexpected wave, finding my footing and trying my best to enjoy the ride.

 

This became most apparent with the 2020-21 GISB Post Graduate Program in Sports Management which kicked off on 24^th August.  During the weeks leading up to the start of the third year of the Program, I was feeling uneasy.  Not about any business related matters or the quality of our students – I was uneasy about running the first two months online versus on campus. Although, we had seamlessly shifted to the online platform with our 2019-20 students in mid-March, these students had already spent well over six months building a bond with one another and our Institute management. Our new students wouldn’t have the opportunity to start their fifteen month educational journey together physically from our world class campus in Mumbai.

 

I was kept up at night with questions and concerns, “How can we make the 'orientation week' inspiring and engaging for our students?” “ How will we help them open up and share what’s in their head and heart?” Will the students be able to effectively establish a relationship with our faculty and guest lecturers?” “Will any students second guess their decision of joining a post graduate program in sports management?”

 

The questions kept coming which made my team and I work even harder to put together a week of programming that they would never forget. Despite meticulous planning, I was still having anxiety. I so badly wanted our incoming students to realize the extraordinary journey they were embarking on. And i just wasn't comfortable with using the online platform as a tool to make this happen. And no matter how many times you run through the week in your head, integrate best practices from the around the world and ensure your team is aligned with what is to be done – you never know how it will all turn out until it’s done. 

 

I’m happy to share that ‘orientation week’ was a success! We had speakers from key members of the GISB family including Premier League, UMass Amherst, India On Track in addition to interactive ‘ice-breaker’ sessions with GISB management, former students and Tilak Shah and a special Q&A with Joy Bhattacharjya. The students were fantastic, participating from their homes spread out all across the country: Bengaluru, Kanpur, Bhubaneshwar, Goa, Delhi, Pune, Ahmedabad, Guwahati and, of course, Mumbai. Felt like all of India was represented on these Zoom sessions which showed up in the variety and depth of conversations we had throughout the week throughout the week.   

 

To be completely honest, my biggest concern was that the students would be missing the group intimacy which is a result of everyone showing up on campus the first week with all of their excitement, nerves and dreams.  Thankfully, all students were on camera for the entire time and we had integrated some fun and soul-searching questions into the introduction sessions which brought out the students’ playful and vulnerable sides. We also strategically used the Zoom breakout rooms function which is a God-send when trying to create team bonding opportunities and limit Zoom fatigue.    

 

Overall, I’m proud of our team for learning how to surf, for riding the Covid-19 impacted ‘orientation week’ wave with style and grace. And I’m proud of our students for choosing to kick off the temporarily adjusted Program with openness and honesty. It is a scary and uncertain time for everyone right now and it will take courage and collaboration for all of us to ensure that we do not get pulled under this giant, unexpected tidal wave.

 

Here are some pictures from the first week of the 2020/21 GISB Post Graduate Program in Sports Management.