Pride goes before a Fall

Ever had the experience of looking like an absolute idiot?

I quit a lucrative job with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and became a franchisee of NIIT in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. The year was 1994. Thanjavur was an extended village those days, albeit a District Headquarters. Though my mother tongue was tamil (if you can call Palghat Tamil that), my command over the language was quite poor as I was more fluent in Malayalam (having brought up in Kerala) and English.

As an entrepreneur, though I had an Academic Counsellor ( the name is a misnomer, the job was purely that of a salesperson), I used to do a fair bit of Counselling myself (hey! it was my own business after all) when prospective students came to join NIIT or to enquire about the courses we offered (for those who don't know, NIIT is an IT Training Major).

One day a boy who was doing his under graduation walked in at 6.30 pm to enquire about the course. I switched on my charm and gave him a sales pitch about the virtues of Computers, its future, job prospects, blah blah blah in English for nearly 45 minutes. The boy sat in front of me nodding his head and apparently taking in whatever I was dishing out. I laid down one USP after another, one benefit after another. Finally, I ran out of steam and asked him whether he would like to enrol. He said yes and went on to join the 3 year GNIIT programme. Over the period of next 15 days the boy, Ramkumar, brought 7 or 8 of his friends to enrol.

As time passed by Ramkumar, who was one of my better students was identified as a prospective employee was recruited as a Machine Room Coordinator and went on to serve me loyally and professionally.

While training the Academic Counsellors and my other staff, I used to brag about how effective my Counselling or Marketing skills were by pointing out the example of impressing Ramkumar when he came for enquiry which resulted in us getting 9 students.

One day in late 1997, I was bragging for the umpteenth time, turned to Ramkumar and asked him pompously " Ramkumar, tell these new staff all the benefits I explained when you came to join and how it assisted you in making a decision".

Ramkumar looked at me sadly and said (by then he has acquired sufficient seniority to tell the truth) " Sir, to tell the truth, I did not understand a single word you said for 45 minutes when I came to enrol"

Flabbergasted, I asked "But why?"

"Sir, you see, in 1994, I did not know English at all having done my schooling in Tamil Medium"

"But, then why and how did you enrol", I spluttered

"Sir, I joined because it was NIIT. I had heard about it and always wanted to study in NIIT"

All this in front of my current staff and the new staff. I have read in Ramayana that Seetha invoked her mother Earth to break open where she was standing and take her down. That was precisely how I felt then. Hoped I will be swallowed by the Earth. For I was never embarrassed as much in my life before and felt like an absolute cuckoo.

I learned an important lesson in Communication that day. Understand your recipient, his limitations and above all for god's sake never assume anything.