Blog

Set within the backdrop of the unprecedented outbreak of Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic that has unleashed an air of fear and uncertainty across the world and has, in turn, necessitated ‘LOCKDOWNS’ almost everywhere – the much awaited WEBINAR by the renowned Indian author Mr. Chetan Bhagat on the topic “HOW TO STAY MOTIVATED IN A LOCKDOWN” organized by AEG for PGDM/MBA students and aspirants on Sunday, 26th April 2020 at 3:00 pm turned out to be a memorable event for all who participated in it.

An initiative of AAFT University – which is an integral part of Asian Education Group and is rated as “the first film, media and arts university in India” – this WEBINAR was jointly organized by Asian Business School (ABS) ) – which is a constituent group college of Asian Education Group and is ranked as one of the best B-schools in Delhi NCR – for all PGDM students. The WEBINAR was followed by a Q&A Session with the distinguished guest.

The session opened with Mr. Chetan Bhagat acknowledging the fact that the “Lockdown was not a good situation” but we can “make the best use of it by staying positive and motivated.” He said, “Lockdown is bad but temporary and it is going to get over” and “while you are in it, you should try to have a Productive Day each day.”

Stating that the lockdown has given people the much coveted “Time” to do all the things that they were otherwise not finding time to do, the distinguished guest laid down a few parameters of “HOW TO STAY MOTIVATED IN A LOCKDOWN”.

The first point he stressed upon was “DISCIPLINE” which, according to him, “was a sine qua non of achieving anything worthwhile in this world.” He defined discipline as “doing it when you don’t feel like doing it”. Citing his own example of how his new book that was scheduled to be released during this time has got shelved because of the lockdown, he said that without wasting time, he has now started writing his next book and is thus making the best use of this lockdown time.

The next point he highlighted upon to make the day ‘Productive’ was to become “ADAPTIVE” to the changing situation. Here, the renowned writer suggested to “just change the direction of one’s thoughts” and acquire a “positive attitude” and assess “how this lockdown is good for me”.

Finally, the famous motivational speaker harped upon the great role and importance of “PATIENCE”, not only in this extraordinary situation but also in life generally.

Mr. Bhagat then opened the session for questions from the participants. Several questions relating to his life and times were put up by the students. One question was, “What would you have been if not Chetan Bhagat?”, to which he replied saying that he always liked writing and had always wanted to pursue his dreams and hence could achieve whatever he is now today. He advised the students, “Don’t give up on your hobbies and extracurricular; if something gives you joy, do it!”

There were other questions like “How he justified his different roles”, “The books that he read & liked”, “Which authors inspired him most”, “Did he ever face rejection”, and “A day in his life under lockdown”. To all these questions, Mr. Bhagat replied convincingly and motivationally.

He recommended the students to always try to achieve a work-life balance and read biographies of great people for constant inspiration in life.

Towards conclusion, in his message for the students, he said, “This lockdown will pass. Look at it as an opportunity and not as a hindrance. And always think about how you can be happy and productive during this time”.

In the end, Mr. Bhagat thanked the AEG Family for giving him this wonderful opportunity of hosting “his first ever Webinar” and commended the AEG Family for always trying to be innovative and being at the forefront of things in the best interest of the students and the motherland, India.