Speak What You Think

After my MBA, we were looking for job placements, and after initial screening a few of us from our batch (4–5 students) were called for an aptitude & logical test, and interview.

This was for one of the leading Market Research Organisations in the world, and also a leader in retail channel data.

Out of many questions asked in the test, the one I still remember is, “Which flower do you like and why?”.

After the test and interviews, we guys discussed the answers we gave in the interview and also in the test.

One guy, who is now working in a media agency, gave a different answer saying, I don’t like flowers, I prefer thorns over flowers and reasoned that flowers unnecessarily get the credit just because of outer looks and smell. Thorns, on the other hand, protect flowers, but never get the credit for it. He also added many other things.

Unfortunately, none of us got selected there.

But his answer to that question made me think and whenever I appear for any job interview or test, somehow I recollect that thing, even after 15–16 years.

What I liked the most was, not thinking in a regular and general way.

Just because the question is, “What flower do you like?”, one shouldn’t start imagining a few flowers and start answering keeping this in mind.

What I also liked about it was the audacity to answer, which was not asked for. And saying upfront “No” and not thinking to answer a particular question in a typical way.

When you don’t have any job in hand, I felt such an act was a daring one.

What you think, what you have in mind, putting it as it is without thinking of its outcome is termed as both — courageous and also unnecessary.

‘Answer what is expected and get it’, is the simple option one can go for.

But people like that friend of mine, never follow the route most traversed and carve their path.

We are not in touch, just present in the same college WhatsApp group. But whenever I see such an odd type of person, I always remember him.