Thread. At age 26, I thought I had the world figured out and I knew a lot and was super smart and awesome. I was, after all, a precious specimen in India, as an engineer-MBA. I started my business administration (marketing) PhD thinking I was top dog.

Reality caught up...

I grew up in an India where engineers were revered. Quant was king. Engineers were good at quant. So if they did an MBA, they were like gods. Humanities were mostly for dumb people, we used to dumbly think. How very wrong we were!

Then I got a life lesson in the first year of my PhD. It was a Research Design class. The first assignment was to submit a two page write-up on our research idea and the underlying arguments. Make a convincing case for our hypotheses. Seemed simple enough.

I had a couple of other quant courses. So I spent more time on them. Cos I came from a world where quant is the "real" deal.
This assignment, I stupidly classified as just "english writing". As long as you can write grammatically correct English, you're good. So I did it fast.

The professor returned my assignment with so many comments in red pen with so many detailed objections. Why, how, explain the logic type. And he called me into his office. And systematically tore down my write-up. Convincingly. Brutally. On reasoning and logic grounds.

That's when I first realized, that I'm not at all as intelligent and knowledgeable as I think I am. And I need to read and learn and think more. In terms of logic, philosophy, economics, psychology, sociology, etc. Very humbling.

What I used to think as simple "english writing" assignments in India turned out to be the most difficult and demanding ones in the US during my PhD. And every such attempt taught me more humility. And made me realize how little I know. Even if I'm a hallowed engineer-MBA.

I got that reality check only because I opted to go for a PhD abroad and was shown my limitations. And had professors at Penn State who were not just interested in tearing down my mistakes, but also teach me how to avoid them in the future.

Most engineer-MBAs from India, especially from IIT/IIM though never get that reality check. They continue to live in the bubble where they are at the top of the "intellectual" pyramid. They are the ultimate authority on everything. From business problems, all the way to covid.