Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less travelled by…
Robert Frost’s unforgettable lines have inspired many entrepreneurs since they have been written. Exploring uncharted territories and playing with risk is part and parcel of the game. So this year, Eximius goes a step further by focusing on unconventional areas of entrepreneurship including social, political, media, sports, technology and performing arts with its theme being “The Road Less Travelled”.
Eximius 2014 – The annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit of IIM Bangalore acts as the confluence of unique ideas, creativity and expertise by bringing together students, businessmen and professionals from across the country. The aim of this annual summit is to uncover and nurture the budding entrepreneur within each of us by providing a platform to interact and learn from brilliant and like-minded individuals.
In keeping with the theme this year, Eximius boasts of a diverse set of illustrious speakers which includes Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament, renowned columnist and former under-secretary at the United Nations; Padma Bhushan Mallika Sarabhai, world renowned dancer, choreographer, writer, activist, actor and communicator; Mr. Piyush Pandey, chairman and MD: Ogilvy and Mather India; Mr. Piyush Mishra, Mr. Sanjeev Bikhchandani and Mr. Rishi Narain amongst others. Listening to these inspirational personalities will surely open a lot of doors for participants to the relatively lesser known areas of entrepreneurship.
An entrepreneur is an individual who dreams big and aims high but is not limited in his perspective. Out of the box solutions and thinking on his feet are the key traits of an entrepreneur which are also put to test at Eximius through its close to fifty events. Flagship B-plan competition- Ingen and events like Start up in 10k allow participants to experience the real life thrill of entrepreneurship. Through the series of workshops and panel discussions including Failathon and CXOs @ IIMB, aspiring entrepreneurs gain unique insights into the different aspects of and challenges in running a start-up. Start-ups are also given the chance to showcase their new ideas at the Bootcamp and Disrupt-it and pitch to the venture capitalists. The overall experience at Eximius pushes students to walk in the shoes of an entrepreneur and get a good exposure and idea about starting their own business.
Business is increasingly becoming as much about giving back to the society as gaining from it. Keeping this in mind, Eximius 2014 hosts a case study competition with ENS, Changemakers- political entrepreneurship event and an Entrepreneurship development workshop for women rescued from trafficking, domestic violence and abuse. The aim is to sync uncommon and relatively new forms of entrepreneurship with social change.
An entrepreneur is able to change the society he lives in only by stepping out of his comfort zone and constantly innovating. As Robert frost rightly wrote a hundred years ago,
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
So step out, take The Road Less Travelled and make a difference!