I was born in India, but my family moved to the United States when I was four. I've been living in the New York area (Brooklyn as a child, Long Island as a teen, and the city as a twentysomething) for more than 20 years. I play basketball and volleyball, and spend my free time outdoors trying to learn a new sport every summer. A couple of colleagues from work taught me to play golf last summer (which is a much harder game than I realized). But I also spend much of my leisure time alternating between friends and family.

Even though I live in Manhattan, I sometimes have trouble finding the time to enjoy all of it; there's always something new to see. I also read a lot on a variety of topics, but most of it, unfortunately, is not optional. Because of the work I do, I have to stay on top of the latest trends in the financial and technology industries. I no longer have time to read fiction on a regular basis, but once in awhile I find the time to enjoy the latest Tom Clancy techno-thriller. I also like to do crossword puzzles and play cards (I spent way too much time playing poker in college).

In high school, I really had no idea what kind of career I wanted. I had been playing with and programming computers since I was 11, and I excelled at it. In college, I continued that logical progression by concentrating on engineering and computer science at Polytechnic University of New York (an engineering/science school in New York City).

I was not yet interested in finance or business. But even though I came from a technology background, I realized that I didn't want to stay strictly in that field. At 21, I started to get involved with the markets when I picked up a book called Neural Networks and The Stock Market. I was enthralled. At that point I started to read much more heavily about Wall Street, and vividly remember coming across program trading strategies, and the controversy surrounding them. I started to read everything I could about computer models, neural networks, and pattern analysis -- which ultimately led me to start investing in the financial futures markets, which I still do to this day (I've had success over the years, after a VERY volatile beginning).

I started working in the financial-technology industry right after college, and in 1994 I was hired at a division of Advent Software that developed asset-allocation and trading programs for large pension funds and mutual funds. There, I learned a lot about risk analysis, hedging strategies, and market strategies in general. I also got to meet some very interesting people and some large players in the mutual funds arena. Later, I was offered a position at the Prime Brokerage division at Furman Selz (now a part of the large banking and insurance conglomerate ING Group), where I would deal exclusively with technology for supporting and analyzing hedge funds.

My entire working history has consisted of creating innovative technology products for the financial community. I've worked on risk measurement, trading, P&L systems, and many more. And it's fairly obvious to me that my work is valuable. Looking to the future, I may consider striking out on my own. I've always been interested in global markets, with most of my futures trading oriented in that direction. In my spare time, I've worked on various historical models in connection with these markets, and I've written my own pattern-matching programs to try to predict them.

To me, the MBA seems like my logical next step because I want to learn more about finance, markets, and management. I feel I need that formal management education to pursue a career closer to the business. I want to take my computer models and other ideas into a professional environment. Actually, I may see and learn things during the MBA program that will change my career focus, or open up new avenues that I had not considered. In any case, to help make the career switch, I want to be armed with all the experience and knowledge that my colleagues have. I want to obtain an MBA because I feel that I'm missing a big chunk of the knowledge that I need.

I am going to London Business School because in looking to gain an MBA I was very interested in acquiring an international perspective. I am convinced that the next century will require people to operate in a global arena. Banks and other large corporations are always looking for partners and expansion overseas. Stock exchanges in the U.S. are considering mergers with their international brethren. European monetary and economic union will amplify Europe's role in global trade and strengthen it as a financial center. European markets are reaching record highs and finally attracting volume from individual investors (more closely resembling U.S. markets). LBS will give me a competitive advantage in understanding and dealing with these environments. Many LBS faculty and alumni work on and research these very issues.

Of course, I realize that I'm giving up a lot to pursue this degree. A sacrifice has to be made in time as well as in money. I'll have to give up two years of salary in a field that offers extremely high compensation (current LBS students have told me that it's a depressing prospect to watch your bank account get lower and lower every month!). But no one can tell me what the future will look like in two years. The world economy could sink into recession, as some pundits are predicting, and it could be very difficult to find a job. However, I try not to focus on the negatives. I feel this is the right time for me to get an MBA.