What if the fastest way to find your career wasn't choosing one path but exploring five? A conversation with Kashvi Saraf
What if the fastest way to find your career wasn't choosing one path but exploring five?
From ranking among the top 10% at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Jammu to interning at EY, ICICI Prudential AMC, and Bridgestone, Kashvi Saraf has explored consulting, finance, CSR, artist management, and content creation before most graduates choose a single direction. Along the way, she has built a writing-focused LinkedIn presence generating over 200,000 impressions, proving that curiosity and consistency can grow together. In this conversation, Kashvi shares how exploration, internships, and unexpected setbacks shaped her career—and why eliminating paths sometimes matters more than choosing one.
Q1. Your profile moves through consulting, finance, marketing, CSR, artist management, and content creation. Fields that most students would never combine. Were you exploring different industries intentionally, or did each opportunity unexpectedly lead to the next?
Kashvi:
I actually had no clarity as to what domain I wanted to choose. Thankfully, my parents had given me full freedom to choose any path I wanted, so I wanted to explore everything..and so I used my college and formative years to experiment with as many fields as I could, so that I could narrow down to what I like.
Selecting has never worked for me; elimination has.
Q2. Many students hesitate to apply unless they meet every requirement. Looking back, which opportunity almost didn't happen because you doubted yourself and what convinced you to apply anyway?
Kashvi:
Yes, I faced a hurdle in meeting the requirements of data visualisation skills that were needed while applying to EY, but I just thought, what worse could happen, I won't be selected. That would happen anyway, even if I don't apply, so let's just apply and try my luck.
I think nonchalance helps here.
Q3. You've worked with underprivileged children, government officials, consultants, artists, and financial professionals. Which environment taught you the most about working with people rather than simply working on tasks?
Kashvi:
I think every profession has taught me a different skill. Teaching underprivileged children taught me the most: the value of being grateful, and the importance of contributing to society so that people at the grassroots also grow.
Q4. At EY, you worked extensively with international trade and macroeconomic datasets. Beyond technical skills, what did analysing economies teach you about how businesses and even careers actually function?
Kashvi:
Beyond datasets, I saw the real implications of geopolitics affecting a country's economy. I saw the datasets and saw the huge numbers of imports and exports of China and how they are dominating. How India was affected product-wise in times of US tariffs.
Also, I understood the working of a govt dept and how they take help from these consulting firms to publish and analyse the huge amount of data available. They work on projects together and co-learn.
Q5. Most internships promise "learning," but the reality often differs. Which internship challenged your assumptions the most, and what misconception did it completely change?
Kashvi:
I've written a post about my EY internship that how it turned into a bad experience for me because I wasn't given any proper work there, small data cleaning tasks and that taught me a lot of things.
That internship completely changed how I evaluate opportunities today. Rather than chasing big names alone, I now focus on where I'll actually learn and grow.
For anyone interested in the detailed experience and lessons from that internship, I've shared the full story in my LinkedIn post: "My 'Big 4' internship was a flop show!"
Q6. You've explored multiple domains before graduation instead of committing to just one. Has that made career decisions easier, or has having more options actually made choosing harder?
Kashvi:
I think for me, it has helped me gain a much more holistic understanding of what goes into each domain. And that is probably what I wanted since I want to be an entrepreneur eventually, and that'll help me a lot.
It gets harder when you don't know what to do with all the experience, but when you know how to make good use of it, then you're on a great path!
Also, it has helped me narrow down on which career I want to pursue right now, which will help me become a proficient person in one field.
Q7. Today, there's enormous pressure to build the "perfect LinkedIn profile." Do you think students are optimising for learning, or for appearing successful online?
Kashvi:
I totally understand the pressure of being perfect. LinkedIn, as a platform, has been the "trophy cabinet" where everyone just posts their achievements. Comparison becomes normal.
So, yes, primarily, most of the people use it for coming across as successful rather than focusing on learning.
But some people are learning and optimising, and that's the right way. You need to learn from experienced professionals here, people who are creators. That's how they can get the best out of this platform.
Q8. Imagine meeting your first-year self again. Knowing everything you've experienced across consulting, finance, CSR, marketing, and content creation, what's one piece of advice you would give that has nothing to do with grades or placements?
Kashvi:
I would tell her to explore more, try more, start content creation early on coz it teaches you a lot.
I would suggest her to take part in as many case competitions as possible, take up as many internships in startups, coz that's where the real learning is, and explore and network with your seniors, they help you a lot.
About Conversations by Brains in You
Conversations by Brains in You is a curated interview series featuring students, professionals, entrepreneurs, creators, researchers, and changemakers whose journeys offer meaningful lessons beyond conventional achievements.
Rather than focusing solely on titles or milestones, each conversation explores the decisions, experiences, challenges, and perspectives that shaped the individual behind the profile. The aim is to create a growing repository of practical insights that helps students and young professionals navigate their own careers with greater clarity, productivity, integrity, and purpose.
Every featured conversation is thoughtfully selected with the belief that authentic experiences can inspire informed decisions, lifelong learning, and better human development.
Comments
Post a Comment