Page 48 - IMDR - Journal of Management Development and Research - March2019-20

No contemporary man can escape this market trap. Just as fish cannot survive without

water, one cannot live without market. A fish can fight against other fish but not
against water. Such is the nature of contemporary man’s relationship with market.

One can fight against other hostile forces, but he cannot fight against air and water. If
one succumbs to the market forces, which as inevitable as air and water,

dehumanisation is inevitable, and if he rejects the market, his survival becomes
difficult! Is there an escape from such Catch -22 situation or a double bind? There are

no simple or generalised answers and each individual may find his own way to

develop potential with original answers. People like Steve Jobs used innovation to
beat markets while Anil Avachat and Bhimsen Joshi chose simple lifestyle to retain

creativity and talent.

Personality market

Another dimension of brand market is ‘personality market’. Here, the logic of

commodity market is extended to humans and relationship. Professionals in
contemporary societies are more conscious of projecting a right personality even

when they with their technical expertise in a specialised field of knowledge. Now-a-

days appearances and impressions are often more important than functional skills.
Pretentions of quality scores over genuine quality and they enhance exchange value of

professionals services.

Modern society has also created a ‘personality market’ wherein acceptance of a
professional by other professionals and clients is an essential factor for success in the

market. For example, MBA students strictly follow a dress code during campus

placements. Young boys and girls who show individuality in dress and behaviour
during the academic year suddenly become ladies and gentlemen in sarees and suits

when companies come for recruitment on campus. They are willing to accept the
norms of job market and to disown their individual choices and lifestyle. Self-worth

of these students depend on market (placements) success and failure. No wonder, one
finds more cases of depression and suicides in elite institutions like IITs and IIMs,

wherein competition of personality market is taken too seriously .

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