Your Circle Shapes Your Growth: The Friends Who Made Me Who I Am

The Underdog's Confession

I'm sitting here in my final semester, one paper away from completing my bachelor's degree. And I'm reflecting on something that still amazes me - how did I get here?

From first year's introductory papers to last semester's Deep Learning course, this journey went beyond anything I could have imagined. And the secret? It wasn't just hard work. It was the people around me.

Let me introduce you to my circle - the friends who were consistently better than me, and why that was the best thing that ever happened.

The LeetCode Warriors

From day one of first year, I realized I was surrounded by monsters.

Atharva - The Late Night Debugger

This guy doesn't sleep. Well, he does, but only after the bug is fixed. We built projects together just for fun - TradeConnect being one of them. Those 2 AM debugging sessions? That's where real learning happens. When everyone else is asleep, Atharva is still staring at error logs, and somehow, I'm right there with him.

He taught me that passion looks like losing sleep over code you don't even need to write.

Aniket, Aakash, Omkar - The DSA Squad

These three were solving LeetCode problems while I was still figuring out what a linked list was. Their competitive programming skills were intimidating. Every time I thought I understood something, they'd show me a more optimal solution.

Being around them made mediocrity feel unacceptable.

The Academic Titans

Rajat and Sourabh - The Consistent Performers

While some of us were figuring out how to balance coding with academics, these two made it look effortless. Strong fundamentals. Clear concepts. Always prepared.

They reminded me that fundamentals matter. You can't build on a shaky foundation.

The 9+ CGPA Club

And then there were the girls who made the rest of us look bad - in the best way possible.

Shiddhali, Ankita, Neha, Tanvi

Semester after semester, CGPA above 9. Consistently. How? Discipline. Focus. Actually paying attention in class (revolutionary concept, I know).

They showed me that being nerdy isn't something to hide. It's a superpower.

The Specialists

Sourabh Salve and Aniket - The ML/DL Masters

When I wanted to understand machine learning and deep learning, I didn't just watch tutorials. I sat with Sourabh and Aniket. They broke down complex concepts like they were explaining the weather. Neural networks, backpropagation, optimization - they made it click.

Learning from friends hits different than learning from courses.

Tanmay - The Cybersecurity Guru

Security, networking, all things cyber - Tanmay lives and breathes this stuff. Every time there's a tech discussion, he brings perspectives I never considered. He thinks like a hacker (the good kind).

He taught me that security isn't an afterthought. It's fundamental.

Swapnil - The Cloud Architect

AWS, Azure, cloud infrastructure - Swapnil navigates these like they're his backyard. Deployment pipelines, serverless architectures, container orchestration. While I was still figuring out how to deploy, he was optimizing costs and scaling systems.

He showed me that the cloud isn't scary. It's just someone else's computer - lots of them.

The Underdog Perspective

Here's what I realized: being the underdog in a group of exceptional people is a gift.

I could have felt intimidated. I could have compared myself and felt inadequate. Sometimes I did. But mostly, I chose to learn.

• Watch how they approach problems
• Ask questions (lots of them)
• Study their habits
• Collaborate whenever possible
• Let their excellence pull me up

What Each Friend Taught Me

Looking back, everyone contributed something unique:

• Atharva: Persistence beats talent when talent doesn't persist
• The LeetCode Squad: Competitive programming is a mindset, not just a skill
• Rajat and Sourabh: Consistency beats intensity
• Shiddhali, Ankita, Neha, Tanvi: Academics and ambition aren't mutually exclusive
• Sourabh Salve and Aniket: Complex things become simple when explained by friends
• Tanmay: Always think about security implications
• Swapnil: Infrastructure knowledge multiplies your capabilities

From First Year to Final Semester

Four years. That's how long this journey has been.

First year me would not recognize final year me. The growth hasn't been linear - it's been exponential. And every inflection point had a friend's fingerprint on it.

A late-night debugging session with Atharva that finally made React click.

A ML concept that made no sense until Sourabh explained it.

A cloud deployment that worked because Swapnil walked me through it.

A security vulnerability I would have missed without Tanmay's paranoia.

The Final Semester Reflection

One paper left. Deep Learning. The irony isn't lost on me - a subject that represents everything I've learned about learning itself.

Neural networks that get better with more data, more iterations, more feedback. That's exactly what happened to me. More conversations. More collaborations. More learning from people better than me.

I'm not where I am because I was the smartest. I'm here because I was surrounded by the smartest, and I had the sense to learn from them.

To My Circle

If any of you ever read this - thank you.

Thank you for not making me feel stupid when I asked basic questions.

Thank you for pushing me when I wanted to settle.

Thank you for late nights, study sessions, debugging marathons, and project collaborations.

Thank you for being examples of what's possible.

Final Thought

Your circle shapes your growth. This isn't just a motivational quote - it's physics.

You will rise to the level of people around you. Or sink to it.

I got lucky. I found people who were climbing, and they let me climb with them.

Find your circle. Be humble enough to learn from them. Contribute what you can.

And when you're sitting in your final semester, one paper away from a degree, you'll know exactly who to thank.

This one's for you, friends. We made it.