Its been an eventful one year. The beginning was small, it became big and eventually completed its lifecycle. Like all other good things, YouthPad.com is coming to an end of its journey. There are a multiple reasons to it, which I wont be discussing, but I am glad to say that, till the time it stayed, it served the purpose and made the difference.

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Recently I had a very engrossing debate with a close friend of mine. As usual the discussions revolved around success and characteristics of people who succeed. This friend also being from the 'StartUp' community, like everyone else from this category of people is hoping for a breakthrough in near future.

We were trying to analyse what do these 'already successful', 'brokenthrough' guys do differently from not so successful but equally talented people. After discussing a huge list of people, famous, infamous, rich, poor, mean, generous, all kinds of people, we concluded that it was just the timing which made these people successful. They made moves at the right time. Not that it was planned or anything. It just happened at the right time. We also tried analysing the traits of a failure. In most cases, it was the bad timing of their moves, risks, and even their birth which deprived them from becoming a great.
Here are some examples which would make my above statements clearer.

1. In American Football, it was noticed that most national footballers had their birthdays concentrated in certain months. On further analysis, it was found that the school selection camps was the root cause of this scenario. In all schools across America, the selections were held in Springs. The teams were classified according to age. So in all age categories, kids who had completed 10-11 months of that year were slightly stronger than the ones who had their birthdays just before the spring. So invariably just because of a few months, these kids lost out on a chance to be in the school team, even if some of them might have been better players than their stronger friends. Here the timing of their birth played an important part. Those students who were born just after spring had a better chance of making to the team as compared to those born just before the spring.

2. The timing of the career moves, even if these decisions were a part of the natural progress plays an important part in your successful career. Recently I met a guy in his late twenties, working for an international lifestyle brand. His business card said that he was the 'Director'. He was introduced to me by a common friend. I later asked my friend about his 'secret' to such giant strides in his career. He told me that 5 years back he had passes out of a Tier 2 B-School. He got placed in this company as an Asst Sales Manager. Couple of years later, this company brought this multinational lifestyle product under their own brand umbrella. He was made the in charge  for that particular product directly reporting to the Brand Manager. This is when the Brand Manager quit his job and created a void in the organization structure. What made the matters worse was that the company had decided to launch this product in a fill fledged manner, that too independent of the Indian mother brand. It was decided that this guy will have to be given additional responsibilities of being the Brand Manager and Sales Manager of this brand. In 3 years time he was heading the Sales and Marketing of a leading international lifestyle brand. He had never expected this in his wildest dreams. These additional responsibilities ignited the entrepreneurial fire in him and he gave in more than 100%. The brand became a run away success. A couple of years later, he was made the director of the company for the hard work he put in.
His hard work coupled with a few events with a perfect timing handed him a success, which he could only dream of.

3. Recently the Sri Lanka-New Zealand test series was concluded. As usual New Zealand Captain Dan Vettori played a lone hand in what was an absolute drubbing. On checking the statistics, one realises that, he was the highest wicket taker and run scorer for New Zealand in the series. On increasing the time period of this statistics, it shows that he has been the highest run scorer and wicket taker for New Zealand in last two years. In these two years, New Zealand has won only 7-8 matches, that too against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Consequentially Daniel Vettori always gets neglected by experts and even laymen, when listing down the current greats of the game. The timing of his playing years has gone wrong for him. Had he played in early 90s alongside a stronger side, his performances would have made a stronger impact. A 'could be' great in some other era and a mere mortal in the current one.
Favorable timing is not the only key to success bit definitely helps those people who are completely prepared at that particular moment. Its like a golden opportunity which eludes the speculative people but nitro boosts the 'raring to go' category of people.

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Recently, I have come across many news articles where the Traffic Police officials have been quoted, saying that they have stepped up the action against traffic violators. Its a good sign for any city indeed. The kind of chaotic traffic, which Delhi NCR has been witnessing for last few years, a strict action from Traffic Police was indeed necessary. But one has to see that at what cost are we achieving this normalcy in traffic.

I am afraid but in last couple of months, the role of traffic police officials has been nothing short of pathetic. After having received a free hand from their seniors, the on ground traffic police personnel have gone berserk in stopping any and every vehicle at their will. This piece of writing is not only based on my personal experiences but also of some of my friends and relatives, with whom I have had detailed discussions. Here are some incidents, which after reading, you would be able to pick out at least one incident which has happened to you in last couple of months.

1. It was the day when merely a couple of hours of rain had halted the traffic completely in Delhi NCR. The government's laxity was visible in the pools of water which had accumulated in most roads. A friend of mine was stuck in the traffic jam, and decided to call home to tell his mother that he would be late. This is when a traffic police guy jumped out of nowhere and informed him that he just broke a traffic rule. My friend was completely shocked. The car was at a complete standstill on the middle of the road. Even though technically he might have been at a fault, but logically it was far from being a traffic violation. Even though there was such heavy chaos on the road, the traffic guy was more interested in making my friend realise his mistake. Result: A argument without any conclusion. My friend was willing to pay the fine, but the traffic police guy didn't have the Challan Book.

2. It was a saturday night. I was coming back from Delhi to Gurgaon. I was in the queue at the toll bridge waiting for my turn. This is when I saw that there were police guys probably checking for drunk drivers. I felt relieved that I was sober. The police guy walked up to me and I pulled down the window. He asked me where was I coming from, where was I heading to. What is his business. Anyways. I answered the questions. He asked me how many beers had I consumed. I said none. He said it was difficult to believe that a guy on a saturday night is not drunk. What logic? I told him that I wasnt drunk and they can have my breath analyser test done. He agreed and asked me to accompany him to the Thana. This is when I lost my head. I refused to accompany him to thana and asked for the test to be taken there and then. These guys were searching for drunk drivers without the breath analysing kit. After a heated discussion, he let me go. For him it was an opportunity to make a quick buck. But sadly enough for him, I wasnt the kind of catch he was looking for.

3. A friend of mine was driving back from work. A police official waved and stopped him. He slowed down and stopped after a few meters. He was surprised as to why he was stopped. He got out of the car and walked back towards the Traffic Police guy. The traffic police guy told him that he wasnt wearing his seat belt. He felt damn irritated because now there was no way he could prove that he was wearing the seat belt. He tried convincing the traffic guy, that he was indeed wearing the belt. The traffic guy asked for all his papers, which he politely showed. Then he asked for his mobile phone. My friend was a little  hesitant but handed over his phone to him. He started checking the recent calls list to check if my friend was on the phone when he was caught. There were no calls in the last few minutes. Finally after the traffic guy was over with all the 'routine' check ups, my friend was told that he was free to go. He didn't even find the traffic guy worth arguing with and left that place.

I would like to clarify that I am not trying to look down upon the good work the Traffic Guys are doing, but some traffic police personnel see it as an opportunity to earn an easy buck. There is no reason why these guys should not be equipped with the Breath Analyser or the Challan Book. They know that many people end up paying cash to them as an escape measure. Also, the practice of traffic policemen stopping cars without any valid reason has gone up drastically. I have been stopped atleast 4-5 times in last one month, for no rhyme or reason. Maybe because I have a Rajasthan registration number, or maybe because they were hallucinating. The senior traffic police officials need to realise that the good work of most of the good on ground officials is undone by a small number of inefficient traffic guys who are doing nothing but holding the traffic for ransom...

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Recently I got a facebook friend request from a school friend of mine whom I havent spoken to in the longest time. I accepted the friend request and started browsing through his profile to find out what he was upto in last 6-7 years. I opened his photo album and was pleasantly surprised to see my friend in the army unifrom with an AK 47 in his hand.
It wasnt a one of pic, rather there was an entire album of pictures from his base camp in Kashmir. It took me a while to actually come to terms that one of my friends actually joined Army and is currently posted in Kashmir. A rank in army is such a glorified position, yet strangely not many of us ever pursue it with passion.
From a batch size of 300 in our school, 15 people got into IIT, 100 others got into various other engineering colleges, 15 became doctors, but only one dared to join the army.
In last one week, there has been a lot of talk about the Kargil War and the heroic deeds of our Jawans. We draw so much pride, when we talk about the Indian Army and its achievements, but somehow we fail to even think about being a part of it. I am sure, its just not the lack of courage, but also a few other factors, which has created this notion in the Urban Youth of India.
Inappropriate pay packages is one huge factor which keeps the youth away from joining the army, but the recent incidents of disrespect shown by politicians towards the Martyrs would have only accentuated the unwillingness to be a part of the great institution.
Wars are never won by governments. They are won by armies. By brave men who risk everything to watch the borders. The martyrs who leave behind a legacy and a legend to inspire a million others to follow their footsteps. But sadly, when political agenda takes over the general good of the country, a feeling of resentment is created.
Today on a news channel, during the decade celebrations of Kargil victory, the families of the shaheed jawans were invited in an open discussion. Each and every family member made a strong point that, they wouldn't let any of their future generations to join Indian army. This just goes to show how we have let down the families who gave away their sons for our well being.
Government needs to realise that the reforms are over pending and Rs 5000 pension and a gas agency or a petrol pump cannot be used to barter the lives of our soldiers.
The kind of contorversy which was created around Major Unnikrishnan's death during the 26/11 operation was shameful. Similarly, the deaf ears which government was offering for last one week to all the requests for a major celebration, just highlighted the effect of politics on even such sensitive issues in India. Thankfully, Prime Minister made his face saving appearance at Amar Jawan Jyoti today morning, his first such appearance on Vijay Diwas in five years of his office.

Each year, the government comes out with figures stating that the vacant seats in NDA is increasing each year. Well, its for the governement to introspect on why this is happening. The day the brave soldiers get the respect, the means and the social security which they deserve, India would have redeemed itself and it would continue to produce the Bravest Soldiers.

On the occascion of the 10th anniversary of the Kargil War, I salute all the brave soldiers who spend sleepless nights on the border ensuring a sound sleep for the citiizens of this country..

Jai Hind!

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Today I attended to a monthly chore which almost all guys have to go through every month. Sitting at a barber's place waiting for your turn can be a real torturous experience, but today it turned out  be quite an revelation for me. I could never imagine that even a small neighbourhood barber runs his business using the same principles which any business would need to succeed.

I have always felt that barbers, tailors, cooks and craftsmen have a very monotonous work life, and they mechanically carry on their job without any scope of improvisation. We crib all the time about having no life at all without sparing a thought for people who follow a fixed algorithmic life day after day. Obviously the barber at this shop must have been experiencing the frustration of doing the same thing day after day. But unlike most of us, instead of cribbing, this one had found ways to keep his job interesting.

He knew his clients well. He welcomed everyone with a beaming smile. He talked to them, asked them about their work, and their well being. As, the guy infront of me in the hair cut queue took his seat, the barber said "Shall I try something new and better on your hair? I am bored of giving you a same hairstyle month after month?" The guy just nodded his head in affirmation and the barber had an interesting task at his hands. He made a few shadow moves close to his head trying to picturise what he wants to do to his hair. Then very carefully started trimming his hair. During the haircut, he asked his clients, the one on the chair and the ones waiting in queue for tea or smoke.

He had a sharp memory and remembered exactly where he had left the conversation a month back with each of his client. This personalised conversation definitely helps in the ego boost of people who love to hear about how awesome their new mobile phone is and how some xyz haircut would make them look like a filmstar. So, with the help of immaculate haircutting and talking skills, twenty minutes later, he had his client happily staring at his pretty neat looking hairdo in the mirror.

The client in a happy yet complaining tone said that the hair this time were left a bit longer, but they did look good. The barber, smiled and just nodded his head in acknowledgement. The guy got up, paid the barber for the haircut and gave a pretty fat tip indeed. It was now my turn for the haircut. He smiled at me and asked me to take the seat and started the same cycle again...

I was pretty impressed with the business and customer service skills of the Barber. With a new haircut, he ensured that he has something new to look forward to while cutting the hair. He knew that, if his client likes his new look, he would get an extra tip and moreover, he left the hair a bit longer, which would reduce his monthly haircut cycle to 3 weeks.

I never knew that a routine visit to a barber would help me revise my Business Lessons in such an effective manner...


Essentials for a Successful Business:

• Innovate
• Know your Customer well
• Retain old clients
• Constantly Scout for new ones

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Like everything else in this world, even the nature follows strict business. It keeps a count of every bit of laxity which it lets us enjoy. Just that it deals in scores and not in bits and pieces. Which is why whenever there is a catastrophe or an epidemic, it accounts for a whole lot of people.

You may continue to defy the laws of nature, but the day it comes back with a vengeance, freak accidents such as Air France flight 447 take place or a Swine Flu breaks out.
What role does the so called development or the modernization play in such Natural Disasters. Not that there weren't any epidemics or sinking Titanics in the old times, but somehow whatever negative happens now seems like an attempt of the mother nature to get back to the humans who have been exploiting it left right and center.
I have faced severe criticism from my friends for being so cynical about all human activities which now somehow to me looks like a deliberate attempt to exploit the ecosystem.

Very recently, I visited a colony in South Delhi, where I used to live more than a decade back. The geography of the entire area has changed completely. I still distinctly remember that the colony was dotted with trees and there used to be a lot of open spaces and greenery. Now,  sadly, there were hardly any trees and any open spaces. Most house owners had gone on to make a couple of extra stories and accessorised each of them with a couple of Air Conditioners. The local market has developed into a major shopping hub. But obviously with the total area of the market remaining the same, the extra load on the resources is clearly visible. Locals tell me, that there is an insane traffic jam every evening and the power cuts is a usual phenomena now. Well, god forbid, but this area is like a disaster waiting to happen. If ever there is an earthquake, or a fire, the entire area would be gutted down within seconds, thanks to the concrete jungle which has shaped up there..
It is one of the many examples which illustrates how unplanned growth is a direct defiance of the laws of the nature.

I dont claim to be amongst those who are not a part of this exploitation. No one can do anything about the vicious circle which we have entered. This year being the hottest ever, the ACs are running full throttle as long as the power is there. Because the ACs are working overtime, there is severe power shortage and when the power cuts are there, the generators come to life to keep their masters comfortable. ACs and generators only add up to the heat and hence we need more air conditioning.
It is a cycle which we all automatically became a part of. Some people who feel guilty about the situation, end up writing such a post, but honestly, nothing can be done about it.

I cant help but quote a cliche from Gandhi ji

“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed”

Its very true and will continue to hold true for a long long time. Just that the greed would keep getting transformed into the necessities..Just like ACs and generators now are..

-Ankit

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This is one of those rare misty eyed posts of mine and I request the readers to pardon the charge of emotions. Well, this post clearly touches those aspects which I havent explored yet and is difficult for me to pen down my thoughts without being rhetorical.

These are not just my random thoughts and infact have been on top of my mind ever since I watched the movie Raincoat on TV. I dont wish to write a movie review, but would definitely mention some sequences which have made a huge impact. Its amazing how simple and obvious stories when put together make a very complex picture. This is what is depicted in this movie. Why is it that people who are in love, suddenly realise the importance of the social standing of their lover and make an impulsive decision which generally is deemed correct on social moral grounds but unethical and evil from love point of view.

Well, this now brings us to another important question, how can a person judge his/her partner's level of success. My last post talked about how relative the term success is, but when it comes to judging the success of our future partners, we take up a very cynical point of view. In the movie Aishwarya Rai's character Neeru ditches her lover because he wasnt able to prove his economical standing even after repetitive deadlines. But knowing the tendency of life to come a full circle, things go really wrong for Neeru and her supposedly rich husband. They end up in a pigeon hole in Kolkata. The surprise visit of her ex lover upsets her otherwise monotonous life where she had subsided to her fate. How awkward is it to meet your ex lover, especially when there is a huge financial disparity. How can one hold his/her own ground, ensuring not to expose their weakness. This is such a typical depiction of a human nature, where a human can never admit his mistake, especially in front of a person who was at receiving end. Why is it so difficult to accept the reality and face the consequences of his act of haste in the past. For a man, to walk upto his more successfully friend does take a lot of courage, for not all successful men are as hospitable as Krishna and not all men are as vulnerable as Sudama.

The last part of the movie reminds us of 'The Gift of the Magi' by O Henry. The story which we all read in our primary school,the story which taught us to love our loved ones more than our most loved possessions. The story which taught us to give away our pocket watches and to chop off our locks if need be. This is one feeling which we Indians swear by. The feeling which one experiences from 'giving'. Especially, for the loved ones.
I feel it is important for everyone to have experienced a gambit of emotions. This comes from facing a defeat, from a broken relationship, from friendships which exist beyond financial disparities and time, from getting success when the chances are really bleak and to see someone go away when least expected. Once a person has overcome and faced even half of these situations, he would be a different person and his/her life would have changed for good...

Here are a few lines from a song from the movie. The song has been excellently sung by Shubha Mudgal, who is one of the finest singers in India.

सुबह सुबह का ख्याल आज
वापस गोकुल चल मथुरा राज 
मथुरा नगरपति काहे तुम गोकुल जाओ
मनोहर वेश छोड़ नन्द राज
सर से उतारके सुन्दर ताज 
राज दंड छोड़ भूमि पर वाज
फिर काहे बांसुरी बजाओ 
मथुरा नगरपति काहे तुम गोकुल जाओ 

These lines talk about days when, Krishna would leave his kingdom in Mathura and would go back to Gokul to meet her old lover Radha. They didn't get married, but they did share a special relationship which was well beyond the institution of marriage....

Your Comments

Well, I would like to start this blog by acknowledging the influence of Sri Harivansh Rai Bachchan on me and my mindset in a last few days. Its been over 7 months, since I quit my job to start out something of my own. Its been a tough but a very enriching journey so far. The most important learning has been the very definition of success. I now realise how relative the term success is.
Every person has his/her sense of success and satisfaction. The question here is, when can a person start calling himself successful. When can he start taking pride in what he is doing. Many people actually like to go along with the flow and go wherever their life takes them.
I would illustrate the above points with the reference of some people whom I closely noticed over the last few months. I will call these three people Mr. A, Ms. B and Mr.C.

Mr. A passed out from IIT Delhi in 2004. He worked with a software firm for 3 years before he realised that his calling in life was something else. He ventured out in search of his ambition and started a business in the field of marketing. In a few months time, he started doing pretty well and earned almost twice as much as he was earning in the IT firm. Since then he has been very happy with the manner in his life has shaped up. He feels that the best thing about his life is the fact that he is the sole decision maker in his life and is not governed by orders. He works from 9 to 5 and parties hard on weekends. He would soon get married to a girl with whom he has been for almost 4 years. Most of his colleagues in the IT firm now have a salary which easily matches his income and also enjoy other perquisites.

Ms. B studied in a Regional Engineering College in Bangalore. Like all other alumni of her college, she got placed in TCS. She is extremely happy with the work culture in TCS and also the fact that it may give her an opportunity to go abroad keeps her enthusiasm going. She has been dating a guy from her college since the final year of her college and they are working together at TCS. They both think that their combined salary is enough for both of them to lead a happy married life. They want to stay loyal to TCS for a couple of years before taking the nuptial path.

Mr. C is a graduate from IIT Bombay from the class of 2006. He worked with Microsoft for a few months, and realised that he is good enough to have his own company. He got together with a few of his friends, and they started out in the domain of Software Service Exports. Due to their genius, they got hold of the biggest clients and grew bigger each day. They started working on their proprietary products and also received funding from PE firms. Recently they got featured in the Young Turks programme on CNBC aswell. The ongoing recession has hit their business, but after a quick analysis and correction of their projection numbers they are looking to break even by the end of this quarter. This means, next quarter onwards, their venture would have a positive cashflow. For them the sky is the limit and they are aiming for something higher than that.

Now if we analyse the above three people, they all think that they are successful. While A might think that B isnt successful enough and C might think in a similar fashion of both A and B. This is where a person needs to draw a line between happiness, laidbackness and frenzy. A is a successful entrepreneur, but his level of success does not match C on any scale. While B is working for a software firm, but along with her partner, she would be able to match the level of A's earnings. Many of A's friends feel that he could have worked a little harder to promote his company and he could have almost doubled his income. But A feels that giving 40 odd hours a week to his business is enough. Similarly, people feel that B should be a little more ambitious and should think of an MBA before actually settling in. But her priorities are different. C in last couple of years has lost touch with a lot of his friends, but thats the cost which he has had to pay for the success. But the bottom line is that they all are happy and successful.

Using the same logic to gauge my level of success, I feel I have a long long way to go. Infact, I have seen a couple of major failures in last few months, but I am sure they have been huge lessons for me. And now, I have started setting smaller goals for myself, which is the right way to go about doing things. Pressurising yourself is very easy, but taking a leaf out each failure is what makes these attempts count. In the end, it is the grit and the determination which matters. Recently someone posted the poem of Sri HR Bachchan on YouthPad. Before I end, I would like to quote a few lines from that poem.

नन्हीं चींटी जब दाना लेकर चलती है,
चढ़ती दीवारों पर, सौ बार फिसलती है।
मन का विश्वास रगों में साहस भरता है,
चढ़कर गिरना, गिरकर चढ़ना न अखरता है।
आख़िर उसकी मेहनत बेकार नहीं होती,
कोशिश करने वालों की कभी हार नहीं होती।

I sometimes feel that, the success of Amitabh Bachchan can actually be attributed to his father sitting at home, writing these magical lines...
 

 

Your Comments

India is on a verge of a change. At least we hope that the there is some. I am not talking just about the elections. Its just a small part of the bigger scheme of things. If we look back at last 3-4 years, India surely has made some steady progress in various fields. But as we progress, we have to gear up for newer and bigger challenges.
Economic downturn, Terrorism and Global Warming etc are some problems which all countries in the world are facing and being an active member in the international fraternity, India has to contribute in its own way to deal with all these problems.
Definitely internal issues, like poverty, illiteracy and discrimination are also very serious and all governments, state and central, are trying their bit to counter these. Surely, a lot more needs to be done and all our political leaders, young or old, regional and national have these issues right on the top of the list.
The challenges which I am talking about are a little abstract and there might not be any concrete solutions to them.
A few years back, India was tagged a third world country. Our people never dreamt of competing with the USA's and the UK's of the world. Slowly things changed, more and more Indians started getting recognised on global platforms. India was identified as the IT destination of the world. India did better in all fields. And suddenly now we are in a state where we have started comparing ourselves to the USA or to China for that matter.
This is a situation which can actually lead a lot of complexity. Not on political terms but in the minds of the youth of the country. We all want to be the best in the world. We want to beat USA in the GDP count and China in the terms of being the leading international destination of the world.
Even as we have achieved a lot in last few years, we have to realise our limitations. Practically we may not be able to overtake USA economy in 100 years to come. We may never be able to beat China in the prices. And this is where we need a reality check.
Should we be really competing against nations. We might not be. But in case some of us are, then we should be ready to take the  failures in our stride positively. Sometimes over estimating our potential leads to cases where people are not able to take failures positively and this only leads to a situation where we start fearing competition and start feeling that we are up against invincible. This is one challenge that our nation faces. We don't want our youth to start believing that we cannot overtake USA or China.
America and China are both very different from us. These countries ride high on innovation. Innovation is the key to all successes. And this should also be the mantra of the lives of our youth as well. If we have to move ahead, we ought to have out of the box thinking. We should start thinking differently and in this process start acting positively. We will face failures, but that should not deter us from our path. Success only comes from a positive frame of mind, out of the box thinking and persistence.
And if we try to tackle the problems of our nation through this mindset, we may actually succeed in eradicating poverty, illiteracy and terrorism quicker than most of the countries. And then no one would stop us from being the best in the world!

Jai Hind!

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