Life Lessons

There are more things in heaven and earth Horacio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy – Hamlet (1.5.167-8)

Life’s lessons are incomparable to anything you can find in books or what the algorithms can throw up. The earlier the situations are experienced, and lessons learned, the more equipped one is in handling the vagaries that life throws at us.

This is not a wish list. It doesn’t happen automatically. The more sheltered life one has, less are the chances of encountering the ‘aha!’ moment. So, go out and experience life as it is happening. Get to know people. Talk to them. Volunteer for tasks no one is willing to undertake. More difficult and complex the task, stronger is the learning experience. If you are still pursuing your academic career, volunteer for managing various student activities that happen in your institution. Join internship programs whenever & wherever possible.

Travel if you can. There is no activity that is more pleasurable to me than travel despite the unpleasantness that are sometimes inevitable. It is character building and at the same time gives an insight in people’s lives and thoughts. Different philosophies, varied perspectives and learning.

If we are open to such divergent views and do not reject them since they seem to contradict whatever we have been exposed to so far, it has the potential to make us much better human beings as well as a better adapted global manager.

Success at a young age without the benefits of life’s lessons can be very dangerous and at the same time detrimental for the individual.  

I remember, as a rookie manager heading one of the most profitable regions of the business, I mistook the relationships that I had with channel partners to be life long and true. Not realizing that the for many, their investment in the relationship was a convenient way of maximizing mileage only to relegate it to indifference moment the occupant of the ‘chair’ moved.

Before you make any hasty conclusion, let me assure you that in the course of business, I did form some very strong relationships that have lasted even today. They have moved from the business domain to that of personal. I am grateful to the various people and organizations that I keep coming across for helping me become a better human being; for being able to develop a better understanding of people and situations and for helping me become more empathetic.

I hope I was able to give as much I took from each of them.