When breadth is your depth, then influencing is your Dharma

Stories of Role Models

My story is for #influencers who feel lost after initial success. I am blessed, I sailed past that block and I want to share with you #how.

I failed the Chemistry exam in 11th standard. The lawn tennis championship was around the corner, and I was courting the wrong thing.

The school allowed me to reappear in time to move ahead without losing a year, but I learnt how to prioritise my time‌.

Since then, I have used my time to chase knowledge and amaze others with it ;)

Knowledge in all its guises has always fascinated me and I chase it with joyous abandon. Books and magazines - Yes! Conversations and debates - Yes too!

My education was shaped by wherever my fancy took me. It was a journey of breadth; spanned law, philosophy, management thought and comparative religions - to name a few.

Then there was travel. When I was not travelling, I would spend time yearning to travel.

Early on, while still in college, my biggest gift to me, from the Gods, was the realisation that knowledge is for sharing.

I can only say, it was their blessing that I felt the urge to share whatever I knew, as soon as I started working. I did not want to wait till I was a ‘visiting faculty’ with grey hair :)

On weekends, I would go to nearby schools and offer to teach English. I would also urge the youngsters to embrace the world without any hesitation.

I have always done so myself. Whether it is to embrace new ideas from books and people.  Or it is to share it with school students, college goers and working professionals.

A waterfall relentlessly pours water down, without thought or concern if the water coming from the top will finish or if flowing down maybe nobody will want to use its water.

When an influencer’s deity is a waterfall, then content simply flows. 

The waterfall flows - not because the waterfall wants to be bigger, but simply because flowing - to deliver the water downstream - is its dharma.

The water of knowledge has flown into me through Acquired degrees - M Phil, Law, PhD, Post-doctorate; through travel and conversations from around the globe; through the depth of our own spiritual traditions.

The water of knowledge has flown out of me in classrooms, training workshops, board-rooms. I have also written 3 novels and done as many TED Talks for the same reason.

I am simply being me - a waterfall doing its dharma. That prevents me from being shy or hesitant in what I have to do.