I was a college student when I started my first successful business.

 I was a college student when I started my first successful business.

Before this success I had failed in two previous deals. Those small failures didn't stop me, I was passionately persistent in achieving my dream.

Yes, that was good!

But wait. On the other hand throughout my life, I’ve also experienced this same determination in achieving other goals that have made me experience painful lessons.

Same determination?

Now, this is a powerful lesson, so stay with me. I will answer your question, “What commonly accepted aspect of everyday life can actually hinder our growth?”

Let’s talk about this commonly accepted aspect of life: Persistence.

We celebrate persistence as a ‘key’ trait that leads to success in life.

Agreed?

Ok then, let me share my personal experience in dealing with this “positive” trait. Some people say that our greatest strengths are also our greatest weaknesses.

I agree. Let me prove it.

Persistence has ALSO been my greatest weakness when it becomes stubbornness. Believe me, it has been extremely difficult for me to differentiate between persistence and stubbornness.

Is there a difference?

My persistence has been amazing when it gets me through problems and hard times. But my stubbornness, on the other hand, just gets me into trouble!

Persistence is characterized by "will power."

Stubborn is characterized by "won't power."

What's the key? Blindness!

When we’re BLINDLY immersed pursuing a goal, stubbornness looks a lot like persistence. This is probably one of the biggest weaknesses I identify when I coach entrepreneurs.

Here’s a famous example:

Thomas Alva Edison.

Edison is famous for his persistence in inventing many inventions, including the light bulb. In fact, he is widely known for his famous persistence quote:

“I have not failed, I just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”

But the genius of Edison was ALSO a victim of this extraordinary strength that made him so successful. Edison was incredibly stubborn while defending his direct-current (DC) electric power vs his employee's Nicola Tesla's alternating-current (AC) system.

Yes, Tesla worked for Edison! Tesla discovered AC power while at Edison's lab, yet Edison stubbornly ignored Tesla’s findings.

This mistake eventually brought down Edison’s partnership with J.P Morgan, who later took over Tesla's alternating-current (AC) patents to create the monstrous General Electric Co.

Blindness brought Edison down!

Blindness has almost brought me down in the past, so today I know what will hinder my growth: Stubbornness.

So remember this critical life-lesson, how do you know if you’re dealing with persistence or stubbornness?

HUMILITY.

We must continually eliminate our blindness by having both feet on the ground, founded on unshakable humility.

If you struggle with pride… Be careful!

ALWAYS ask for guidance. ALWAYS search for mentorship. Pay for it if needed. Don't be stubborn thinking that you know it all.

Surround yourself with experienced people and NEVER undervalue their knowledge and previous experience. Once you are on the right path… then, and only then, never give up!

-Hector Quintanilla

Gut Feeling vs Peer Pressure

 We were drunk. Stupid teenagers thinking that we could make fun of every rule.

“Let’s go to Gabriel’s house and continue the party there!” one of my friends suggested.

“We don’t have a car!” I said.

“I’ll take everyone on the back of my pickup truck! Hop in!” Juan said while starting his truck’s engine.

I immediately hesitated, “I don’t think it’s safe!”

“Aahhh… don’t be a wooze Hector! Come on! Everything will be okay!” Juan said.

“I don’t like the idea!”

Everyone was ready to go, partying, singing, drinking and fooling around.

It was very late at night. I had two options, call my mom to come pick me up or simply go with the flow.

I ignored my gut and followed my friends.

We were balancing ourselves as the truck moved forward. Juan, the truck driver, wasn’t responsible of us sitting — and standing on the back of the pickup.

A quick turn was enough to change the rest of my life. One of my best friends lost balance and was thrown off the back.

“Stop! Stop! Stop!” I shouted to the top of my lungs while hitting the rooftop of the pickup.

Juan stopped.

We quickly jumped out of the box to assist my friend. He was bleeding. His head was totally covered with blood and unconscious. He had landed with his head on a yellow speed bump causing him to fracture his head.

We took him to the hospital. Four days later he passed away. He was 16 years old.

To this day, his parents cry every time they see me because I bring memories of their son. I’m always speechless. I can only imagine how I could have prevented this life-changing event for every one of us.

I lacked character.

To answer your question:

Not trusting your instinct, your conscience, your spirit or however you want to call it; will bring terrible regrets that may last a lifetime.

Today, I’m aware of that “small voice” that somehow, I know I shouldn’t ignore anymore.

Yet, it all comes down to character, strength, and courage to stand my ground even when temptation or peer pressure is on.

-Hector Quintanilla

You seem to have developed the habit of living in past and trying to change the past.

 You seem to have developed the habit of living in past and trying to change the past.

Unfortunately there is no method to go back to past and make any change. All the concept of ‘Time Machines’ that you see in the movies are absolutely false and fictitious.

You must get out of the mentality of lamenting over the past and start living in present and plan for the future.

Whatever has happened has happened.

Even if you have not gone to IIT, you can still make it to the top.

I am sure you know this man.

His name is Satya Narayana Nadella and he is the current CEO of Microsoft.

He is not an IITian.

He did his engineering from Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT), Manipal, Karnataka.

He never lamented for not being into an IIT.

Today, hundreds of engineers from top institutions of the world (including IITs) are working under him.

There is never too late for anything.

You can always make a new beginning and start a new life.

-Awdhesh Singh, IRS-IIT

You are poor but others are rich... Why ?

Peer Pressure

 “Rohan, this is the age to play. You can study later,” said my childhood friends.

“Rohan, school studies are much more important than JEE preparation,” said my class teacher in class XI.

“Rohan, CGPA does not matter. You need to apply to more clubs and participate in as many events as possible,” said my B.Tech seniors.

One decision I took in my childhood, that still defines me today, is that I never bowed down to peer pressure. Not in school. Not in college. And not now.

When I have to make a choice, I would talk to as many people as I can to gain their inputs. I am fortunate to have many mentors, and I seek their guidance from time to time. But when I finally take a decision, I go ahead with what I want to do, and not what others want me to do.

When I decided to opt out of the summer placements at IIT Kanpur and apply off-campus to universities abroad, my peers advised me against it. I opted out of the process nevertheless. When they finally realized that I was not going to change my decision, they advised me to choose a university in the US because of the rankings. I wanted to travel across Europe, so I finally chose a Swiss University. Once again, I did not bow down to peer pressure.

When I decided to opt out of the final placements at IIT Kanpur to travel again, with the hope that I will clear CAT, every single person advised me against it. I followed my heart nevertheless, not bowing down to peer pressure.

When I decided to go on a student exchange for two terms instead of one term during my MBA, everyone advised me against it. “MBA is all about networking with the students, and you will miss that chance if you go out for such a long time,” they said. I decided to apply for the dual exchange anyway, and had an absolutely amazing time.

When I have a lot of work, and my friends invite me to a party, I choose to work. I know my priorities better than anybody else, and I stick to that. This does not mean that I do not go out. In fact, I go out with friends so much that I hardly ever get time to sleep. But we need to realize that there is a right time for everything, and we need to prioritize accordingly.

When you take a decision without bowing down to peer pressure, you own that decision. And when you own that decision, you own the outcome related to that decision as well. Each of the decisions I took could have gone horribly wrong, but I was okay with that because I knew that it was my decision. And I was ready to take full responsibility for the outcomes.

When you own a decision, you will not have the excuse to blame anyone, because you know that it was completely your choice. As a result, you will slowly become much more confident in taking decisions in the future.

Once you become more confident in taking decisions, you will find yourself sailing through the journey of life much more smoothly. After all, isn’t life all about taking decisions, every single day?

-Rohan Jain, IIT-IIM

You believed in your capabilities and took a risk

“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”

-Samuel Beckett

You left good things in an attempt to achieve great things. This indicates that there was a time when you believed you were meant for greater things in life. You believed in your capabilities and took a risk. You were confident in yourself and decided to take a leap of faith.

You might have failed this time, but this does not mean that you were wrong. You just need to learn from this failure and improve yourself. You need to go back to the time when you believed in yourself, and then take another step towards achieving something greater.

So what if you failed this time? You now have a higher chance of succeeding next time. And even if you fail again, you will just fail better.

Keep trying, and a day will eventually come when you will rise from the ashes like a phoenix.

-Rohan Jain, IIM,IIT

Worked hard yet failed

Here are the following benefits you can get From GATE

1. If you get top rank, you can get a job in PSUs like IOCL, PGCIL and NTPC. if you get this job you are going to work with a few employees who have graduated from tier 1 colleges.
2. If you get a decent rank then you can do a Master's from IIT and get placed in good companies with good packages.
3. Even if you qualify GATE examination (which is a very simple task if you have studied your Engineering syllabus in an average manner), you can be admitted to Mtech which Pays you a stipend of 12400/month and you can be some sort of financial independent.

Regards

A Wannabe Engineer

-Anupam Shukla

The top 5 things I learned in my late 20s/early 30s:

1. People evolve based on their life experiences, circumstances and choices. It’s okay to let go of friendships that no longer make sense, and, to forge new bonds. The memories will always be precious; it’s alright to grow apart and want different things from life.
2. Everyone has their own insecurities. Even the best of the best; especially them. What sets them apart is that they show up every day despite these. Just because something seems scary or difficult is no reason to not do it.
3. The reason why most conversations lack authenticity is that people mistake being vulnerable for being weak. We fear judgement and are terrified that someone might think less of us; what we don’t realize that people were never thinking of us to begin with and it was all in our head.
4. People in their 20s want to to get married because they have only seen weddings. People in their 30s don’t, because they have seen marriages. There is a huge difference between the party and the forever-after. (Credits to Rohan Joshi for this observation)
5. You can sum up your life in terms of wealth, job titles, authority, fame, love, faith and about a dozen other things.However, at the end of the day, the only metric that truly matters is that “you measure yourself by the people who measure themselves by you”. (The Bucket List)

Bonus Learning: We’ve started becoming more open as a society to mental health and the issues surrounding it and are willing to provide help to those who need it; yet, we keep ignoring the silent and horrific cries for help from those who put ketchup on their Biryani. I mean...

---

In case we haven’t met before, I’m Rohan Kamath.

Thank you for reading. I hope I could help you ponder today. :)

7 ways to create wealth — NO money needed:

1. Invent something: Intellectual property and trade secrets can be extremely valuable. Patents, trademarks, copyrights, etc.
2. Your personal brand: Educate yourself. Get your ideas out to the world through social media. Write a book. Create videos. Eventually your name may be very valuable.
3. Standout: Michael Phelps' net worth is estimated to be around $55 million. Gold medals and lucrative endorsements helped build his wealth.
4. Expertise: Coding skills, expertise and creativity helped “Satoshi Nakamoto” to create Bitcoin — from nothing! As of 24 May 2017, Nakamoto is believed to own up to roughly one million bitcoins, with a value estimated at approximately $7 billion USD as of November 2017.
5. Consulting: Your experience can be very lucrative and people are willing to pay for it.
6. Problem solving: You know the story of the technician who walks into the factory, replaces a screw and charges $1,000 for the repair. “For five minutes of work? Why?” The manager asked. “One dollar for the screw, $999 for knowing which screw to replace.”
7. Knowledge: Knowledge is of more value than gold in the Information Age.

Invest your time wisely into a business, an invention, a technology, your reputation, customer relationships, your brand, your education, your health, etc. Anything that you own and control that will reap benefits into the future.

-Hector Quintanilla

Changing the World

“I can’t make a profit on my shop”

 “I can’t make a profit on my shop,” said Luigi to Mario.

“What’s the problem?”

“I don’t know. I have beautiful clothing. People walk by the store every day, and a few stop by to make a purchase, but I just can’t sell enough volume.”

“What have you done?” asked Mario.

“I’m doing marketing campaigns, always offering discounts and coupons. With low prices, I do attract more customers, but with low margins, so no real profit. What do you suggest?”

“Stop selling rocks!”

“I’m not selling rocks, Mario! I’m selling quality clothes!”

“You are selling clothing like you were selling rocks. You are selling a commodity. There’s nothing remarkable about your clothing. That's why your business will fail.”

“You are being rude, Mario!”

“No, I’m just being honest! Do you want help or not?”

“Please,” said Luigi, starting to feel depressed.

---

“Do you know what are the most common reasons new businesses don't succeed, Luigi?”

“Because they are selling rocks, I suppose…” Luigi said doubtfully.

“Correct! Just like all other retailers in this same street, all selling clothing. The ONLY reason people want to buy from you is for a discount. You are competing by price!”

“That’s a commodity, correct?”

“To succeed in business, you need to differentiate yourself,” stated Mario.

“How? Please give me an example.”

Mario paused for a moment, thinking of a good example, and said, “What does Nike sell?”

“Sports shoes and clothing,” Luigi answered.

“No! Nike is NOT selling you a shoe or a shirt.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nike is selling you an emotion. When people buy Nike Golf clothing, they’re buying the success of Tiger Woods. Nike sells the dream of being like Tiger.”

“That’s why they pay him millions?”

“Tiger makes an estimated $30 million per year from Nike alone. Seems like a lot, but now people pay over $90 for a $5 shirt. How do you like the margins now?”

“Sounds like Nike is selling diamonds!” said Luigi, scratching his head.

“Luigi, your business is set to fail if you are selling just another product in the market. BEFORE you start a business, have a strategy to position your ‘rocks’ above your neighbors’!”

-Hector Quintanilla

Changing the World..........

Life Problems

The greatest mistake people make when facing problems in life is to remain calm and hope that the problem would go away of its own.

Don’t chill when the problem comes nor close your eyes to problems.

It is true that some minor problem would get solved sometime without your intervention or lose its intensity over time, but most problems of life only get worse if not solved quickly.

When you don’t solve the problems as they arise and prefer to close your eyes to the problem and pretend that the problem does not exist, you only make your life worse. It is so because you start accumulating problems.

Your life is soon filled with so many problems that you are submerged in the sea of problems and find it difficult to even breath life.

You never get many problems at once.

Please look at your problems with peaceful mind and you are sure to find that most of your problems are quite old. They are still causing you trouble because you had constantly ignored them in the past.

You must rather develop the habit of solving the problems as they arise because it is much easier to solve a problem when it is small rather than trying to solve it later when it had grown manifold and become complex.

Once you develop the habit of solving problems as they arise, you would have peace of mind almost all the time, because you have only few problems to solve at any point of time. These few problems can’t spoil your calm because you are confident of solving them very soon based on your skill, knowledge and past experience.

-Awdhesh Singh

Changing the Past