It’s all about being happy!

What do you want out of life? Money? Stardom? Fame? Love? Power? Fun? Success? Most probably a combination of some of these would be what you want out of life. If you want all the above, don’t read further, you are already too lost! Just kidding… I’m not here to preach anything, just jotting down stuff which have come to my mind in different circumstances of my journey.

I believe it’s all about being happy. It’s just that different people have different reasons & things that give them happiness. But if it’s such a common knowledge, why is it that very few people around you actually seem truly happy? I agree that everyone can’t be happy all the time, but if you admit the fact that the ultimate aim of your life is to be happy, then you should also understand that happiness is not something that suddenly comes to you 5 minutes before you die, it’s some state of mind you have to be in for the maximum amount of time as you live your life out. Looking back in life at any point, if you don’t consider yourself lucky & happy, then don’t blame it on anyone else, it’s solely your fault.

Now, what everyone believes in common is that these are things out of your control. Some say it’s god, some others just call it destiny, fate, bad luck etc. But I think it’s a lot dependent on the numerous small & big choices you make in life. For a human being living in this era, his/her life is constituted by work, family, friends & love. And each of this give enough reasons to be not happy. But what if you train your mind continuously to move on a bit faster to the next thing whenever you are hurt than the amount of time you took the last time around? And what does it take to do that? Just a lot of positive energy!

Happiness is contagious. Your happiness spreads to a close circle of people around you & vice-versa. Sadness is equally contagious, but it’s your choice whether you want to spread it or not. Choose not to unless when absolutely necessary & even if you do, don’t prolong this phase! Take life as it comes, live life to the fullest are all things you have heard a million times from so many sources, just try implementing them. Find out what gives you happiness, set your priorities straight and work towards it. Think positive & that gives you more energy than all the RedBull/Horsepower cans you can ever have. Happiness gives you a high which no other intoxicants can ever induce. It’s not fake, it’s incremental, it pushes you to achieve bigger things in life.

I strongly feel that every single thing that happens in my life is for some good or the other. It’s just that in the case of certain things, you understand immediately that it’s good for you & in certain other twists of life, you can figure that out only some time later. Steve Jobs’ Stanford Commencement speech has been pretty much inspirational for me, ‘you cannot connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards’. The trust you have in this statement is the only reason you would have to follow your heart. And according to me, ‘following you heart’ is the most important thing in life. Because once you start following your heart, you will learn not to blame others for whatever has happened in your life. And also, it’s only the heart that can lead you to the right thing that can give you happiness.

You should definitely watch this video if you haven’t already >>

Tweet

Tags: choices in life, connecting the dots, destiny, fame, fate, Fun, god, happiness, Life, love, money, power, stardom, success

The mobME Story

This was part of a presentation I did at Start-Up Saturday Delhi April Edition. Its very hard to put all the excitement & fun we had founding the company onto a bunch of slides but it kind of captures the timelines & some of the milestones we passed. I always say this to smart youngsters that starting up while in college was one of the best decisions we took. And it applies to all, because that’s the phase in life when you don’t have any obligations/burdens/distractions. I won’t recommend dropping out, but if you have some brains, you will always be able to manage the studies parallely. Doing some business, no matter the nature or size of it, gives you more insights & learning experience than any MBA degree can give you. Many wannabe entrepreneurs ask me, shouldn’t they do an MBA before taking the plunge. I won’t say no but its not mandatory. The biggest advantage of going to a B-school is the amazing network you will be able to build over time. That applies only if you go to the best of institutions. Maybe couple of years after you pass out, you will be able to spot your peers in some good decision making roles in companies that matter to you & that should help get you inroads way faster than a random guy out there. And business always happens on the relationships you build. But having said that, there is the alternate option of hiring good MBA guys to work for you!

When you are just out of college, you think out of the box. You don’t know the limitations, barriers or boundaries. You tend to think big & on that perspective i would say ignorance is bliss! But the mandatory trait in your mindset, is the ‘never say die’ attitude that is totally essential to keep you going when you face challenges. The joy of breaking a barrier is beyond words. It gives you a different kind of high that makes you feel you are capable of conquering bigger heights. And its all in that feeling. What you think is what you are, and if you think you can’t change the world around you, starting up is not your cup of tea!

Things to take away from the presentation is that >>
a) You need a great team with complementing skills. (I’m not for the idea of starting up all alone)
b) If you have a good idea & a feasible financial model built around it, funds will never ba an issue.
c) You need some sensible people to guide you & advise you but finally the decision has to be yours.
d) Clients rule! They decide if you will grow or decay. So keep them happy always.

Tweet

Tags: college, college startup, excitement, Fun, MBA, mobME, presentation, starting up, story