Life Has Its Own Plan for Us!

I was reading through Shubhangi Jha 's post with the same title, and couldn't help bring back my TEDx talk video on SERENDIPITY that I did over two years ago.

As a coach, mentor and trainer I am at many times asked to talk or present on Goal Setting and I turn it down point blank. People mistakenly believe that I have gotten to where I have because I set SMART goals and worked hard to achieve them.

Nothing can be further from the truth because in actual fact, life just happened!!

From realizing that I was good at studies to choosing my engineering stream to doing my MBA to my first job and to where I am, I merely followed life's own plan.

And therefore somewhere deep down I believe in gratitude and hence optimism. And since I have gotten to where I have, I also practice quite some amount of generosity with my time, my knowledge and also my money.

This is not to say that things came to me easily. There is no substitute for hard work, discipline and persistence. And I have demonstrated that consistently.

The discovery of my ikigai also happened quite by accident and not by design.

In my present avatar where I am working with younger professionals to help them discover a better version of themselves, at many times I am in the flow and to me that is a hugely positive development that life has planned for me.

For the first time in a long while, I have decided to define and articulate the values that will guide my choices hereinafter on what I would want to do to keep constructively engaged. And these are ->

1. FREEDOM
2. FLEXIBILITY
3. RECOGNITION
4. RESPECT

Money does not feature as a main driver if you notice. Its not unimportant but is somewhere embedded inside Recognition and Respect. Freedom and Flexibility are key at this stage of life. I believe that if you sign up for money then you will need to sacrifice Freedom and Flexibility and that is something I am less prepared for.

I was recently at SPJIMR SP Jain Institute of Management & Research to attend their annual fest, SPANDAN. I spent a quality 15 minutes with the DEAN Varun Nagaraj and something he said struck a chord.

"The next 3-6 years are the best years of the rest of your life. Do you want to spend it chasing money and by accepting the illusion that you need to remain CREATIVELY ENGAGED?"

"Doing Nothing" may not be a bad word after all!!!!

Many years ago my friend Ananta Padmanabhan Sarma had told me that a key perk he sought in any job was the amount of FREE TIME the job offered. At that time it seemed unambitious and sedentary but clearly he was much ahead of his times.

FREE TIME.......yessss!!!! :-)

Given that Serendipity is something that has played a significant role in my life, I thought I must create circumstances for Serendipity to strike. Because it cannot come knocking on your door, I am actively networking and putting myself out there. My visit to GITEX in Dubai last year was an effort in that direction. Meet people, renew connections and remain on top of mind.

Hopefully this one time too life will ally its plan with my current values.

My TedX Talk on Serendipity

#PadiHaiwithKG