The people we meet and the joy it brings!

Many years ago as a young medicine student in India, I came to a realization that my idea of healing people did not involve sticking needles and tubes in them, and I had to find another way to continue my journey as a healer. At that moment, I realized that my biggest strength and passion was to meet new people and to always approach them with a sense of wonder and curiosity. This was instrumental in my choice of psychiatry as a career.

Over the years, this trait has only gotten stronger and has helped me immensely with my career and personal life by finding new friends and mentors, learning new things, and making new relationships. I believe everyone has a story and one must genuinely be interested to hear that to make meaningful relationships possible. So it sometimes comes as a surprise when my fundamental beliefs get challenged!

At the start of the year, I found out by chance, that a very senior leader in our industry is an alumnus from my alma mater in Jaipur, a beautiful pink city of palaces and forts. With great excitement and anticipation of learning new things and hoping to find a mentor, I approached him using all available channels of communication, including reaching out through strong mutual connections. A lack of response did not disappoint me but only helped me appreciate that time is a very precious commodity for senior leaders. Nonetheless, the great randomness of life brought me face-to-face with him recently at a congress, and I grabbed the opportunity to ask for 10 minutes of his time. He refused citing lack of time and asked me to talk to his team instead.

That was a critical moment that tested my long-lasting core belief, that we must grab every opportunity to meet new people. Even when it is very hard to do so and the time available is so short! The day passed with a lot of introspection and puzzlement, but finally, a light shone through the fog. I have always believed that everyone has a story behind their actions, and this was a test of my belief. Approaching and meeting people brings so many opportunities and joy, but the value it creates should be mutual. Not everyone may approach the great adventure of meeting people with the same enthusiasm and same comfort.

My resolve has only got stronger. Not only I will carry on with the personal mantra of finding new people and stories that they may share, but I will strongly advocate this habit to anyone who hopes to live a richer life. And I hope some of you agree with me :)