Living your dream

I am a regular subscriber of this famous youth magazine in Mumbai, called JAM. The people at JAM recently started this new column, called 'Chronicles of a Budding Entrepreneur', written by this guy called Abhishek Thakore who used to work with them earlier. This guy’s an IIM-B graduate, with an excellent curricular and extra-curricular record, which is too long to chronicle here. Anyway what makes this guy different is that he decided to opt out of placements, chucked away a plush white-collared job in foreign land, only to venture into entrepreneurship, because that’s what he always wanted to do. Sure, it’s the hard way out, with lesser money initially, more work, high stakes and every chance of the entire deal going kaput, but in his own words- “Each of us has a dream deep within us, a hidden talent, a hidden calling that we need to manifest. And after all, it’s my life and I have a right to screw it !!” His entire journey of getting his vision to become reality appears in the form of COBE, a reality series in print !!

Had read this quote in my school journal once- 'Don't take a trodden path, leave behind a blazing trail.' Heavy. Very heavy. Never realised the significance if that statement way back then, its got my mind tiking now.

A little reality check here: Do we really follow our dreams? Is what we do, really what we WANT to do? Or most commonly, aren’t the dreams we dream, often replaced by societal norms and ‘doing what is right’ ?? And the ones who decide to take the plunge, with little consideration for the risks it carries, only because that is the very path that is going to satiate their thirst for excitement, fulfill that adventurous appetite, and most importantly, make them happy, are applauded for sure, but when the time comes for us to figure our life out, we'd rather go with the norms, thank you !!

A friend of mine too, is a standing example of the 'living your dream' way of life. In spite of being a topper in COEP, and getting a comfortable job at a top MNC, he decided to quit it all and work in an NGO, only because he couldn’t gel with the corporate culture. Most people would possibly call that stupid, but hey…every person has been guaranteed the freedom to live life, on his own terms and conditions.

I often get amazed at how people can really convince themselves to risk it all, for the sake of one dream, how people can possess the passion, an unending belief in their idea, the keeda to do it right !! Truly inspiring !! But again, as my friend says- ‘Tasa inspiring vagaire koni nasta. You are truly inspired only by the spark you see within yourself !!’

Heavy. Very very Heavy.