I have always wondered if we all are in a maze.
First few years I was running in this maze behind leaders with the assumption that they knew where they were going, only to be disappointed.
I next believed in the wisdom of the crowd and ran with the crowd because that made me feel safe and secure. Once again I felt I was going nowhere in that rat race.
It is only after these two false starts I stopped to think and it dawned on me that the true purpose of that maze was to take the wrong turn, a turn others were not taking.
Convinced that life had more to offer than just following leaders or running with the crowd, I realised that the first step in taking that turn was to give up the idea of chasing the existing ones.
I quit my job without any idea of what I would do next. Working out of home in the early 90s I launched into the exciting and risky world of building something from scratch which did not exist. Slowly I was joined by people much smarter than me to keep experimenting with crazy ideas till we hit upon the idea of Remote Infrastructure Management. That led to the birth of Comnet which went on to cross $1 billion in subsequent years.
Life from that moment onwards has been about taking the wrong turn every 7 years. Try something new because the joy and excitement of chasing the unknown is 100 times more rewarding than being ahead in a race that has no purpose.
The idea of quitting a successful job and starting Sampark Foundation when I turned 50 sounded crazy to all my friends. Now looking back they all agree that it was a great decision because it gave me purpose, which they are missing in their lives.
As you read this, stop and think. Would you waste this life chasing dreams others have defined or run after people who have no interest in your life? Or would you rather take the risk and take that wrong turn and see what happens.
What do you think?