The Chance, The Toil, The Fortune and Happiness. #Goodluck

Aaja aaja dil nichodein
raat ki matki todein
koi good luck nikale
aaj gullak to phodein ~ Gulzar
(Translation: Let’s squeeze our hearts, break the (clay pot of the) night (darkness), Lets break a piggy bank and find our good-luck)

Its the easiest to count achievements. When I was asked by Asha to write a good-luck story, I thought all achievements are my good luck stories.

If it were not luck, what would give me opportunities; than people who deserve more, are a better talent and have more resources available at their disposal.

Plain Good Luck.

However, I wanted to go back to the very beginning of my teen-hood when I was coming out of the cocoon of being taken care of the family and becoming an independent individual.

What explains the trajectory of my career. Where I wanted to be and where I have come to be?

Good luck needs no explanation~Shirley Temple

My story:

I scored average in my class 10 boards, by New Delhi standards (colleges close admissions in leading commerce colleges at 97 to 99 percentile 12th marks) and i was sick of studying. Always keen on extra curricular I was facing with a dilemma on weather I will be able to continue education or finish class 12th somehow and get into my fathers Rexine and PVC wholesale business?

I was so certain that I will never be able to finish education. So I told my dad, maybe I should do ITI or something like that to have some face to my education after wasting tonnes of money on a premium Delhi school. My parents laughed it off and school started. I took science because all my close friends did very well and made it an obvious choice.

I hated it. I did not understand any of it. A week of Science classes and I was over it.

In the background, my family was facing major financial losses in Gujarat and Bombay mostly in background of Gujarat riots, earthquake among others where dad’s clients were going bankrupt. I out of no awareness said, should I go to Bombay, live at my aunts ( we used to visit her very often on holidays) and follow up to recover the money there at-least?

Dad liked the idea, but told me to first get admissions in a Junior college first, till then we will not take a leaving certificate from your school.

In Bombay, I now found out, my class 10 marks were still lesser, not just for New Delhi but for everywhere and continuing my school would have been the only choice. The colleges I wanted to study in – the Jai Hinds, Xaviers, KCs etc would not take me for my score and I wouldn’t study in lesser colleges (Delhi Pompousness)

My Uncle suggested I try Kendriya Vidyalaya (Central School). It’s close to where we live, get better marks in class 12 and go to a college of your choice. I had doubts, from public school to a petty government school? Will they even take me in (KVs are for government official’s children). Regardless I gave it a shot.

GoodLuck No. 1: Their Science class was over burdened with 73 students in a 50 student batch and their Commerce class had just 14 students and they had to be 15 to continue running class else, the commerce students may need to transfer to another nearest KV. I asked if I can get admissions. The principal said, and I will tell you in verbatim. “If you have passed class 10th I will take you in Commerce, fill in the forms and fee and start school immediately, we have no space in Science.”

This was crazy. From where I was, all set to go back to Delhi, to my old life and school, now I had something here.

GoodLuck No. 2: I was now in school, new friends, a very non Delhi culture, most of my class mates were from the service background, very different from mine. While I was soaking this in I started Dad’s work. It was the craziest time. I have never remotely had done such hard work in life. I recovered money for him and passed class 12th by 2004 and came out a mature businessman, commerce graduate. If I were in Delhi – Neither of this would happen in the same sentence. I got into a good college and studied advertising.

GoodLuck No. 3: While working for Dad I was sick of the business of dealing with the uneducated and rude LALAs. I kept asking dad every day if he has been able to pay up the debtors, answer was No generally. But the day it turned to yes. I wrapped up. I didn’t want to go back there (despite being good at it). I started doing events through a friend before I started college, a friend’s brother introduced me to blogging and domain, hosting on internet – started a blog happymoneyonline.com and made money from it too. I was loving all of it. First time in years I was happy doing things. I got admissions to BMM and I was studying films and advertising.

This was plain luck. How 2 things channeled me to things i would fall in love with.

These 3 events were plain good luck. It can not be explained otherwise. There is no explanations either.

A Delhi boy, below average student is now a post graduate entrepreneur.

Minus the above mentioned 3 events, I am so certain that the line will be:

A Delhi boy, below average student, 12th fail (probably) in now working in his dad’s firm (because no one else will take him obviously).

It’s a better life. It was just my luck.

Find me on Twitter @rkbahuja & Facebook.

The amount of good luck coming your way depends on your willingness to act ~ Barbara Sher.

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You can also WIN Ashwin Sanghi’s book ’13 Steps to Bloody Good Luck’
by posting your #goodluck story on trhs!

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And I started reading today! Here’s the #GoodLuck #selfie 🙂