Blog piece No. 122…

As I turn 50 years old, I shall try to share here the key events and learnings over each of the decades. May strike a chord with older readers and possibly give a glimpse of shape of things to come for younger ones…with some learnings perhaps 😊. Learnings could be in the shape of what I should have done more…or what YOU could still do.

The events are key personal milestones in rough chronological order within each decade, the one big movie of the decade for me, one single global event, and so on.

Am skipping the 0-10 years decade since hardly any first-hand memories of significance remain. And thankfully, at that age, I was not converting learnings to bullet points.

10-20 years (1982-92) :

• My key events :
  • School, High School, first 3 years of engg college
  • Growing up with siblings
  • Cricket, Badminton
  • QSQT
  • Economic Liberalisation.
• Learnings :
  • In developing countries, going to college changes your ability to earn 50X
  • Go through curriculum of your college course and ensure that you somewhat like what you are going to study
  • If you are not talented enough at sports or a performing art, hit your books big-time ☹
  • Playing 1-2 sports seriously (3 times a week) is a good investment for your 40s
  • Start learning from documentaries on Youtube and Streaming media
  • Read 2 fiction books a month from 13 years of age till High School; then one fiction book a month and one non-fiction book every 2 months in grad college (under-grad in the USA)
  • Learn to write – essays, poems, articles, or even simply a diary
  • Pursue one musical instrument for at least 2 years before giving up, if you have to
  • Build a basic mobile app.

20-30 years (1992-2002):

• My key events :
  • Parting ways with college mates – different paths
  • MBA
  • Worked across Mumbai, Chennai, London
  • Got married
  • Europe travels
  • DDLJ
  • The WTC attack.
• Learnings :
  • Do lots of research on different paths one can take after college (engineering in my case); think end-to-end as to where could one end up and what types of careers are possible
  • Should do part of your education in a residential course (hostel) – improves personality big-time
  • In 50% of cases, the first job after college may decide the path you will follow for majority of your life; choose with care and with due research
  • When you start working, read one fiction book and one non-fiction book a month. In non-fiction, try to cover variety of causes (environment, globalisation, economy) and history of 10-15 countries.
  • Start working out 3 times a week, or cycling or running or swimming
  • Travel twice a year for 3-day domestic holidays, and cover top 10 locations in your country; one one-week international holiday every two years. 3-4 continents to be visited before you turn 30.
  • Give your job 110%; help build the business as per their Mission and Purpose. Try to work for great bosses.
  • Marry well; Just like you hire for great attitude, marry for caring nature…and then love and trust unconditionally.

30-40 years (2002-2012) :

• My key events :
  • Returned to India
  • Became new parent
  • Gurgaon/Mumbai jobs, Both of us working hard in our jobs
  • Bought first car in GGN, second car in Mumbai
  • Bought first home at 34 – still live in that home
  • Parents moved in with us
  • Professional CEO at 39
  • 3 Idiots
  • The Global Financial Crisis.
• Learnings :
  • If you can live comfortably – home, cars, domestic help…then do so😊. Focus your personal time in your core work activity – e.g. building businesses – for self or for shareholders, and in doing activities that you are passionate about
  • Choose a good school for children and then buy a home close to it; no school is good enough for kids to commute a lot
  • Exercise and health take a back seat when children are very young. That’s fine! However, don’t let yourself become too unhealthy.
  • Tough to read books in this phase. That’s fine! Keep in touch with reading through magazines, newspapers, Twitter.
  • If you have a passionate business idea, try to build it yourself. If you are a corporate types, try to find roles and sectors which you enjoy doing. You can’t fool yourself for 37 years(!!!), and you shouldn’t count the days and months and years left in your career.
  • Till children are 7-8 years old, holidays to historical tourist spots don’t make sense – they will forget those; take vacations for breaks for yourselves – neighbouring beaches, forests etc.

40-50 years (2012-2022) :

• My key events :
  • Helped build and grow three businesses
  • Wonderful vacations across the world, Watched 50 plays and stand-up shows
  • Re-connected more with siblings
  • Three car upgrades
  • Started my blog (this is the 122^nd article), Multiple articles in newspapers, My first book published, first podcast interview
  • Started distance running at 42 yrs, went to a gym for the first time at 46 yrs
  • Learned Digital Marketing, Consumer Internet metrics and now, AI/ML
  • Kid turned 18 and left home for college
  • Harry Potter and Marvel
  • The Global Pandemic.
• Learnings :
  • After the 10-20 years of age, this is the most productive and fulfilling decade where you grow as a person, having spent the previous two decades focused on your profession and in bringing up children through their initial years
  • At work, start working for the Vision, Mission, Purpose of your company, and not for your boss
  • Start exercising seriously. How you work out in 40s will determine how healthy you are in your 60s and 70s. Replace wheat and rice with jowar, bajra and ragi, you can have the cake but don’t have to eat the cake – a slice will do.
  • Start your reading habit again. Should be tough to hit fiction now. Can select non-fiction books now which plug your passion gap and knowledge gap.
  • Try to reinvent yourself with new skills, new hobbies. Learn a musical instrument.

Different people will live through these decades in different ways. Every model of life and way of living is a great model as long as one is satisfied and if one has grown as an individual. The above story was one such way of having spent these 40 years from 10-50 years. I have thoroughly enjoyed this journey so far, God has been kind and am grateful to everyone in my life for helping me become the person I am! God bless and wishing all the best!