dx to Δ
Just another motivation story, we are living in a VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex & Ambiguity) world where everything is changing around us not only in a bad way but in a good way too. Once in a while we encounter individuals who are thriving and accomplishing remarkable feats, causing us to ponder their secrets: "Damn! That's impressive!". But we always forget to analyze the very small change (dx) in life choices that leads to big delta (Δ) one day.
Looking back on my own life, I wonder how a child from a small town came all the way. I was never a brilliant student when it came to studying. infact during my early school days. I used to barely make it to the first division (above 60%). and now when I reflect on it, I can only come up with one logical explanation; "I was too comfortable". Being the youngest one in the family, I was pampered by everyone. My father never forced me to study. Life was going well at least for me. until one summer when I was enjoying school vacation with my 3 younger cousins at my uncle's place and I came to know that dad felt sick and it was serious. things got so extreme that I was asked to stay in my uncle's place for the next year. All of a sudden my life has changed. from being the youngest one in home to becoming the eldest one in someone else's home. until that year I was never away from my parents for more than a couple of days. I still remember my first night, the same comfortable bed in which I was sleeping during my vacation became my home and all of a sudden that bed felt hard. I cried myself to sleep for the next few nights.
During those days I started to change or it would be better to say, circumstances forced me to change. and that was my first dx . I started focusing on studying. Somehow I managed to get into the top 3 ranks. just a year ago, I was struggling to even get passing marks.
Things got better, Dad was recovering well so I shifted back with my parents next year. but things had changed now, I was slowly understanding the importance of education in one's life. I started preparing for IIT-JEE but there was one problem, I was studying in a hindi medium school and there were no classes for IIT JEE in Raipur for Hindi medium students, there was hardly any good material available in the market in hindi. So, I joined one of the English coaching institutes for IIT JEE thinking that I will manage, because giving up was not an option for me. I used to study Physics, Chemistry & Mathes(PCM) in Hindi for school and the same PCM in English for IIT JEE. Things were slowly moving out of my hands. and I was desperate to find a balance between them.
Then one night when I was coming back from my classes, I met with a road accident. I was in bed for 15 days and my whole body was bleeding. All though that was very painful but this gave me 15 days of time to think and plan out the further course of action. I decided to focus on my 12th board exams pending month and will take a drop year for IIT JEE. After the 12th Exam, I joined Resonance, the only hindi coaching center, in Kota. I had only one focus to clear IIT JEE. At that time when kids my age were busy finding friends on facebook I was busy reading. I made a promise to myself that I will only make an FB account when I will be able to write IIT on it. and That was my second dx.
Following that, my life transformed into a roller coaster ride, and I began relishing the highs and lows it offered. I realized that making significant changes doesn't always require moving mountains; even a small displacement of dx can lead to remarkable outcomes. When I reflect upon my journey, I am pleasantly surprised by the considerable distance I have covered so far and I am still trying to make dx change whenever possible in life.
“Rajeev Kumar Pandey”