At one of my many visits overseas discussing matters of business with vendor partners, there was one occasion where I was given the opportunity to share my knowledge and experience to a group of young IT professionals.
Even though I had been to India before, it was my first visit to Karya Technologies, a software development and systems integration company based in Chennai, India. While my work colleagues had made an earlier trip the year before, this was an important trip as it was to kick-start a major transformative project at our company in Melbourne, Australia.
After a beautiful welcome ceremony and the formalities of introductions, a one-on-one meeting was arranged between Venkat, the CEO of Karya India and I.
We discussed topics of personal interests, vision for our respective companies, our families, personal interests, leadership matters, professional development, training of staff and growth plans we envisioned for the future. Our discussions were wide and varied, which included my previous trips to India, specifically Bangalore, Goa and a few years earlier to Chennai.
There was a mutual sense of respect, aligned thinking and a ‘connection’ between the two of us as we continued chatting for over an hour. The 'connection' may have been seeded at the outset during our introductions.
It was in the first few minutes of the conversation when I stressed that my desired outcome was for our two companies to not be limited to work done at a transactional level. I added this was typical between vendors and clients, however our relationship should be one based on mutual and strategic respect between two partners. The statement I concluded with, was, “If we succeed, you succeed!”
Picture: Supplied by Karya Technologies
Later, and at the close of our conversation, Venkat asked me if I could spare some time that afternoon to give a talk to his staff at the Chennai office. While it took me by surprise, I was honoured to be given the opportunity to speak to the team. “You can talk on anything”, Venkat said. “Let that be an encouragement to the staff”, he added.
There were over 200 developers, analysts, systems engineers and management staff on that floor and while there were others, like support staff in another building, Venkat indicated that those who could come across would do so that afternoon.
It took me a little while to consider an appropriate topic to share with the Karya team. However, what was lingering in my mind was my comment made earlier in the day about “mutual success”.
During my time of reflection, I remembered the lessons I had learnt from the leadership course I attended in Orlando, Florida two years earlier as part of the John C Maxwell Certification Program.
With those learnings, I felt a prompting to share the knowledge I had accumulated. A Deuteronomy Rabbah quote comes to mind. It says, “In vain have you acquired knowledge if you have not imparted it to others”. With the thought that successful people share the wisdom and experiences gained over time with those in their sphere of influence, I decided to weaved this lesson into one of the attributes for success in my presentation.
After an hour of consolidating my thoughts, I was ready to present to the Karya team gathered for the occasion. I was not unfamiliar with the material as I had shared these learnings before since completing my course. I believed that the topic of success would resonate with the audience and therefore be appropriate for the young Karya team gathered.
Picture: Supplied by Karya Technologies
The topic is repeated in this blog, as these are invaluable lessons for living successfully, whether you are studying for a profession, starting out in a career or settled in a career for a number of years.
These lessons are not limited to these scenarios as it is also applicable to life in general. How you plot your journey towards success will vary depending on your life skills and how you answer this first question; “What does success look like to you?”.
There was a story of a missionary doctor who worked with his team in the remote villages of Africa. He had a team of young trainee doctors from the local hospitals who had volunteered to provide health checks and medical help to the various village communities within their jurisdiction.
After a few days in the field, the young team came to the missionary doctor dejected and despondent because they felt that they were not succeeding because of the traditional healing practices prevalent in the villages they were visiting. The young doctors felt like losers. They knew at the start that it would be tough and challenging but they did not expect the low turn out of people and low engagement levels from the villagers. It was worst than they had expected.
At this point the missionary doctor realized that the young doctors needed to raise their sights to see the broader opportunities for success. Explaining to them that the challenges were minor compared to the opportunities and successes they would achieve once they were able to break through the barrier of reluctance from the villagers. He reminded them that the villagers were not hostile to them but were just unfamiliar with modern medical protocols.
When we are faced with such a situation, we have to ask ourselves, “Am I afraid to succeed?”, “What if I’m not successful?”, "Do I need to take a different approach to be successful?" and “Is it OK to be successful?”.
In answering these questions, here are every day examples which can help with your answers.
- Do we study to fail?
- Do we apply for a job vacancy, expecting to be rejected?
- Do we bake a cake, not expecting it to rise?
In all things we do, we expect things to be successful, or else why do them in the first place?
Even in employment, we have the right to expect to be paid when we perform our duties at work. In the same way we have the right to expect results when we use our talents, skills and learnings. These talents may include teaching, singing or playing an instrument, building or creating things, being an administrator, a graphic designer, being a care giver, showing hospitality, giving counsel, coaching or leading others and so on.
Picture: By Shane from Unsplash
Success in the things we do, does not necessary lead to ‘fame and fortune’, nor should it be the sole motivator. The existing world view is that success is measured by money, possessions and the number of followers one has on social media.
A contrary view is that success is measured by the results of the talents we use, with the talents we have. Or simply put, the ratio of talents used to the talents in us. We all have at least one talent, but many of us have more than one talent at our disposal.
A question we have to ask ourselves regarding our talents is, “What are we doing with our talents, and who are we becoming with the talents and gifts we have?”
One can be materially wealthy, but not necessarily successful. Conversely we may not have much wealth to our name, but be successful. Just consider Mother Teresa as an example. She was not materially wealthy, but the success and legacy she left behind in India and around the world is a testament of the countless number of lives she had touched [and still today] by the Missionaries of Charity religious order.
In whatever we are doing, are we maturing, are we gaining wisdom and are we making a difference in the world around us? The case is made that if we are using a large percentage of our talents in a positive way, then we should be able to say that we are ‘successful’.
Here are some of the practical lessons we can take away for immediate application to help us on the road towards success, in the context of using our talents for good and to make a difference in the world today.
We need to first establish what success is. There are three fundamental things to consider before coming to an answer.
1. Knowing your purpose in life. Before we can become who we can be, we must know who we want to be. To help with the answer, we need to ask ourselves the following:
- What do I love doing? i.e. What’s my passion?
- What am I good at? i.e. What are my gifts?
2. We need to grow to maximize our potential. We need to find our purpose and then grow that purpose. It is critical to grow in the area you want to grow in, as it is said that growth has no advantage unless it fits your purpose. Redwood trees can grow up to 91 meters and best grown in the mountains around California. It would not be suited to a suburban backyard. So place yourself in situations where you can excel in your gifts and purpose.
3. Sow seeds that benefit others. A key success factor is to sow into the lives of others to add value to them. It is said that you cannot reap a harvest until you sow.
Picture: Supplied by Karya Technologies
Here are three health-checks to ask yourself:
- Do I know my purpose?
- Am I growing my purpose?
- Am I adding value to people?
It is better to be living the things of success than knowing about success.
Secondly, select your inner circle carefully. These are the people that are going to determine your future. Ask yourself the question, “Do people add to my life or are they subtracting from my life?”
There is a saying that goes like this, “If you want to fly like an eagle, don’t hang around turkeys!”
Picture: By Tim Mossholder from Pexels
Have a circle of friends that will lift you up and add value to you. Ask yourself these questions in determining your friends:
- Who encourages me?
- Who teaches me?
- Who takes me out of my comfort zone?
- Who loves me?
- Who prays for me?
- Who complements me?
Thirdly, grow in your giftedness, in other words grow your talents. It is important to work on your strengths and maximize those strengths. Don’t give up on your weakness, as it is just as important to work on them. When working on your strengths you maximize your potential for success. When you work on your weaknesses you maximize the opportunities that lay in front of you and therefore your returns will make those things a success as well.
Picture: By Wix Media
Ask yourself the question, “What are the things I do every day to aid my personal growth?”. Things like reading, exercise, learning from experts, practice and acquiring new skills. It’s about continuous learning and development. Essential to your success are:
- Know what you want in life.
- Have the right tools and resources.
- Do things consistently because consistency sets people apart.
Charles Swindoll, American pastor, author, educator said of consistency. It’s the jewel worth wearing; it’s the anchor worth weighting; it’s the thread worth weaving; it’s the battle worth winning.
Benjamin Disraeli, 19th Century United Kingdom Prime Minister was quoted as saying, “The secret of success is consistency of purpose”.
Fourthly, we need to improve our thinking. If we improve our thinking, we will improve our life. Successful people think differently to unsuccessful people. It is said that, “Successful people are not gifted; they just work hard, then succeed on purpose”.
Commonly referred to as the Law of Attraction, ‘what we think about is what we attract, what we attract is what we do, and what we do is who we are!’
Fifthly, we need to encourage the next generation and add to their development. With the wisdom and experiences we have accumulated, we owe it to our children and grandchildren, our students, our future leaders in business, families and society to leave a positive legacy which they can build upon.
Picture: By Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels
You will see this of successful people who are very keen, even to the extent of philanthropic fervor to give back to society the goodness they have received from their success. Melinda Gates of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is quoted as saying, “Philanthropy is not about the money. It’s about using whatever resources you have at your fingertips and apply them to improving the world.”
Lastly as a person of faith, I have added another ingredient to the formula of success. Each one can decide where relevance and presence of God fits in their own life journey. Similar to an amount of salt acceptable to our taste buds when enhancing the flavor of a stew, curry or casserole, this vital ingredient is for each of us to decide.
While not everybody may add this ingredient to their personal success journey, I hang my personal success story on Chapter 16, Verse 3 of the Book of Proverbs, where it says, “Commit your deeds to the Lord and your plans shall succeed”.
Picture: By Wix Media
Learning the use of my God given talents from this perspective of success, has challenged me to stop pursuing material things as a life-time goal, as all of these things will eventually rot and perish. It has taught me to pursue a purposeful life, to grow in that purpose and to add value in peoples’ lives.
While material rewards and blessings will come as we work diligently, with the right attitude and motivation, all rewards we achieve should be measured, not on its temporal value but on its long lasting and eternal value.
After my presentation to the team at Karya, the floor was opened for questions. There were a couple of questions which stood out for me.
The first was a faith question. I was asked how my faith played a part in my personal success? My Christian faith is very important to me. I see myself as being made up of the intellect (the mind), the physical (the body) and the spiritual (my faith). So whatever I do, these three aspects are part of me. My faith propels me to do good, work hard, be honest, know my gifts and be in good standing with God and people. My education, training and experience have allowed my intellect to know my craft, my purpose and process my thinking more broadly. My physical self has allowed me to do the physical work necessary to succeed in my chosen professional career, job and apply my gifting.
There was a question from a Business Analyst (BA) who was working for some time in a particular sector. He was wanting to move into other sectors but was unsure if he would succeed. I replied by asking if he was confident in what he was doing as a BA. I added that the role and skills of a BA was easily transferrable. A good BA can easily move across sectors and while the context or language may differ from one sector to another, a good and skillful BA will succeed where ever he or she chose to go.
If you are in a similar situation; to do or not to do, always remember the questions; what does success mean to you, what is your talent and what is your purpose. To succeed you will need to grow in that giftedness. Growing requires consistent performance and hard work. Taking the scenario of a BA, a good BA could progress to a Project Manager and perhaps, if she or he is good enough, move on to becoming a Program Director or even a Chief Operations Officer.
My talk to the team ended after Questions and Answers, which was followed by a presentation of a gift which Venkat had organized. I was very grateful and honoured for the opportunity to share my learnings.
Picture: Supplied by Karya Technologies
I am still in contact with the team at Karya despite the transformation project completing successfully and my retirement in December 2020.
If you have any questions please drop me a line in the comments section of this blog site.
Wishing everyone of you every success in whatever you choose to do.