“The feeling that people experience when standing on the edge of a ledge isn’t the fear of falling, its the fear that they might jump.” ~Paul Bettany, Margin Call
Now you might wonder what that’s got to do with anything, but the entrepreneurs more often than not have got similar choices. Are we plummeting to our deaths or just taking flight? Maybe not life threatening but life altering nonetheless. Education, marriage, kids, and work. We have the same elements in contention, but barring exceptions we know the apprehensions. I am here to talk about the last one. Entrepreneurs, and businesswomen to be precise. Recently, we attended the Tipping Point summit to meet and hear a few, find our inspiration piece from their puzzle of a story, and to understand what made them tip.
Usually, when to speak to someone’s parent they’ll tell you different things that their child aspired to become as their younger selves. As we reach adolescence, we are made to incline towards what would suit us best for our survival.
“I would constantly doodle dresses, gowns and all forms of clothing on my notebooks, textbooks, basically every sheet of paper I could get my hands on. It was my way of distressing and living my dream in whatever way possible. I would share these doodles with my sisters and my friends and tell them that one day I am going to put two and two together and show them those designs in live form”, shares Bhavya Goel.
“However, I got caught in pursuing what was termed as respectable as opposed to fashion design and ended up completing Chartered Accountancy. Worked in EY for 3 years, KPMG for 2.5 years before starting, AEOM Couture, my passion. Not that I regret pursuing CA, working for the big four has taught me a great deal”, she continues.
Sometimes the jump comes in the form of shared inspiration. You know, birds of the same feather, take the plunge together.
“Deepal and I met at Summer School at London School of Economics in 2010. We both went our separate ways to get a taste of corporate jobs. I went on to intern as a part of Mountbatten Internship and then worked with Morgan Stanley, London and then as an investment banker in Mumbai. Until we couldn’t contain our bubbling passion for creativity and fashion. We started market research for KloseEdit. The research itself and the results of market’s maturity for our passion gave a thrill enough to take flight”, shares Kanika Khurana.
The flip switch that we keep looking for people isn’t always sudden and abrupt. Sometimes it’s hard work and patience behind the dreams and passion of a young one. Tanya Roy entered a male dominated industry of adventure and travel and brought in her experiences from working in the social sector.
“I grew up in Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and Goa. I finished my final years of schooling from Goa. My father worked in the force which resulted in moving from one place to another. I wanted something of my own, my own company, and help people. I did masters in International Tourism and Hospitality, spent 6 years in corporates and 1 in environment conservation to finally start, Eco-traveler, something I always wanted”, says Tanya Roy.
Our decisions and who we grow up to become, for the better or for worse, are largely dependent on life instances, our peers, parents, and situations that change our outlook on life itself.
“One fine day we got to know that our father has been diagnosed with Cancer. It shook the whole family. My younger brother and I were still studying, and our father was the sole earning member of the family. Courageous is what I would call it, our mother took charge and started handling the business along with taking care of our father and the entire family. We had spent so much money for his treatment but she still sent me to study out of Indore, in one of the most expensive institutions of India. She even took a loan for this”, says Ranu Jain.
“Despite our efforts, three and half years ago, he passed away. That very day I decided, I wanted to help people suffering from cancer and I started Sanika Cancer Care Society”, she continues.
I wouldn’t ignore the power of constructively channeled outrage over immoral and unethical practices. Rajshree Sharma’s propensity towards ill behavior with her friend and co-founder tipped her off to starting a venture which prevents injustice happening to others in the field. She had a natural inclination towards the social sector, a lawyer by profession, she has a knack for writing and values other people’s work as well.
“It was in early 2016 that he, a creative professional himself, found himself locked in a house by a client for close to four hours. The demand was simple- deliver the project material in exchange for the client’s pittance, and not the previously agreed amount. Things went to worse, but an important lesson was learnt- that in spite of the scale of your work or the amount, have your legal and other paperwork in place. This particular incident made us put our heads together and dig deep for a solution, and it was here that Tranxact took shape”, she said.
Sociologically, a tipping point is a time of rapid movement towards the other side of the scale in a balance with a shift of one grain of an event. Similarly, these women’s lives changed from the point they reached their peaks to find their way back to what makes them click, tipping the tides into their favor with persistent efforts.
Chaaipani is the Media Partner for the Tipping Point.
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