Scientist, engineer, visionary, People’s President- all these words add up to one thing- Dr.A.P.J.Abdul Kalam, former President of India. The beginning of this new semester saw an invigorating talk by none other than the Missile Man of India himself. Organized by the Vivekananda study circle, the EML team, the Centre for Innovation and the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability, this talk left quite a lasting impression on the audience.
With around 4500 eager audience awaiting his discourse, Dr.Kalam humbly walked to the ambo and began his address with a wonderful thought. He said “I learnt, every youth wants to be unique, that is, to be yourself! But the world all around you is doing its best, day and night, to make you just ‘everybody else’”. He brought to light that the real challenge is that one has to fight hard battles and never stop fighting until one arrives at his destined place- a unique oneself.
He averred that excellence is not an accident, that it is a process where an individual, organization or nation continuously strives to achieve a better oneself. It strives to work to its potential and in the process, it increases its performance, thereby multiplying its potential further- an aeonian life cycle phenomenon. He quoted a few of his personal experiences to add weight to this fact.
Dr.Kalam stressed upon the fact that having an aim in life in preponderant as it gives a purpose to every action and an orientation to every result. He apprised that in order to achieve his aim one needs to work punctiliously towards the goal. “Constant effort, with application of proper knowledge can help scale steep heights”, he said. He said that the test for a person is to accept failures and to keep trying until he succeeds, as contending failures is a quality which is the essence of leadership. He enunciated that throughout history, it is echoed that those respected and idolized are mainly those who had had the courage to imagine the impossible by breaking all the inconspicuous barriers to human thought and action.
As expected, this discourse was highly motivating and thought provoking. Dr.Kalam, yet again, succeeded in touching the hearts of the young and the old alike.
