I was visiting a
friend on a social call. During our
conversation my friend’s wife was complaining that her son, who is an Engineer
by qualification, was not doing a regular job but was too busy pursuing his passion
for music. She also told me that he is part
of a popular music band, which not only gives performances across the country but is also involved in
creating original music albums. When I
asked her if the boy earned enough money, she beamed with pride and said, “yes-
though it is not regular he earns good money.
In fact I am maintaining his bank account”
“So what is the
problem?” I asked her.
“You see, he keeps
irregular hours. He works through the
night, sleeps during the day. For
several days he doesn’t come home at all.
I get terribly worried!”
I told her not to
worry because even in the corporate world executives keep irregular hours and
work very hard to come up in life. I
tried to convince her that while many young men / women take up jobs in pursuit
of money but don’t enjoy their jobs – at least her son, though a qualified
engineer, is pursuing his passion as an occupation at a very young age and already earning good
money.
In the creative
world of music, drama, films, etc., it
is common for people involved to keep irregular working hours and not getting
compensated enough for their efforts in
the initial years. Only when they get
name and fame, they start earning big
money.
I don’t think my
friend’s wife was convinced. However, I
came back from the meeting very happy for their son. Because I have great
admiration for youngsters who are focused and who
pursue
their dreams relentlessly.
In recent years, I
have been reading case studies of a number of middle aged professionals giving
up their lucrative corporate careers to follow their passions.
Closer home, my
elder son-in-law, who was a CEO of a BPO unit of a software group quit his well paying job
recently (at the age of 48) to pursue his many passions. One of his passions is Food and he was keen to
get into the food business. His idea of
starting `Idli factory` to produce rectangular
idlis coated with Milakapodi and
marketed under the brand name Madras
Bars is already doing well in the market as a convenient, take away food
for all occasions. Though he continues to work hard, he looks far more relaxed
in his new avatar as an entrepreneur where he
is his own boss!
Last week I met a
senior citizen who has got involved in promoting kitchen gardens to produce organic vegetables on the
terraces of people`s houses, using a technique he picked up from Israel. He had spent nearly three decades doing jobs in the
private and government sectors ,
using his formal qualifications that he acquired in college.
But more than all
the jobs he did to earn a living, he seems to be enjoying his current
occupation as a promoter of kitchen
gardens the most. His passion for gardening
has become his new occupation. Proving
that age is not a barrier for pursuing one’s passion in life! And that a
passion can also be converted into an occupation instead
of just remaining a hobby!
