I would like to share how I spent my summer vacations in a different way than most people usually do.
7th May 2019–24th May 2019 — RPL 2019 at UniqYOU International School.
The Good Human Being Foundation is driven by the PURA (Provision of Urban- Amenities in Rural Area) thought of Former President and Visionary Dr APJ Abdul Kalaam for the India Vision 2020. They are instrumental to inculcate maker spirit in the children from rural and tribal areas of North Gujarat with the help of competent collaborators including Prof Rajesh Nair, Research Scholar, MIT, USA. To take their efforts to the next level, for the scalable and sustainable rural development, they came up with one big intervention in the form of Rural Premier League — Robotics Season 1. This was done for children of the age group below 14 years. This was a unique undertaking to build a village-based community-driven ecosystem to build maker-spirit for the rural and tribal students at a very young age. I was lucky enough to work under them for such a wonderful program. I went to almost 80 villages for creating awareness about the usefulness of learning technology. It was altogether a very different and wonderful experience. I also worked as an event manager intern there. I learned loads of stuff such as working with different kinds of people and managing them, workflow system, the importance of strategic meetings, time management, and most importantly, how to remain calm in stressful situations. Sometimes, I put long hours when there was an overload of work, but when you feel you are working for something great, it doesn’t tire you down then. I also then learned that the best way to deal with a crisis is not to be worried and panic, but to remain calm and deal with the situation head-on. Most of the time, it brings along an opportunity with itself, for you, to control it using the best of your talents and grow as a level-headed person. I also learned a lot about work delegation. I realized that if each person is given a task he enjoys the most, and other people think he is excelled at, that man would do that task whole-heartedly. I also realized the importance of back-up planning and the worst-case scenario. Though it appears worthless when planning something, it saves quite an important bit of time during the execution. Having back-up plans is not stupid, it is actually very wise. I also taught myself how to work and deal with people with higher, same, and lower skillset than me. That was probably of my biggest takeaways from the project. I was also the part of the post-event documentation team and realized that some things ought to be done on time, else they become very difficult to finish. The experience of this internship would help me understand the importance of team dynamics and proper management of everything. I had a privilege to work under some very experienced and great people, which was wonderful. I also worked with amazing co-workers and gained lots of experience and created amazing bonding with them as well. This internship not only took me to explore my own uncharted territories but also helped me gain a tremendous amount of experience in a short period of time. Apart from the main event, I have already spent a fortnight on the post-event documentation project and I am still working on it.
6th June — 7th June 2019 — SSIP Stall at EDII for RPL 2019
Under the Government of Gujarat, SSIP (Student Start-up and Innovation Policy http://www.ssipgujarat.in/ ) organized a two-day international conference for upcoming start-ups. There was also an exhibition area where stalls were given out to existing entrepreneurs and new start-ups. The good work done by us was recognized and we were given a free stall to display the work done at RPL 2019. Though I had attended my exhibitions before, it was the first time I was on the other side of the stall. I was in charge of explaining the concept of RPL to the interested visitors. Though I always thought I was weak in communications, I managed to create interest in our project to almost everyone. I also managed to break one big barrier I couldn’t face for a long time. I was always scared to talk to important people. But here, there were a lot of potential investors, and bringing them to our stall could be very beneficial for the project. I somehow gathered my guts and talked about my project to some bigwigs of the industry, such as the VP of PayTM, the director of NITI — Ayog, some IITian professors, and many other investors. I realized that when you do something that scares you the most, you feel more confident and take on that fear with renewed vigor. I also had a chance to network with like-minded people with whom I am still in contact with.
Intel Ideate for India (https://ideateforindia.negd.in/) 11th to 15th June 2019
Intel organized a mega event collaborating with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. Government of India and National eGovernance Division, to inspire and educate the aspiring young innovators. I was fortunate to be selected by Dhruv Saidava, GM, Encube Labs, (I was trained under EnCube Labs) the conducting body of this program, to be a mentor in this program. It was a tech creation boot camp for students selected from Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Goa, after an elaborate first round, which taught how to master the wonderful art of self-learning through the medium of Arduino, a basic microprocessor to introduce kids to the world of electronics. Not only that, but we also taught the basics of IoT ( Internet of Things), a booming sector coming up in the field of electronics and 3D printing, an alternate manufacturing style that is easy and efficient. Though I had a moderate level of knowledge in these fields, it was still a herculean task for me to teach middle and high school kids ( less than Grade 10 ) things that are normally part of the engineering curriculum. This boot camp was designed to make them understand that they should strive to learn, not to compete, that not to fall in the rat race. Importance was given to the designing aspects of their projects too, not just technical, which is often neglected. I also realized a very important thing, that in order to master something, I should teach what I have learned. I had gone there to teach something and withstanding that, I also learned a great deal. My understanding of electronics, IoT, and 3D printing grew leaps and bounds. Not only that, while mentoring I realized that how important is to truly understand yourself, and for that, you must keep questioning yourself intensively. I learned a lot from other co-mentors, who were way more senior than me, but still down to earth while talking to anybody. Our camp director said a very wise thing that struck a chord with me. He said that decide what you want to be — a policeman or a para commando, and then train accordingly.
Himalaya Sojurn 17th to 28th June 2019
After spending almost a month working hard, my father asked me to take a short break and have a solo trip somewhere. This was a budget trip (to explore new places in minimal money) as well as unplanned. So, with just train tickets booked, I started my journey from Ahmedabad and boarded Jammu Tawi express. I shared my compartment with soldiers of the Indian Army, who were on their way to Kashmir, at their posts. We got talking and they told amazing stories, some happy, some sad. The long train ride was refreshing because I got a lot of free time to ponder on things. I got off at Pathankot and boarded a bus to Dharamshala. On the bus, met a movie producer who had quit his job and was leaving in the mountains to enjoy the serene beauty and peace, away from the bustling city of Mumbai. I reached Dharamshala a bit late in the evening, overlooking the amazing mountains littered with houses. All my exhaustion just vanished after seeing the beautiful city of Dharamshala. Due to no previous bookings, I had to stay in a shady place. So shady that every employee told a different name of the hotel. It was scary, but fun. I learned to adapt. I booked a 2 — wheeler to travel Dharamshala and McLeodganj as it is time-saving, cheaper and the best part is, you can stop whenever you want to on the way to enjoy the natural beauty. Once riding the bike, I was filled with tranquillity and had a state of peace I had never experienced before. Being a history buff, I went to the Museum of Tibetan History. The rich yet sad history of Tibetans made my eyes moist, and the atrocities endured by them shocked me.
I have been to many temples in India, but the Dalai Lama temple struck a chord inside me like no other. If the word peace would have had a physical manifestation, it would be this temple. The calmness is so healing that you would want to just sit here for hours at end.
From Dharamshala, my next stop was Manali. As this was a budget trip, I traveled in local buses. The best thing about local buses is that you can interact with people from all walks of life. I got to know so much about how they, what problems they face, and how they enjoy their lives. Reaching Manali late, I helped a group of English people to navigate through the streets. On the way, I met a very old friend of mine, we were batchmates in Kota. I chatted with him and then left for my backpackers' hostel (Backpackers Panda), a budget place not far from the main city, with a breathtaking view of Manali and river Beas. I shared my dorm with six other people, who, like me were traveling alone. One of those was a software developer from Bangalore, who was on his way to the highest motorable village in the world, Kibber. The next morning, while having breakfast, met a group of 3 students from IISER Chandigarh, who were on their way to explore Manali. I tagged along, and it was quite fun. One of them was an expert on trees, so it was fascinating to see a forest with a different point of view. We 4 had lots of fun in exploring Manali, and made lots of memories, and I am still in contact with them. After Manali, I decided to do a trek to Lake Brighu, 14,200 feet above sea level. We had basic climate acclimatization, in which, we walked through an icy stream for 2 hours! We began our trek the next day, from the base of the mountains. It was tough, trekking uphill with luggage in low oxygen, but, somehow, fun too. The more and more I climbed up, resisting the urge to give up, unlike many others, the more I realized that trekking, a seemingly physical activity, was actually a mental game. If you kept your mind strong, and away from wandering, it can do almost anything. Once you set your mind on something, you can achieve it regardless of everything else. Through constant rains, we trekked through rocks, rivers, and snow. It tested our patience as one small mistake could cost us our lives. We reached the campsite in the evening, tired and bruised, and were suddenly rewarded with a beautiful sunset. We were to continue our trek the next morning. But little did we know what awaited us. Just as we were about to step inside our tents, it began to rain very heavily, along with a very strong hailstorm. We were kept to our tents for almost 2 days in that deadly weather, where we could barely sleep due to the cold. We were forbidden to climb the final stretch of the trek as it had become very dangerous. That day I realized that however hard we try, there are some things we can’t control, and the best response to that is to first accept that situation and then work for the best possible solution. We came down after the weather improved, and did some river rafting, an extremely thrilling activity, of which I couldn’t get enough of. From Manali, I went to Chandigarh to board my train. It was finally time for my trip to end, as I returned home with many memories, and much wiser than I had ever been.
IIT Gandhinagar Entrepreneurship Workshop ( 8th to 12th July 2019 )
NEEV (https://www.iitgn.ac.in/neev.htm), an initiative by IIT Gandhinagar, had organized an Entrepreneurship Workshop, and luckily, as I was in Gandhinagar at the same time, I got a chance to apply for this and got selected. Unlike other entrepreneurship workshops, this one not one with pep talks about why you should start your own business, and other fancy stuff. This one actually taught us how to do business, with a learning-by-doing style of seminar. We actually learned the dynamics to do business. We were encouraged to bring out our ideas and how to bring them to a level of execution. We were trained on how to keep accounts and cashbooks, and how to actually handle cash flow. We even had a whole day of a field visits in the local market and were encouraged to ask questions to almost any shop we encountered, big or small. Here too, I was again able to overcome my fear to speak to other people. That field trip actually taught us what business really was, it’s pros and cons, and what it actually took to build one. One of the best things I took home from this workshop was the importance given to homework (background research before starting anything). We were encouraged to perfect this wonderful art and never compromise on this. It gives us a huge advantage and we have time to brainstorm future problems and opportunities and how to handle them. We were divided into 6 groups, and I was the leader of one of these groups. At the end of the workshop, we were asked to do a presentation, and due to my recent experience in RPL on how to manage people, I was able to make a great team, and bring the best out of everybody. Our trainer, Mr. Venkatesh, was a seasoned entrepreneur with almost 45 years of experience, told a very simple but profound thing, that the problem with us is we don’t understand the problem properly.
Bakor Short trek ( 13th and 14th July 2019 )
I am an active member of the Rotaract Club of Gandhinagar, a 50 years old International organization working in 184 countries. 3 students from Mexico had come to India through the Rotary Youth Exchange Programme, 2 interning as dentists in Ahmedabad, and one interning as a teacher in UniqYOU International School ( who stayed sometimes at my house), in Idar. We had planned a short trip to Bakor, a serene trekking place, to give them a break from their daily routine. On the way to Bakor, we got talking about our cultures and how different and similar is India to Mexico. Once we reached the main trekking place, we had a basic interaction of them with other trekkers, me acting as a mediator and translator. We went to a short trek to a waterfall nearby and did a bit of rock climbing and enjoyed a bit of rain there. We even sang the famous Spanish songs “Despacito” and “Senorita” to make them feel home. After having lunch, we embarked on another trek, carrying our own sleeping bags, tents, and cooking materials. All our fatigue disappeared when we reached the top of the hill, where a breath-taking view was awaiting us. We cleaned up space, pitched our tents, and cooked simple yet tasty “Khichdi”. Under the stars, we played camp games, joked with each other, told stories and in general, had a gala time. The next morning, we wrapped up the tents, cleaned up the area, and went back to the main campsite. We took our guests to a recently excavated temple, around 1200 years old for a short tour. Being a huge history nerd, I became the guide to them and explained the rich history, the legends and myths behind it, and showed them the fabulous architecture. We left that place and finally reached our homes, with new friends and lots of memories.
Overall, this was a very interesting vacation where I did a variety of things, learned some new skills and improved others, made new friends and a great network, and became a better human being with a better understanding of the world, and more importantly, myself. I am looking forward to searching such live-enriching opportunities and career opportunities in the future.
Thanks for reading! Please do share your feedback.
