Be a giraffe: grow quietly, reach higher every day. | Prashant Girbane | TEDxPune
To "be yourself" means adopting the unique, long, and strong neck of a giraffe, which requires neither imitation of others nor remaining static. The speaker argues this through the *power of compounding*, showing how small initial acts of unique effort build over time into significant impact, exemplified by growing the student aid program from one student to thousands. This compounding effect suggests that self-belief, when actively built upon, can create a massive, purpose-driven community. ## Theses & Positions - *Be yourself* does not mean remaining static or resisting growth. - *To be yourself* means embodying the giraffe analogy: not trying to roar like a lion or sprint like a cheetah, but instead believing in one's own uniqueness and long, strong neck. - The core mechanism for self-actualization is the *power of compounding*, where small gains build upon prior gains over an extended period. - The significance of an individual's story lies in the *impressions* they possess, which are more impactful than the impressions they try to create. ## Concepts & Definitions - **Giraffe analogy:** Represents self-belief and uniqueness; the ability to maintain one's distinct self while evolving, exemplified by its long, strong neck. - **Power of compounding:** The mathematical concept applied to personal growth, where gains build sequentially: today's gains build on yesterday's, and yesterday's build on the day before. - **Giraffe moment:** The realization of when one felt genuinely self in a way that allowed them to thrive, rather than just survive. ## Mechanisms & Processes - **Darwinian Evolution (Giraffe Neck):** Longer necks were initially an "oddity" but provided higher chances of reproduction by reaching higher food sources, leading to the trait persisting over generations. - **Compounding in Action:** Small initial efforts (e.g., helping one student, then a couple, then ten) accumulate, leading to exponential growth (thousands of students benefiting). - **Skill Acquisition (Language/Life):** Developing a skill in a local language medium and building on it over time to gain proficiency in a global language is an example of successful compounding. - **Advocacy/Impact Building:** Starting small (helping 1 or 2 people) and consistently expanding the scope of aid or help leads to compounding influence. ## Timeline & Sequence - **Age 17:** Completed higher secondary and applied for undergrad university; lacked knowledge and faced disappointing responses from families. - **Year following Age 17:** Began a program in the local colony, helping people apply to university after initial rejection. - **Within a week:** Helped about ten people in the local colony. - **Ongoing:** The student aid program continued to grow "year after year after year," benefiting thousands of students. - **Age 23:** Initially rejected a corporate job offer to volunteer in earthquake-affected Gujarat in 2001. - **Age 23:** Received an offer from the United Nations organization after foregoing the corporate job. - **Between 16 and 23:** Period of learning and experience that fueled subsequent opportunities, including advising the Secretary General of Commonwealth when in London. ## Named Entities - **Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad:** The location of the initial MBA interview. - **Gujarat:** The region affected by the earthquake in 2001 where the speaker volunteered. - **La Tour in Maharashtra:** Location where the speaker studied when the earthquake occurred in 1993. - **United Nations organization:** Organization that accepted the speaker for volunteering after the corporate job rejection. - **Secretary General of Commonwealth:** The position for which the speaker served as an advisor while in London. ## Numbers & Data - **Age 21:** Age when the initial "Be yourself" advice was received during an MBA interview. - **15,000:** Approximate population of the small village where speaker was raised. - **17:** Age when speaker completed higher secondary. - **18:** Age at which speaker returned to the hometown for vacation to start the aid program. - **10,000:** Estimated number of people killed in the 1993 earthquake in Maharashtra. - **23:** Age when speaker decided to volunteer instead of taking a corporate job. - **2001:** Year of the earthquake relief volunteering trip in Gujarat. - **1993:** Year of the earthquake while the speaker was studying at La Tour. ## Examples & Cases - **The MBA Interview:** Initial advice received three times was "Be yourself," which the speaker initially found confusing, leading to the realization that "to be yourself... would mean to be a giraffe." - **The Initial College Struggle:** Went to meet people who had graduated from IIM; one family told them their 18-year-old was sleeping; no new appointments were secured. - **Community Mobilization:** Helped a girl, who talked to others, leading to the speaker helping 3-4 people, then 10 people in a week, and a dozen people eventually helping hundreds of 17-year-olds. - **Career Choice:** Choosing to volunteer in earthquake-affected Gujarat (2001) instead of accepting a corporate job offer. - **Advisory Paper:** Writing a paper on connected world, built on disaster management understanding, that was placed in the kit of 52 prime ministers and presidents. ## Counterarguments & Caveats - The initial advice, *"Be yourself,"* was initially frustrating because it seemed to imply remaining static and not growing up. ## Conclusions & Recommendations - Everyone should be encouraged to identify and articulate their own *giraffe moment*—the time they felt genuinely self and thrived. - The speaker encourages listeners to identify what they can *compound* (e.g., small acts of help, learning a skill) over time. - The ultimate recommendation is to share one's *giraffe moment* with at least one friend, expanding that impact through compounding to reach thousands. ## Implications & Consequences - Self-identity is best understood not as a fixed state, but as an ongoing, compounding process of unique action. - Successful personal growth and leadership emerge from the ability to compound unique experiences and insights over time. ## Verbatim Moments - *"Be yourself."* (Repeated advice received three times). - *"For me to be yourself would mean to be a giraffe."* - *"A giraffe is not trying to roar like a lion. A giraffe is not trying to sprint like a cheetah."* - *"Darwin would say this happened over generations. Some of the giraffes generations ago had little longer neck. It wasn't looked at as an advantage. It was an oddity."* - *"The impressions in my mind matter more than the impressions I am trying to create in their mind to impress them."* - *"I was feeling nervous. I felt I'm not polished enough. I felt I'm raw enough, but I was true."* - *"I decided not to do the corporate job. I decided to be a volunteer in earthquake affected Gujarat in 2001."* - *"The magic is power of compounding when you're trying to transform yourself."* - *"That's the compounding that happened in the case of the giraffe."* - *"I must appeal to each and every one of you. Today I have an opportunity to present my giraffe moment to hundreds of you."* - *"Little longer and little stronger neck of each member of the entire community, and at the end, contributing to even longer and stronger neck of the entire nation."*