Transcript

Embracing the Extraordinary in the Ordinary | Manika Raikwar | TEDxIILM

[Music] good morning in this wonderful University in this rather cold Auditorium I'm sort of feeling very honored to be here it's rare that one gets a chance to speak to young people so it's an opportunity I cherish today I'm going to be just sharing some thoughts uh about my journey with you and I promise that I will not bore you too much I'm 53 years old uh and as a journalist I've had the privilege of witnessing history in the making I was managing editor of one of India's leading news channels NDTV 247 I worked with over 250 journalists and Newsroom staff covering events like uh a lot of you may or may not remember the IC 814 kandar hijacking some of you may have been very young uh The Faculty may remember uh the Gujarat earthquake the Carill War uh the devastating tsunami that hit India and South Asia and I think practically every election from 1996 to 2019 and currently I work with decoder uh that's uh a platform that preno Roy has started uh as a Consulting editor so that electoral Journey continues uh so what are the stories that I will be telling you today or anecdotes uh you may think they would be you know extremely adrenaline pumping exciting extraordinary events yes some of them were but what I do want to discuss is the ordinary today the extraordinary in the ordinary and I think the beauty in the fulfillment that you find in what is often perceived as mundane or normal you live we live in a very fastpaced world uh today I know the gentleman who's doing all the cameras here said nobody's got to get a phone out otherwise a lot of us would currently be even if we don't want to it's such an automatic habit uh that uh you know we would all be looking at our phones somebody told me a very interesting anecdote the other day and he said that uh recently um God asked a couple of people up there uh I don't know heaven or hell he says why is everybody coming to me nowadays like this okay because guess what that's that's what we are all nowadays right it's it's about the phone uh we're not really looking up we're not connecting people to people and that's just some of the things I wanted to talk to you about because every time that you look at a screen uh right uh on your phone whether it's an insta or or any other social platform app there is this glorification of extraordinary achievements right there are these influencers who are living up there incredible glamorous lives but what about those very seemingly ordinary lives uh just you know when you're just working right uh is that monotonous does that not work for all of us does it make our lives any less fulfilling when we when I worked for NDTV uh it was 247 of very often doing the same thing getting the news putting it out figuring it out I think one of the worst moments was covid I think it was really bad for a you know a lot of people but as journalists the world had shut down but we still went to work every day it was just another day at office you didn't have uh the privilege or the luxury of being at home you still had to go uh it wasn't glamorous it was extremely difficult it was mundane and we hated it at a times but we persevered I think uh whether it was doctors it was journalists they persevered and we just put our heads down and we got on with the job and I think that is what I want to sort of really focus on today getting on with it because that's really the extraordinary the value ad that you're making every day of just doing what you are meant to do or asked to do um I remember after film school a lot of my friends moved to Bombay uh their currently uh very well-known directors filmmakers and I often thought does that mean that my life is any less meaningful is it any you know is it lacking Joy um so what is Joy uh is Joy like you know is something that's the same for everyone I don't think so I think it's like uh the one shoe doesn't fit all concept Joy is like that it's deeply personal and it's deeply subjective definitions of Joy are simply descriptions of the way people want to use the word so when I say I want to Define joy for you I ask whose Joy are you talking about and what is the use of the word we are discussing I'm sure a lot of you here have seen uh patal Lo right have you seen patalok the TV series uh suep sharma's thing uh it's very interesting not just because you know it's a great television series it's a great plot but it doesn't follow a typical Hero Journey right it's not a great happy ending but the hero is on a Relentless Quest For Truth uh it's a narrative that is you know in a way the pursuit of truths in your life what is it that you are seeking uh there's another series and the the reference to pop culture I'm hoping will help you connect with what I'm talking about there is a series called black warrant again it Chronicles ordinary lives in extraordinary circumstances you know every time we think you know what is a Jailer really doing right he's going every day we never think of it but when you look at it look at the incredible life that they're leading and it is outside of influencers it is outside of glamorous images it's outside of forceful messages that are constantly bombarding you I think the point is that we all live extraordinary lives in the most ordinary ways I think it's wonderful but somehow in today's day and age for a lot of you there is constant pressure for validation uh it's Amplified by your smartphones uh and it's also very interesting when I see around and I see a lot of parents and Elders telling the kids get off your smartphones while they're glued on to it themselves right uh so the question really is how do you want to stand out in a world that is consumed by screens that is consumed by pressure from outside uh I can't tell you what to do I can't we all have to decide that but what I do want you to sort of think about is what is it that you truly want from your life and what are you willing to do to achieve it uh someone recently reminded me of a famous poem and if any of you are into poetry uh by uh a famous Udu poet called Fe and I think it encapsulates uh the essence of life beautifully um I'll recite it for you in Udu and then we'll go through the English translation in case some of you don't get it f says I think I've sort of messed it up a bit but akar uh so for those who didn't understand he said I loved a little and I worked a little those were very fortunate people who were in love with their work or they just were in love with love or their loved ones I remained busy all my life I loved A little I worked a little sometimes love was a snag in the way of my work and sometimes my duty didn't allow me to love with the passion I wanted to ultimately I left both my love and my work incomplete uh don't take it literally uh because I think fa the Eternal romantic he was he wasn't talking about work or love he was speaking about passion uh discovering what is your passion discovering what is it that you really want to do or are you satisfied by the lack of passion and that's fine too not everybody has to be passionate about something or the other uh personally I'm not passionate about anything in particular uh but I love people I love working with people I love teams uh and I love the thrill of working with others and that's what drives me uh so here again what is it that drives you I understand that uh at your age uh this very 18 to 23 or even beyond that I think it's natural to not know what you're searching for uh not have Clarity and I think sometimes we feel extremely overwhelmed okay this constant noise what is my friend doing you know what are my parents saying what is that influencer on Instagram saying but I think again the key is shut it all out look within uh everyone's going to tell you what to do again your parents are going to hate me for this but ask questions do your research and then decide don't take things for granted don't say just because I'm being told something that's what is right um again and uh I've been referencing pop culture so there's a great Julia Roberts film called monaa smile and I encourage all of you to watch it because it teaches us to question status quo it teaches us not to judge something we don't understand uh it teaches us to be curious uh and say okay I don't understand this this is something I haven't seen it's different from what I know what I've known on my life but let me understand it let me me keep a dialogue going and I think more than ever more than ever in a world filled with noise and polarization and people telling you what to do I think for all of you young people is to just think think once think twice think again take your time but ask those questions do your research don't accept things that are just coming at you and keep the dial going with each other with people you don't know people you don't like because one day those walls will come down the walls that you thought are sort of keeping you from each other and you'll understand you'll understand with Clarity that you never had before I think in a world that is constantly evolving this will give you the ability to adapt and to grow um I was just talking to a colleague of mine and we were uh talking about disruptors when I was growing up the internet was the biggest disruptor and it thought everyone thought it's going to bring the world together and you know if you're a student of geopolitics or if you just follow the headlines the world today is more isolation than ever before despite the means of everybody coming together so I think there are always going to be disruptors more than ever now whe whether it's with Quantum Computing or AI so the ability to adapt and to grow will be invaluable for you have that have that and a lot of it will come through questioning um again uh think about the values and principles that guide you what is non-negotiable for you what is it something that you will absolutely not do follow that sometimes saying no is more important than saying yes okay um identify all of that again I'm saying look within what is it that will align with you what is it that you want and embrace challenges again I'm not saying that you know it's all about I can do this and I can't do that maybe something new is something you'll really enjoy so step out of your comfort zones Embrace challenges think about what makes you uncomfortable because a lot of times um experiences that do not uh that make you fearful okay that will say oh my God how am I going to do this can I get up tomorrow morning I'm really scared that may be the experience that you've really been waiting for um because if you stumble you will grow you know if life has just being a piece of cake what have you really learned failure is something that that will make you grow um I have to say that again in my career of over 30 years I have constantly seen people rise and fall uh there were times we thought everything is over nothing is going to be the same again and guess what the world didn't end the sun rose again and we overcame we got on with life um uh this is my last pop culture reference I promise but Tom Hanks the famous actor once said uh that the one lesson he wished he had known when he was young is that if you're feeling really bad if you're feeling really angry you're feeling really pissed it will pass okay don't worry it will pass if you're feeling really happy you think you know it all you're on top of the world that too will pass because nothing my friend will stay forever everything is changing Everything Will Change but you will get on with your lives you will overcome if nothing else time is your friend so just breathe okay and I know you know in that 18 to whatever 30 phase now anxiety breakups relationships the pressure of job assignment conducting tedex all of that is so whatever breathe it's going to be fine uh so again Discovery resilience determination embracing uncertainty and finding strength in your vulnerability okay where is it that you feel you're lacking make that your strength and it will happen I'm going to end this by saying the extraordinary is not measured by your phone it is not measured by engagement likes and Views it's not nor by your followers I know you'll get sort of you know excitement through the post or that real hit when somebody likes it move on it's found in people you will genuinely connect with it will be found in conversations you'll remember 20 years from now it will be found in when you understand yourselves and others and it will be found in moments that you will cherish for a lifetime um and that's beyond the reach of any algorithm okay whatever it is AI is going to get smarter Computing will reach levels we will never know but people will connect with people and and those are the connections that will always always remain so as you navigate this journey called life remember that the extraordinary lies within the ordinary embrace it and you'll discover a world that is truly worthy of you thank you so much thank you [Music]