Tag: Youth

Indian Youth vs Indian Economy!…

The COVID 19 virus hit our nation at the beginning of this year. More than the pain of disease, people were scared because of the rumours. People leaving away from homes rushed back to their native places. Everything went into lockdown. Shops, industries, hotels, colleges, malls, talkies everything was shut down by the end of March.
March passed, April passed and now everybody’s savings were coming to an end. Everybody was asking for unlocking. At this crucial time, what Indian youth was doing? Most of them were stuck in their houses. Those who were in the IT industry were getting used to the new normal of WFH. Those who were working in other industries lost their jobs as the company was at loss. A renowned newspaper said around 12.2 crore Indians lost their jobs during this pandemic. Now as all the sectors were at loss, Indian economy took a big downfall. GDP went down drastically. Industries cut down no.of employees just to survive.
So without totally blaming this pandemic, let’s see who lost the job. Unskilled workers, employees who didn’t update themselves with the world, who were working at the higher position but adding very less to company’s value and finally the automation. Humans thought it a smart move to discover robots and AI. But this is the same technology which is simply taking their jobs away.
The most basic thing our education system lacks is skills. Our education system never focuses on student’s skills. Right from the school days, students are forced to study in a particular direction. Hobbies and passions are buried in their heart. So these students left without a choice choose a particular stream of education. They go against their heart but still study hard to complete the education they are supposed to. But is this education really valuable? I really don’t think so. Our education system totally focuses on theory and no practical knowledge. Students are kept busy with assignments, exams during the course. These students when passing out, they join an industry where they will need only practical knowledge with very little help of theory knowledge. Companies recruit them testing their theory knowledge assuming they have practical knowledge. But in reality, it’s not true. When a student becomes an employee, he struggles to do the work. During the whole education years, skills were totally ignored but now skills were the need of the hour. But students coming out of such an education system fails to meet the skill requirements but somehow stick to the company. But when such an extraordinary situation like this pandemic happens, these people lose their jobs. This loop won’t end until we bring some serious changes to our education system. We need to include more practical knowledge and less theory portion to make students actually eligible for the industry.
India is called as the agriculture-oriented country where most of the people have agriculture as their occupation. But are we counting youth in it? Surely not. Because we have created a pale image of the agriculture industry in front of the youth. During this pandemic, agriculture was the only sector with a positive GDP in India. But still very few youths take agriculture as a career. If this unemployed youth turns into a farmer, use their brain, new technology and ideas in agriculture, just imagine how our agriculture sector will grow in a few years. We need to put forward the glamorous side of agriculture and actually make the nation prominent in the world of agriculture, with our youth driving it.

17 Essential Tips for Young Entrepreneurs

Youth is the biggest resource of the Nation. Today’s generation is not only smarter but also ahead in innovation and dare to build their own empire at the prime of their youth. Though it takes a lot of efforts, a right amount of motivation and guidance can help the young budding entrepreneurs go a long way. Well who learn from than the experienced businessmen who started out at your age and now are known as the Young minds who made it to Big Shots.

Here are 17 essential tips for young entrepreneurs inspired by 17 people who made it under 17 years of age:

  • Dare to Dream:

Dr.A.P. J Abdul Kalam once rightfully said, ‘Dream is not what you see while sleeping, it is something that doesn’t let you sleep.’ Your dreams don’t have to look like anyone else’s. You get to define what success looks like in your life. Dare to dream your own unique dream of what living well looks like.

  •  Have a Vision:

The founder and CEO of Tumblr, David Karp, notes that an entrepreneur is someone who has a vision for something and a desire to create it. Keep your vision clear at all times. Having a vision means we have a clear sense of purpose.

It means we have a much larger picture of our business, than simply setting and reaching short term goals and tackling problems as they come along. In business, having a clear vision is absolutely critical. It is an extremely powerful tool to achieve the results you want.

  •  Do what you are Passionate about:

Where you care about DOING that thing, rather than what you get at the END of doing that thing. The dictionary definition of passion is “a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something” The spark of passion when gets action it fires up and lights the way ahead.

  •  Take Action:

The world is full of great ideas, but success only comes through action. Walt Disney once said that the easiest way to get started is to quit talking and start doing. That’s true for your success as well. Work in silence, let your success make the sound.

  •  Face your Fears:

Overcoming fear isn’t easy, but it must be done. Arianna Huffington once said that she found fearlessness was like a muscle — the more she exercised it, the stronger it became.

  •  Take the Risk:

We never know the outcome of our efforts unless we actually do it. Jeff Bezos said it helped to know that he wouldn’t regret failure, but he would regret not trying.

  •  Believe in Yourself:

As Henry Ford famously said, “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.” Believe that you can succeed, and you’ll find ways through different obstacles. If you don’t, you’ll just find excuses.

  •  Rome was not built in a day:

No one succeeds immediately, and everyone was once a beginner. As Steve Jobs wisely noted, “if you look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.” Don’t be afraid to invest time in your company.

  •  Plan for raising funds & capital:

Richard Harroch, a venture capitalist, has this advice for upcoming entrepreneurs: “It’s almost always harder to raise capital than you thought it would be, and it always takes longer. So plan for that.”

  • Set goals and targets:

Ryan Allis, co-founder of iContact, pointed out that having the end in mind every day ensures you’re working toward it. Set goals and remind yourself of them each day.

  • Learn from your mistakes:

Many entrepreneurs point to mistakes as being their best teacher. When you learn from your mistakes, you move closer to success, since learning from failure is the first step towards succeeding.

  • Adapt to the market:

Bill Gates once said that your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. Let unhappy customers teach you where the holes in your service are.

  • Put customer needs at the top:

“Customer is the king,” is the first rule of any market and business organizations.

  • Manage Energy, not Time:

Your energy limits what you can do with your time, so manage it wisely. Plan a proper schedule keeping your physical and mental potential as priority.

  • Invest your money wisely:

Investing your money can allow you to grow it. Most investment vehicles, such as stocks, certificates of deposit, or bonds, offer returns on your money over the long term. This return allows your money to build, creating wealth over time.

  • Be Consistent and determined:

       Consistency in your business is far more important that you can imagine. Being consistent allows you to establish awareness, build trust and deliver your services efficiently and profitably.

Whether you are establishing your brand or determining the course of your sales and marketing strategy, you have to recognise the power of consistency. Give yourself an advantage over fickle competitors by becoming consistent in how you operate your business, and what you present and offer to your customers.

  • Deliver more than expected:

Google’s Larry Page encourages entrepreneurs to deliver more than customers expect. It’s a great way to get noticed in your industry and build a loyal following of advocates.

Being a successful entrepreneur takes a lot of work, a lot of vision and a lot of perseverance. These 17 tips, from entrepreneurs who have already found success, will help you navigate the path much more easily.

Key to being Financially Independent in India

We all work right from graduating till retirement for five days a week -sometimes six days – only to spend what we have earned. In the midst of this daily hustle, how much time do we actually devote to plan for financial independence? Hardly any! Is financial independence a plan only for retirement? The answer is NO.

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

The first step towards financial independence is to not procrastinate it. A single drop of penny today will contribute to an ocean of financial resource. Then comes the below mentioned road map to a start of a great solo journey of life.

  • Financial planning – First, define clear and realistic financial goals like child’s education or a comfortable retired life. It is critical to factor in inflation while drawing up your financial plan. If you are planning your child’s education, you should be aware that a professional degree that costs Rs.4 lakhs today, is likely to cost around Rs.20 lakhs, 10 years from now.
  • Personal research – While a qualified financial planner can give you investment advice, the importance of doing your own research cannot be undermined. You can rely on credible websites to understand the pros and cons of each financial instrument.
  • Personalized financial plan – A common mistake is to opt for a particular plan simply because others are doing so. An investment plan must be customized according to personal factors such as your risk appetite, financial goals and life-stage needs.
  • Adequate time horizon – It is necessary to align the investment plan and the expected time frame for getting returns out of it. It is irrational to expect immediate returns from long term products like insurance, PPF etc.
  • Risk diversification – A smart investor would always ensure that the risk is distributed over a variety of instruments. A high risk instrument such as, an equity should ideally be balanced with a stable one such as bonds. Your investment portfolio should be a judicious mix of equity, debt, life insurance, real estate etc.
  • Planning for unforeseen events – Along with the current assessment of your future needs, risk of unexpected events must also be factored in. As a woman, it is crucial to be financially prepared to deal with unfortunate events like death, divorce etc.
  • Regularly track your investment – It is common to become complacent and expect the returns to flow in, once the investments are done. However, it is every investor`s responsibility to keep a tab on the performance of their portfolio.
  • Proper paperwork – There have been several instances where an investor is unable to claim returns from a bona fide investment simply because of misplaced or wrongly-filled documents. Proper documentation is a must to safeguard your investments. Also, ensure that someone other than yourself is fully aware of all your investments.
  • Securing your future: As a working member of the family, it is crucial for you to have adequate insurance to ensure that in your absence, your family does not go through any financial stress. Investing in a simple term insurance plan will ensure financial continuity.
  • Plan and execute – Last, but most important is to begin planning for all your financial needs from an early stage. The cost of postponement will weigh heavily on you in the later years when investing will become a compulsion rather than a choice.

In this world of instant gratification, have patience and watch as your pot fills with money one sweat and hard work at a time. Kudos to being financially independent!

Un-Fair and Un-Lovely.

How empowering was it to watch Indians hold the “BLACK LIVES MATTER” placard in one hand supporting the protests in the United States and with the other hand applying a cream of poisonous chemicals to their naturally gifted skin. In this black and white world why do we hate brown? From the soil that gives birth to plants to the earthen pots which store our precious waters to the wood that burns into the flames of tomorrow’s ashes -brown is everywhere.

“Beta dhoop me mat khelo, tan ho jaaoge!”, yells the Indian parent while some family in the Europe takes their sons and daughters to play on the beach and get some tan. A land that prays Lord Krishna who is described to be as dark as the thunderous rain clouds and yet portrays him blue because anything is better than black anything is better than brown anything is better than dark.

Etymologically speaking, the Sanskrit word ‘Krishna’ means black or dark. At times, it is also translated as “all attractive”. According to Vedas, Lord Krishna is a dark-skinned God. Even in traditional patta chitras (cloth art) in Odisha, Lord Krishna and Vishnu are always shown having black skin. 

50,000 years ago when our ancestors migrated from the North to the African and Asian continents, they were exposed to the UV rays of the Sun which is saturated at the equator and the tropic of Capricorn. Those days’ sunscreens were not invented hence due to evolution and the wonderful science of human body’s biology it produced melanin under the skin which acted as a natural sun screen. Skin creating its own protective layers, how cool is that?

But we as Indians would rather prefer skin burns and skin cancers than having a healthy skin. When my mother read the matrimony classified newspapers for my elder sibling’s marriage, her face falls down as she looks at those advertisements. No no-hold your horses, it’s not what you are thinking, everybody is progressive nowadays, nobody is asking for dowry. All they ask is – “seeking a fair bride for my son”, “fair and handsome boy with a fit body”, “girl should be white toned and open minded”, “boy should not be dark and not restrict our daughter from wearing her choice of clothing.” (no dowry).

To parents who are afraid because – log kya kahenge? Maa lets not look for brides or grooms who are fair, let’s look for individuals who treat people fairly. Let’s not buy besan (gram flour) for face masks rather let’s lather some potatoes in them and fry it in oil as we watch the fair besan turn into a beautiful crispy brown tasty pakodas (fritters). Fairness creams or home remedies for instant glow neither teach us to be a human with a clean heart, a heart free from the ignorance. Instead of handing a tube of glow and lovely to your loved one’s let’s make them stand in front of the mirror holding their head high because any shade is beautiful any shape is beautiful any scar is beautiful. Before teaching to love others let’s start by loving ourselves. It’s time we realise love comes in all shapes and shades, it’s time we loved all shapes and shades.

Forget snow white, I’m chocolate brown, I will write my own fairy-tale. A tale of every brown Indian girl and boy who is torn apart by the expectations of society and yet stands proud with a personality and smile beautiful than any white skinned magazine covers. To every Bollywood song that calls the actress “Gori” I would like to say – “Gore Rang Pe Na itna Gumaan kar. Gora Rang Do Din mein Dhal Jaayega” – don’t show such pride of your fair skin, the fairness will fade in time. What will remain is the virtues, beliefs, kindness and opinions .

Changing the name from fair to glow will not enlighten the young minds but it will give light to the years of colourism and discrimination to continue its course in every generation to come. Brown is beautiful and so is every colour ever discovered.

Role of Youth in Eradicating Corruption.

Once, Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam has rightly said, ” If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are – Father , Mother and the teachers.”

The truth is, corruption is now a worldwide phenomenon. But according to me the fourth and the most important societal member who can eradicate corruption is the YOUTH of our country. The real war has to be fought against these social evils and as the leaders of tomorrow it is our prime responsibility and duty. Why should we create awareness in small children about such vicious crimes ? Because – Things sowed in the minds of young take deep roots.

In reality, it is very difficult to root out the infectious disease known as corruption which has become rampant in every field of life. However instead of bearing it we must challenge it. Some years ago when social activist Anna Hazare started the anti-corruption moment, the maximum crowd was of schhool and college students. Their support is what made the purpose of the protest a succesful one. But was that enough?

Mahatma Gandhi- the father of our nation has quoted ,” A small act of good deed can cause endless ripples.” Youth of our country should remain vigilant and never allow themselves to be exploited by this social evil. Many people say that nothing can be done, but I believe things can change. Of course individual efforts can bring excellence but only collective efforts can be delivered effectively.

In the modern era, our Government is slowly accepting the opinions of young minds and their needs have been put forth as priority.I truly believe that the modernisation and dinamic attitude in the Indian parliament will slowly yet steadily change the phase of our nation. According to me it is not only the duty of politicians and government officials to boycott curroption but also the duty of each and every individual to war against it.

Whenever the circumstances may come, public should not bribe school or college managements to accomodate seat and admissions. We should not bribe traffic police for violating the traffic rules. Corruption has made our country lawless. Muscle and money power has come the law. Our freedom fighters fought all their lives to give us freedom from physical slavery. However we as a educated generation are not free from financial slavery.

Gandhi led the non-violent fight against the british but the currency note which bears his photo is the medium of corruption. What an irony ! Corruption is a virus which can be eradicated if the youth of our country decides to do so. No matter how much the delay we must not pay the bribe at any cost.

Albert Einstein has rightfully said that, ” Evils in the world exist not only because of those who do them but also because of the one’s who just see them annd do nothing to prevent it.” Corruption is like cancer which starts at one part of the system and spreads to every part if not treated or cured at an early stage.

Many years ago we had tryst with destiny and now the time has come when we shall redeem our pledge as the responsible citzens of this nation. Let us wake the Anna Hazare in us and stand for ” India against Corruption”. Only when the last tree has died and the last river has been poisoned and the last fish has been caught will we realise we cannot eat money.

Even if the older generations saw corruption as an immortal enemy, we millenials think of it as a mortal one. So my dear youngsters, ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your Country and World at large as one family.

Impact of social media on youth…

Social media became the part of life of today’s youth. They spend long hours on mobile and laptop using facebook, instagram, twitter, whatsapp or snapchat. Using these apps became the habit of youths in such a way that, they can even get off from it while they are in class or playing or sitting in a gathering.

The use of social media has both positive and negative impacts. The positive impact is that, social media keeps them updated about what’s happening around the world. Through these they can connect to their friends who is living miles away from them, which help them to keep the relations stronger.

A major advantage is that social media sites we can create pages and groups according to their profession which helps to build more connections and more opportunities being opened in the respective fields which can even lead to more employment opportunities.

Even though social media has many advantages, it has many disadvantages too. Using social media for too long, reduce the number of face to face interactions. As they use social media for long time, they don’t get time to sit with their family and go out with friends. According to studies, this leads to social isolation causes depression, anxiety, and many other problems. Social media also effects student’s language as they always use short forms or abbreviations on social media platforms which leads to a negative impact on their language capabilities.

Spending long hours on chatting on social media sites also decrease the productivity of youth which carries the youth not to be self dependent so they depend on parents and families. The long wasted time on social media can be used to do something productive by earning money or by learning something on online platform. Social platform also encourage spread of wrong information about religious and political groups or on people’s name which leads to fight and envy between the concerned parties.

So social networking have both positive and negative effects on youths. So it is necessary to use social media in a moderate way. Parents should guide and advice their children about to use social media sites effectively and warn them about the negative effects and cannot be overused. Proper usage of social media should also be included in the education curriculum so that they can use it effectively and doesn’t fall into the trap of negative impacts.

Mental Health: Children, Young People, and Families

Mental health is a widely overlooked aspect of a person’s health. People don’t consider it as important as their physical health, mostly because the injuries are not visible. However, they often forget that the signs are always there. Mental health problems are often directly proportional to the day-to-day happenings in our lives. Most mental health problems start developing at a very young age, but parents often ignore the warning signs. At such an impressionable age, children need to be taught about their mental well being too. It is imperative that we address the issue of mental health among children, young people, and families.

Children and Young People

It is seen many-a-times that the physical needs of a child are obvious, but his or her mental needs may be neglected. Even when the red flags are identified, there is a stigma associated with mental illness.

Some problems that children suffer from are ADHD, autism, anxiety, anorexia (eating disorder), depression, and bipolar disorder. Warning signs include intense mood swings, self-harm, substance abuse, sudden appetite loss, fidgeting, and continuous nightmares.

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A few suggestions to nurture a child or adolescent’s mental health could include talking to them about their day; asking them if they are facing any problems at school. This strengthens your bond with them and they start trusting you more. As a parent, make sure that your ward eats a healthy and balanced diet, is physically fit, and takes part in outdoor activities.

Provide children with a healthy environment at home; a child should feel secure in his surroundings. Help them build their self-esteem and confidence while talking to them. Encourage their first steps towards new interests. This would enable them to open up more and express their feelings and doubts. And most importantly, don’t condemn them when they do something wrong. Instead, let them know their mistake and work together to improve it.

Families

It is obvious that an individual’s mental health problems will have consequences for others within his social networks and most importantly his family. When it comes to mental illness, the emotional and behavioral consequences for family members go largely ignored along with having a huge impact on their financial component.

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Family life often becomes unsettled and unpredictable as the needs of the ill become paramount day by day. The afflicted often feels that he’s isolating those close to him. Children may find it difficult to understand why their parent is not his/her usual self. Therefore, many tend to blame themselves and grow up feeling abandoned, lonely, and isolated.

In case a family member suffers from a mental health problem, you should not let him feel dismissed and disregarded. Instead, you could try to understand what he is going through, his inner turmoil, and try to help him cope with that. Children need special care at this time as they are perplexed by the happenings in their lives.

You should try to mend the broken relations, leave the toxic people in your lives behind, and create a positive impact on others’ lives.

Image Courtesy: Google