There are days when doubt creeps in and enshrouds the confidence of even the best of us. Not unlike the monsoon clouds here that blanket the hills for over a month and keep battering down pitter-patter pitter-patter until it forces the weak to slide and fall way, literally uprooting them from the ground.
Early on in our (ad)venture we too have encountered the naysayers who cruelly proclaim “This kind of thing will only work in ‘phoren’. It will not work here!”. The concerned relatives hint their fears by saying “But…you should also have a source of income till this is setup. Why don’t take up that online data entry job? It seems you have to go down to Siliguri just once a week”. You know you are in this alone when you watch your good ol friends, who listen to you extoll the virtues of Permaculture, almost doze and fall off their chairs. Most give you a sympathetic bemused look when they are not able to figure out the journey from computeering to farming (Trust our moms to come up with these inimitable phrases).
Even though while starting out you are absolutely sure in your mind that this is what you really wanted to do, the constant pitter-patter just like the monsoon’s torrential rain, does make a dent or two in your shield of confidence. You waver in your thoughts a little like the branch of a tree that breaks and falls after a heavy downpour. Strong winds of doubt makes you sway left and right till you realise that your fulcrum is right in the middle. But the swaying leaves you exhausted.
You take shelter in the company of friends and loved ones who may not understand what you are doing but nonetheless are just there for you. You find succour in the great works of the great minds. Nietzsche holds one of your swaying branches with his wise words from one of his classics:
No one can build you the bridge on which you, and only you, must cross the river of life. There may be countless trails and bridges and demigods who would gladly carry you across; but only at the price of pawning and forgoing yourself. There is one path in the world that none can walk but you. Where does it lead? Don’t ask, walk!
The years of rich experience in start-ups have probably also helped in developing a thicker skin (given the context, it would probably be more apt to refer to it as ‘bark’?). An entrepreneur once said that when caught in moments like these the best question to ask oneself is “What would you do if you are not afraid?”. The first thought that strikes your mind then is just what you gotta do.
And amidst all of this swaying and reading (and writing) one suddenly realises that the pitter-patter has receded in the background and the sun is out. The tugging of one’s feet to walk down the trail makes you realise that your roots are still grounded deep within the soil (soul!) of your convictions. The rains have stopped! It is time to spread the leaves (wings!) and reach out to the blue sky.
