It has been a while since I left my job at IDBI and started a restaurant in Mangalore. As the first graduate from my family, I never thought that apart from being an electronic communication engineer who frequented banks only to avail of scholarship during my college days, I would actually be working in one.
I never had any intention of working in a bank, but while I was pursuing post-graduation in IIT, I realised that I am not fit for engineering. So without much thought I quit IIT and sat at home for two months, planning on what to do next. Life is unexpected and I understood that people admire you only when you are on top and kick you when you are down. A few relatives and friends started demoralising me for leaving IIT. Everyone was of the opinion that I had made a stupid decision. But what everyone failed to understand is that I followed my heart rather than my mind. Unsure of what to do, I turned to a friend who suggested I prepare for bank exams like he was doing. By the time I cleared the exams and rose in ranks, the same people who had derided me praised my efforts now. However, I had a deep passion for food.
I had no idea that I would start a restaurant someday, but once we were optimistic and passionate about it, everything fell into place. I was hesitant when I thought about comments like ‘once a banker, now a butler’, but I’d rather be so than work in a bank and be miserable. I started the restaurant with another friend and we have managed to make it successful.
I have no regrets. Would you rather be working in a high-profile job with no professional satisfaction or be an entrepreneur who has contributed to society? You decide.
The writer is 24 and an Entrepreneur
