INSIGHT

Beyond Profession: What Next?

Ravi Venkatesan, Special Representative for Young People & Innovation at UNICEF

For most people, finding fulfilment beyond work and business is an elusive goal. The daily grind takes a toll on personal priorities, and many look forward to retirement to renew their focus on such things. However, finding purpose and meaning in what is often referred to as a ‘second innings’ can be equally tricky. Not so for Ravi Venkatesan, whose career path has been a series of sometimes unconventional ‘s-curves’. His most recent stint, as a Special Representative for UNICEF, sets a high bar for itself: creating 10 million local entrepreneurs in India and Africa by 2030. In Mr Venkatesan’s view, retirement is an overrated word, and it is simplistic to think of life as a play in two parts. People are living longer and healthier lives, and there is no reason why they should not stay productive well into their ‘old age’. Moreover, in a volatile and uncertain time, business leaders are forced into a continuous game of musical chairs. They never know when they might be left standing, and given how strong age bias can be, it is best to view life as a series of innings (or s-curves), jumping from one curve to the next before the growth path flattens out.

	A career in 5 stages (so far)…
From Cummins’ diesel division in America…to Chairman of Cummins India… …then on to Microsoft for 8 years…	Mr Venkatesan started working in 1987, spending his first 8 years at Cummins’ diesel-engine division in the United States. There could not have been, he reflects, a better crucible for leadership development. He moved back to India in 1996 as Chairman of Cummins India, but then, in 2003, made a huge lateral shift to Microsoft. As a 40-year-old, he was both excited and terrified by an assignment that everyone thought would end in disaster. As it turns out, the experience was both fun and rewarding, but by about 2010, Mr Venkatesan had started to feel like he had achieved much of what he had set out to. However, he worried about just picking up and leaving without a monthly salary, or the ‘identity’ that goes with it, and it took him a year to take the plunge.
…before taking on the ‘portfolio life’… …and finally a role at UNICEF	His next ‘s-curve’, which lasted from 2011 to earlier this year, was what he describes as a ‘portfolio life’, in three parts. Mr Venkatesan tried many new things during this time, including heading the Boards of several companies, including Infosys and Bank of Baroda (where he spearheaded a turnaround). He also delved into writing, teaching and speaking, and crucially, involved himself in social-impact investing. All throughout, he made sure that he stuck to a routine, including leaving home each day by 9am, and working in a structured environment. His organisation, Social Venture Partners, supported over 250 NGOs across 6 cities, but by early 2018, Mr Venkatesan began to feel that his work there had ‘ripened’ to a point where he was no longer actively needed. That was when the UNICEF assignment came along. Given the magnitude of the jobs crisis facing India – 1 million people join the workforce each month, and another 8 million or so people need to move off the farms, and into manufacturing each year – there could not have been a more worthy cause for him to join, and he jumped at the chance.
	…with valuable learnings
Make sure the experiences build on each other – and know when to shift gears Avoid identifying yourself too strongly with a certain industry or function… …and above all, seek happiness	Mr Venkatesan’s journey carries important learnings. First, each of his s-curves has been different from what came before: these were not just ‘CEO stints A, B, and C’, but qualitatively distinct experiences that built on each other. Second, knowing when to shift gears is essential for any human being, and he was careful to listen to his inner voice. Third, rather than being identified with any single industry or function, it is best to make oneself ‘portable’. Fourth, and perhaps most important, is the pursuit of happiness. Mr Venkatesan was brought up to believe that hard work leads to success and recognition, and that, in turn, is what makes a person happy. By his early 40s, he had achieved all that he could have hoped to, yet he felt miserable. On reflection, he realised that his journey to self-actualisation was incomplete. What he needed at that point was to find a sense of purpose – and climbing yet another corporate mountain would not get him there. What one defines as ‘purpose’, however, is a moving target – very different at 30 than what it might be at 55. The only way to find meaning for yourself is to repeatedly step outside your comfort zone. This process can be confusing, but it helps you grow, learn, think and develop, slowly taking you closer to the true answer.
	Make a bucket list
Seeking fulfilment – in experiences… …in making the ‘highest value use’ of oneself…	As Mark Twain famously said, ‘The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.’ People, Mr Venkatesan believes, ‘Live as if we were never going to die, and die as if we had never lived.’ He did not want to look back on his life with regret, so he decided to make a bucket list, again in three sections. The first was the most obvious: doing ‘fun’ and ‘experiential’ things. The second was to find the ‘highest value use of me’. Everyone is born with certain gifts and talents, and by the time they get to the CEO stage, they tend to own valuable ‘assets’, such as skills, networks, and reputation. For Warren Buffet, the best possible use of his assets is to make tons of money, but for Mr Venkatesan, it is to spend the next 10 years making a dent on an important social problem. In many ways, everything he has done so far has been mere preparation for what he needs to do next. It is a new beginning, not an end.
…and in being the ‘best version of oneself’	His third bucket list is ‘becoming best version of myself.’ Like each software update, he wants to keep fixing internal ‘bugs’ and adding new ‘features.’ The goal is to look at himself in the mirror and respect what he sees. This, in turn means several things: to stop caring about what others think of him; to gain control over his ‘monkey mind’; and to achieve a balanced relationship with money. In many ways, the last one is also the most central aim: too little money is limiting, but too much is corrosive. Money can either liberate or enslave a person, and everyone must decide how much is enough for them. Mr Venkatesan is at a point where he only needs to work for money 25 days a year, and can spend the rest of his time doing things he really cares about. As he says, every person’s journey is a book in three chapters. The first is when you set out to conquer the world. The second is when you realise that you are unlikely to ever do so, and the third when you make peace with that fact.

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