The As I Evolve Story | Rtn Dr J Balavenkat, Founder - As I Evolve

Summary

The speaker at a Rotary Club event emphasizes the importance of striving for excellence and avoiding mediocrity. He urges young attendees to introspect, identify their potential, and grow holistically. The speech highlights the need for integrity, humility, and strong communication skills to become a leader of repute. The speaker encourages setting ambitious goals, learning continuously, and embracing a proactive attitude to lead a legendary life that positively impacts the community.

Takeaways

• 🙌 Acknowledge the contributions of various members in the Rotary Club and the importance of their roles in the organization's success.
• 🌟 Emphasize the significance of having a purpose in life and striving to be better than the previous day, with a focus on personal growth and development.
• 🛡️ Adopt the mantra 'Crusade against mediocrity' to lead a life with goals and ambition, avoiding a mundane and routine existence.
• 🤔 Encourage self-reflection and introspection to identify deficiencies and areas for growth, aiming for holistic development.
• 🌍 Recognize the privilege and blessings of being born human, healthy, and with opportunities, contrasting this with the struggles faced by many others in the world.
• 💪 Inspire the audience to aim high and become legends, using their potential to make a significant impact in their chosen fields.
• 📚 Promote continuous learning and the pursuit of knowledge beyond the classroom, suggesting listening to TED Talks as a source of inspiration and learning.
• 🚀 Encourage setting high goals and having a vision for the future, using the example of Abdul Kalam to emphasize the importance of aiming beyond mediocrity.
• 🌱 Advocate for the development of leadership qualities such as integrity, humility, interpersonal skills, and a positive outlook on life.
• 🔑 Stress the importance of planning and strategizing daily to learn new things and grow, suggesting that every minute as a student is an opportunity for improvement.
• 🏆 Conclude with the idea of leading a legendary life, where one's actions and achievements leave a lasting positive impact on others and the community.

Q & A

Who is the president of the Rotary Club mentioned in the script?

The script does not provide the specific name of the current president of the Rotary Club, but it does mention Rotarian Ramkumar as a respected figure within the club.

What is the significance of the term 'Evolve' in the context of the script?

In the script, 'Evolve' is used as a program name and also as a mantra to encourage personal growth and development, aiming to help individuals become better than they were the day before.

What is the main purpose of the speaker's address according to the script?

The main purpose of the speaker's address is to inspire and motivate the audience, particularly the students, to strive for excellence, avoid mediocrity, and to unleash their inner potential to become leaders.

What does the speaker suggest as a daily practice for self-improvement?

The speaker suggests that each person should look at themselves in the mirror every morning and declare their intention to work to become better than they were the day before, using the term 'Crusade against mediocrity' as a personal mantra.

What is the speaker's view on the importance of having goals in life?

The speaker emphasizes the importance of having goals, stating that leading a life without any goals is mundane and routine, and that one should aim to become a leader and reckon with, rather than just existing in mediocrity.

How does the speaker describe the audience's current situation in terms of blessings?

The speaker describes the audience as being very blessed, having been born with all their faculties intact, in contrast to many others in the world who face disabilities, poverty, and lack of opportunities for education.

What is the speaker's advice on how to become a successful leader?

The speaker advises that to become a successful leader, one must have integrity, humility, excellent interpersonal relationships, great communication skills, and a positive outlook on life.

What role does the speaker believe the Rotary Club plays in the personal development of the audience?

The speaker believes that the Rotary Club, through its programs like 'Evolve', plays a crucial role in provoking thought, presenting accomplished individuals as examples, and inspiring the audience to think differently and grow phenomenally.

What is the significance of the phrase 'Begin with the end in mind' as mentioned in the script?

The phrase 'Begin with the end in mind' signifies the importance of having a clear vision of one's goals and desired outcomes, and then working backwards to create a plan to achieve them, both mentally and physically.

How does the speaker define a legendary life according to the script?

According to the speaker, a legendary life is one that makes a significant impact on others, enriches their lives, and leaves a lasting legacy such that people attending one's funeral would say that the person led a life that was truly legendary.

Outlines

00:00

🙌 Acknowledging Rotary Club Leaders and Inspiring Youth

The speaker begins by acknowledging the leadership and contributions of various members of the Rotary Club, including the president, secretary, and program coordinator, as well as the long-term contributors to the program. They emphasize the importance of the audience's presence, suggesting that each person has the potential to become a leader with exceptional qualities. The speaker introduces the concept of a 'crusade against mediocrity' as a personal mantra for self-improvement and challenges the audience to reflect on their current lifestyle, encouraging honesty about leading a mundane life. The speaker also highlights the importance of recognizing the blessings in their lives, such as being able to see, hear, and think, and contrasts their situation with the less fortunate who lack basic necessities.

05:03

🌟 Embracing Blessings and Aspiring to Be Legendary

In this paragraph, the speaker continues to emphasize the audience's fortune, pointing out that not everyone is as fortunate to be born without deformities and with access to basic needs. They highlight the stark reality of global poverty and lack of education, urging the audience to appreciate their blessings and to convert them into a life of significance. The speaker introduces the concept of 'Unleash Your Inner Potential' and encourages the audience to think differently, to grow, and to aim high, citing examples of individuals who have achieved phenomenal success despite having the same opportunities as others. The speaker also stresses the importance of setting big goals and not settling for mediocrity.

10:05

🚀 Transforming Potential into Eminence through Continuous Learning

The speaker discusses the importance of seizing the opportunities presented during one's college years to lay the foundation for a life of eminence and legendary status. They argue that the choices made during this time can have a lasting impact and that every minute invested in self-improvement is a step towards success. The speaker encourages the audience to develop skills beyond their academic knowledge, such as integrity, humility, interpersonal relationships, and communication skills, and to approach life with positivity. They also suggest listening to TED Talks as a means of absorbing knowledge and inspiration from successful individuals.

15:07

🌱 Cultivating Leadership and Achieving a Legendary Life

In the final paragraph, the speaker focuses on the concept of leadership, defining it as proactive rather than reactive and as a path less traveled. They encourage the audience to lead themselves first and to be self-motivated, doing things for their own sake rather than for the approval of others. The speaker introduces the idea of 'begin with the end in mind,' urging the audience to set long-term goals and to mentally prepare for their future actions. They conclude by emphasizing the importance of living a life that will be remembered as legendary, where one's presence has enriched the lives of others, and by wishing the audience success in their journey to become top leaders.

Keywords

💡Rotary Club

The Rotary Club is an international service organization that brings together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian services and promote goodwill and peace around the world. In the video, the speaker acknowledges the Rotary Club of Kambo and its members for their contributions to the program, indicating the club's role in fostering leadership and community service.

💡Leadership

Leadership refers to the ability to guide, influence, and inspire others towards achieving goals. The video emphasizes the importance of developing leadership qualities, with the speaker urging the audience to evolve into leaders with phenomenal qualities and to lead a life of eminence and a legendary life.

💡Mediocrity

Mediocrity is the state of being average or ordinary, lacking exceptional quality or ability. The speaker uses the term to challenge the audience to strive for excellence and avoid settling for a routine and mundane life, as exemplified by the phrase 'Crusade against mediocrity'.

💡Potential

Potential refers to the inherent capacity for growth, development, or achievement. The video script speaks about the audience's potential to evolve into influential leaders, highlighting the need to unleash one's inner potential to become the best version of oneself.

💡Evolve

To evolve means to develop or change gradually over time, often for the better. The speaker uses this term to describe the personal growth and development that the audience should aim for, as part of their journey to becoming exceptional leaders.

💡Purpose

Purpose is the reason for which something exists or is done, often implying a significant or meaningful goal. The video script questions the audience's reason for being present, suggesting that they should have a purpose in life and not just exist without goals or direction.

💡Holistic Growth

Holistic growth refers to the development of an individual in all aspects, including physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual. The speaker encourages the audience to grow holistically, addressing not just their professional skills but also their interpersonal relationships, communication skills, and integrity.

💡Integrity

Integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. In the context of the video, the speaker mentions integrity as a key attribute for becoming a good professional and a leader, emphasizing its importance in personal and professional life.

💡Unleash

To unleash means to release or express a strong emotion, ability, or force suddenly and powerfully. The speaker uses this term to encourage the audience to unleash their inner potential, suggesting that they have the power within them to achieve greatness.

💡Legendary

Legendary describes something or someone that is extremely famous or well-known, often for being impressive or remarkable. The video script repeatedly refers to the goal of leading a legendary life and becoming a legend in one's field, as a standard of excellence to aspire to.

💡Stimulus and Response

In the context of the video, stimulus and response refer to the external factors or events (stimuli) that provoke a reaction or action (response) from an individual. The speaker discusses the gap between stimulus and response as a determinant of success, suggesting that a quick and effective response can lead to achievement.

💡Begin with the End in Mind

This phrase, often associated with Stephen Covey's 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,' means to have a clear vision of the desired outcome before starting a task or project. The speaker uses this concept to encourage the audience to define their long-term goals and envision their future success, as a way to guide their current actions.

Highlights

Respected introductions of key Rotary Club members and acknowledgment of their contributions over the years.

Emphasis on the importance of having a purpose in life and evolving as a leader with phenomenal qualities.

The concept of 'Crusade against mediocrity' as a personal mantra for self-improvement.

The call for honesty and self-assessment of one's life, with an interactive moment for the audience to acknowledge their current state.

The significance of being in the presence of others and the opportunity to grow holistically.

The rarity and blessing of being human, with a call to recognize and appreciate one's existence and capabilities.

The stark contrast between the privileged and the less fortunate, urging the audience to understand their blessings.

The aspiration to be known as a legend and the importance of converting blessings into a meaningful life.

The encouragement to think differently and to be inspired by accomplished individuals.

The advice against setting small aims, with a quote from Abdul Kalam emphasizing the crime of having small ambitions.

The importance of making the right choices in college to avoid a life of mediocrity and labor.

The necessity of investing in self-improvement every minute as a student to succeed in life.

The qualities of a good professional, including integrity, humility, interpersonal skills, and positivity.

The recommendation to listen to TED Talks and learn from influential speakers to improve communication and conviction.

The vision of becoming a role model at various levels, from school to the world, through personal growth and achievement.

The concept of the gap between stimulus and response determining success, and the need for a quick and effective response.

The strategy of 'begin with the end in mind' for goal setting and mental preparation for future achievements.

The final message on leading a legendary life and leaving a positive impact on others and the community.

Transcripts

respected uh president of this oldest

and the prestigious Club of this region

rotary C of kambo rotarian ramkumar

secretary sound upen the leader who is

going to lead this rotary District two

years from now rotarian

maruti the program coordinator who is

breathing eating and sleeping as say

evolve for the last few weeks rotarian

Pradip yaj and uh

all those who have contributed immensely

to this program for the last 15 years

with special mention to the rotarian who

did the launch of the website rotarian

chitra manoha and uh the person who is

doing the master of ceremony today

rotarian Bina and all the presidents

since 2010 until now who

consistently gave their time and effort

to make this a sustaining and a

continuous event thank you so much for

all your

contributions senior members of

rotary happy to see leel colel bat Singh

here who inspires uh us he would be

speaking to you one of these

days The Faculty from the 17 different

institutions who have come here and the

young vibrant students the leaders of

tomorrow and team presum the team which

is behind the show today for that hard

work in creating the infrastructure that

is needed to make everything comfortable

for us

today this journey was started in 2010

under the presidentship of uh rotarian

major donor Dr subramanyam who is

currently the district Secretary of the

rotary District I thank him for allowing

me to do this

program why should you be

here why should each one of you be here

when most of your

friends are outside maybe enjoying or on

the WhatsApp or listening to

something why should be you be all

here there should be a purpose for your

life each one of you are

young

small at this point of time but you're

going to evolve as a huge potential

person with phenomenal leadership

qualities in the days to

come so the first statement that I want

to tell you is when you get up in the

morning

tomorrow then you go to the washroom and

see your face in front of the mirror you

just have to

tell I'm going to work

today to become better than

yesterday and you should say one

terminology Cru crade against

mediocrity Crusade against

mediocrity I think this should be your

Mantra

henceforth you can lead a life without

any goals you can lead life for the sake

of your parents s to college so you

would want to go to the college you will

come back a routine mundane life watch

the TV sometime see the mobile sometime

read little bit at times at times no on

the phone all the time speaking to

people WhatsApp chat

Instagram was the was it the purpose of

your life now can you become a leader to

reckon with if you lead a mediocre

life how many of you think you're

leading such a life at this moment

please raise your

hands so you're very should be truthful

yeah you have to be truthful

you have to be

truthful so I see three hands up please

stand

up please stand up don't worry please

stand up a big round of applause to them

for being very

honest this is this is true leadership

thank you so much for accepting it and I

know majority of you possibly belong to

this group at this point of time but as

I

evolve the Moto of as I evolve is to

make you evolve make you introspect make

you look at you at

360° see your deficiencies and grow on

that to become a person who is grown

holistically all of you are so blessed

to sit inside this Hall you know you're

really blessed to sit inside this hall

because I always feel in several

meetings of the youngsters I've spoken

this that the day that you were created

the M second that you came into the

Earth God also created millions of life

but only few became human

beings and of the human beings God

created of the millions of human beings

he created the same microc that you came

into the Earth he created

similar human beings in this world but

of

that millions of them cannot see cannot

hear cannot speak cannot walk cannot

think how blessed you are to have born

completely like this what you

are and

then off all those who are born like

this without any

deformity you know onethird of this

children in the world world do not have

a roof under which they can lie are you

aware and almost 12% of those who are

come into the Earth today not only the

roof they do not know whether they will

have the next s meal

available tremendous

poverty and there is a huge percentage

of the children who do not go to the

school or to the college in this

world how blessed are you don't you

think you all very

blessed the minute you know that there

are equals like you who do not have a

place to lie down who do do not have the

possibility of having a next meal who do

not have more than one or two dress to

wear they do not have parents who take

care of them they do not have parents to

send them to

school and now

you're so blessed

that you here

today enough he has blessed you so much

and it becomes important that this

blessing is converted into a life where

each one of you will be called a

legend each one of you have to be called

a legend and it's

possible and this is exactly what we

want to make you believe and think that

you can accomplish you can

achieve and you need to Unleash Your

Inner potential to become the

best so in this entire year we would

like to provoke you to think

differently we would like to present to

you people who have accomplished

phenomenally in their life they also

belong to a school or a college where

there were 60 children same book same

teacher but suddenly they came up became

a CEO and they employing thousand people

and what was the difference in them that

made them do

this and that kind of thought

process the life lessons we would wanted

to emanate from them and we wanted to

cross-pollinate that into your mind and

we want you to think differently and we

want you to grow phenomenally in the

next few

years so don't keep a very small aim

Abdul Kalam said small aim is a

crime so do not think that I have to

pass this semester

exam second

second is the gospel truth

second second student is the boss

this is what

happens and for all those who

smile I wanted to tell you this is the

biggest defeat of your life biggest

defeat of your life when I when I travel

in my car when I see on both the sides

I see a lot of people carrying you know

some of them even uh pushing

cards I I I used to think what is the

difference between him and me when you

have to study had he studied he would

have also been in a position like what

we are today but just because he whiled

away his time when he had to study to

earn his food and his living he has to

push a card he has to carry weight and

he has to be a laborer all through his

life you need to decide whether you want

to be a laborer all through your life or

when or you want to lead a life of

eminence and a legendary life everything

is possible but the seed is sewn when

you are in the college if you miss this

opportunity you can never get it back

every minute that you are a student if

you decide to invest in making you

better than

the previous minute you have succeeded

in life and this is exactly what we want

you to do in this program of

asol you have to make your parents

proud you have to make your institution

proud you have to make your country

proud and we are full confidence that

you will do

that for that it's important that every

day you need to do something within you

that you become better than the previous

day so there should be lot of learning

just not if you're a medical student

it's just not medicine it's much much

more than

that if you have to become a leader you

need next you should have

skill to use the knowledge and skill

appropriately then you become a

professional but then how to become a

good professional you have to have

tremendous

Integrity

humility interpersonal relationship at

its best great communication skill

and always looking at the positivity of

life and very happy

internally this should together make you

a person who will evolve absolutely

holistically I would definitely wanted

each one of you the minute you go out

and step out of here to plan every day

strategically to learn new things I

would urge you to listen to talks the

TED Talks at least one Ted talk in a

week please go to the Google and put TED

Talks listen to talks like Martin Luther

Martin Luther King listen to talks of

Barack Obama the feury speeches the

diction the conviction the way they

conveyed it is phenomenal you need to

make the world believe that when you

communicate you need to make the world

believe that you are the best and you

need to achieve and accomplish this in

whichever professional life you are and

this spark we wanted to trigger inside

you and this whole exercise that all of

us here in

rotary the entire program as deviced by

pradep yaj we have so many things to do

why do you think we wanted to invest

time in each one of you is just to make

sure that you make a difference to

yourself you make sure that you climbed

up the ladder so very well to decrease

the learning phase because people with

expertise and experience will come and

speak to you so we are decreasing the

time that is needed for you to become an

expert in your chosen field by listening

to all these talks introspecting you you

should be like a dry sponge when you

come to ASA Evol you keep absorbing

everything that the speaker conveys the

body language the language that he used

the terminologies that he used and you

just have to slowly grow and inculcate

this inside you that you absorb all that

emanated from inside this Hall and make

yourself so versatile and so phenomenal

that you will be a role model in your

school in your college first in a role

model in your District then your role

model of the state role model of the

country and possibly a role model of the

world and that transformation has to

happen here I'm extremely confident that

if you give your 100% to this program

and take all that it's thrown here

you're going to climb up in your life

phenomenally I will finish by saying

one statement stepen Co was one of the

uh greatest accomplished mentor and when

he died he's from United States when he

died there were 34 presidents of the

state who were his students he mentored

the presidents of various countries and

he

said why do some people succeed and why

some

fail the people who succeed or won it's

like this there is a stimulus thrown by

assay

evolve a stimulus to inside each one of

you

and there are 240 people sitting here to

this stimulus the response is different

240 different

responses between the stimulus and the

response there is a gap and that Gap

determines your

success and I want you to understand

this this stimulus and the

response and I wish that the Gap is very

narrow the response is really good and

each one of you will become a power to

reckon and iconic in the field that you

choose and always there is another

statement which I want to say and

finish begin with the end in mind what a

profound and beautiful statement begin

with the end in

mind and if you want to do that you need

to create everything twice one is the

mental creation and second is the

physical creation tomorrow if you want

to do an act you mentally play it today

and physically execute it tomorrow

Mahendra Singh doni hits a six

consecutively because he he saw the

Australian bowler Bowl the fast bowler

the spinner everyone he played them

mentally several times the previous day

and when the ball was was delivered

effortlessly he pushed it to six behind

this effortless six there was so much of

hard work that was behind the screen and

that is what I wanted each one of you to

do begin with the end in mind Define

your goals five years from now 10 years

from now 15 years from now 20 years from

now and then you know which path to take

which journey to take and the final

statement is

this is again a very profound

statement all of us who are born in this

world will leave this world one

day but it is said the biggest award for

a person whose funeral the people are

attending they have to say that oh he

led a legendary life he enriched my life

it's a big loss to the community big

loss to me so we need to lead a life

which is absolutely legendary and you

have to meet everyone who knows you to

feel that you are the best and you need

to be branded as the best I want you to

be the best role model I want you to be

the best leader and Leadership starts

within first you need to lead yourself

to success a leader is one who is not

reactive but proactive a leader is one

who Treads an unread pathway rather than

the routine pathway a leader is one who

does things for himself and not for his

master the difference between the slave

and the master is the slave does it when

a master is present but a leader is one

who does it when nobody is supervising I

wanted you to evolve as a leader of

eminence of repute and I'm sure that all

of us sitting here will feel very happy

for what you have done to yourself to

your family to your country and to the

world

let the dash between your birth and

death signify a legendary Dash wish you

all the very best and I look forward to

seeing you as top leaders thank you