Do you ever feel like you're on a path that doesn't quite fit?
And no matter how hard you try, can't seem to find your footing? I remember the feeling like it was yesterday.
Today I will explore how I stopped myself from climbing the corporate ladder to build my own ladders.
Once upon a time in engineering college
2015 — It was the third exam of my final semester and I was lost. I didn't know what to write. My legs were cold. Mind silent as the exam hall.
But a thought was racing through my head: ‘why am I doing this?’
I heard the voices of my friends and family. "The elephant is out, only the tail remains. Don't quit now."
Along with those voices, there was another mysterious voice.
It sounded horrific. It had been screaming inside me since the second semester.
Reflecting back, I had a pretty abusive relationship with that voice for years. Turns out, it was my dear bluebird.
Bluebird said:
“Formal education is not for you. Boxes are not for you. A university is designed to put minds in a box. It cant help you become your best version, at least not this one.”
Bluebird had a solid argument. She had been pushing this envelope for a long time. I knew the feeling.
It used to linger in my mind at nights.
On mornings when I didn’t want to wake up.
On days I had to attend boring lectures.
And at times when I had to argue with teachers who were dumb themselves.
None of them were passionate for educating others. All of them became teachers because they couldn’t find something better to do in life.
But until this moment, I didn't have the courage to trust my instincts so I thought ‘maybe I am wrong.’
Plus, I was too afraid of letting my parents down. Afraid of rejection and being labeled a failure.
But finally, I could take no more. I was tired of playing it safe.
I got up to return the empty answer sheet. The invigilator gave me a wild + shameful look as I walked out. 🤨😥
He called me twice but I played deaf. It was my little call to revolt.
Driving home, my over-planner mind started thinking of ways to survive.
Beloved bluebird came to rescue.
“Build your own ladders,” she whispered.
I listened. That was the only option.
The path ahead was clear. I could smell it. 👃
Gandalf’s words came to my mind:
“When in doubt, always follow your nose.” (thank you Gandalf!)
That day I made sense of what Gandalf meant.
His message was clear: Kill all your plan Bs. Follow your instincts. Leave no choice for yourself.
Ultimately, a bit of bluebird and advice from Gandalf helped me navigate the storm ahead.
The storm started with my parents comparing me with other kids with good engineering careers.
My decision disappointed them. Big time. I couldn’t become the aalim, engineer or son they wanted. However, I trusted that I'd figure it out and took that risk.
How was it the best decision ever?
I had shut down the door to a formal career.
University was gone for good.
Expectations flushed down the tank.
The petroleum engineering degree became a mere plan B.
The moment I killed that plan B, I pushed myself into a do or die mindset.
I was forced to double down on my creative and entrepreneurial pursuits.
I had won time to experiment. 🧪
I started living and breathing my ecommerce store for pants, which became the new plan A.
How it became a ladder?
We started Patloon with a borrowed 50K so we never had money to look professional with a website.
The only choice was to learn social media and do it better than others.
I dived into the online world to learn: writing, marketing, designing, Fb business, and other social media channels.
My understanding of startups, business planning, financial management, budgeting, and negotiating got better.
I became proficient in tools like Wordpress, Canva, Moz, MailChimp, Buffer, Facebook Ads, analytics, and anything related to ecommerce and digital marketing.
Two years later, I came out with a lot of big fishes to fry in future.
Did the risk pay off?
If I hadn’t walked out that day from the exam hall, I would never have heard about these awesome tools or the word ecommerce.
Did my store end up being the next big thing? Nope, it died after a year. That’s the nature of first attempts and I have a pleasant habit of learning by breaking.
But I gained a wealth of knowledge, skills, and strengths that I still use today to help others, do new things, and make decent money.
In fact, the very platform you're reading this on, The Strategic Self, is a testament to that risky decision.
Without it, I wouldn't be able to write this or inspire other people to build their own ladders.
And know what am I grateful about?
The people who thought I was crazy for giving up engineering in the last semester. They eventually came around. 😍
Some even joined me in various online adventures and crazy bets. And…
I’m grateful to be able to help some of the finest startups in Pakistan and beyond. (if you are building something, please reach out. I reply to every single email. I’d love to support your work.)
I’m thankful to the people who trusted me the with their time, careers, money, and companionship even when I was not sure what I am doing.
It makes me happy to enjoy the fruits of taking a risk that didn’t make sense then. But now seems like the best thing I ever did.
That’s a wrap for today!
Let me leave you with these takeaways for the week ahead:
Listen to the bluebird.
Kill plan Bs to clear the path.
Take risks today for wonders tomorrow.
Gandalf is right. Follow your nose.
If you loved it this letter, consider sharing it with your friends to support my work.
Stay tuned. In the next issue, we’ll explore:
How to take structured risks
How can anyone build their own ladders
How rope walkers and mountain climbers do it.