APJ Abdul Kalam, the Missile Man, had passed away giving a lecture at Indian Institute of Management – Shillong. His humble and dynamic life will always stand as an inspiration for all. Here we list the five most important life lessons that we can learn from the life of Bharat Ratna, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.
1) Lack of Riches can never Confine Talent:
Dr APJ Abdul Kalam was born to a boat owner in Rameswaram, and coming from a financially poor background, Kalam had to start working at an early age. He worked at a store near Rameswaram Temple, and also distributed newspapers after finishing school everyday. Nonetheless, he went on to become the Missile Man of India and Bharat Ratna.
2) Family Will Always Have Your Back:
Kalam managed to get a seat in Madras Institute of Technology, however, the college fees of Rs 1000 was something he couldn’t afford. That’s when his sister Zohra came to his rescue by mortgaging her jewelry. Kalam was touched by his sister’s kind act and vowed to get back all of her jewelry with his own earnings.
3) Tests Will Only Get The Best Out Of You:
While studying aerospace engineering at MIT, Kalam’s college dean was unhappy with the progress of his senior class project. The dean threatened to revoke his scholarship if he failed to complete the project within strict deadline of 3 days. Kalam completed the project within the given time and awed his dean who confessed, “I was putting you under stress and asking you to meet a difficult deadline.”
4) Taking Failures in Your Stride:
Kalam wanted to be a fighter pilot since he was a teenager. However, his dream of flying an aircraft was left unfulfilled after he failed to clear the interview at Indian Air Force. He moved on to work with DTD & P. As life would have it, Kalam in 2002 became the President of India, and thereby Commander-in-Chief of defence forces of the nation including Indian Air Force.
5) When You Love Your Work You Don’t Need Retirement:
Even in his last years, Dr Kalam was working as a visiting professor at IIM-Shillong, IIM-Ahmedabad, and IIM-Indore, honorary fellow of IISc-Bangalore, Chancellor of the IIST – Thiruvananthapuram, a professor of Aerospace Engineering at Anna University in Chennai, and JSS University in Mysore.
