Author: Dr. Ajit Varwandkar

She won 4 gold medals and 1 silver medal for India in the 10th Asian Games held in Seoul in 1986. She bagged 13 golds at ATF meets and five gold medals at the 6th Asian Track and Field Championship in Jakarta in 1985. 

Her journey to success was marked by her commitment to daily improvement and hard work. Despite facing many challenges, including a lack of proper training facilities and equipment, Usha persevered and became one of India’s most successful athletes. Her dedication to daily improvement and hard work helped her overcome obstacles and achieve her goals. 

She is PT Usha 

 

He is known for his commitment to innovation and ethical business practices. Along with his six software professional friends, he founded one of India’s largest IT companies in 1981. All this started with an initial loan of RS 10,000, which was provided by his wife. He continued being the company’s CEO for 21 years, from 1981 to 2002. 

He did not become a successful entrepreneur overnight. He is widely known for his commitment to continuous learning and improvement. He once said, “In the business world, leadership means the ability to continuously learn and to apply that learning to improving the organization.” 

He is Narayana Murthy

 

She became the first Indian female boxer to win a gold medal in the Asian Games in 2014 at Incheon, South Korea and is the first Indian female boxer to win gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. She is also the only boxer to become the Asian Amateur Boxing Champion for a record six times.

Her success is the result of her unwavering dedication to her sport. She started boxing at a young age and trained rigorously, often waking up before dawn to practice. Even after becoming a wife and a mother and facing personal setbacks, she continued to make small improvements to her game. 

She is Mary Kom

 

In 1958, he set records for the 200m and 400m in the National Games of India, held at Cuttack, and won gold medals in the same events at the Asian Games. He also won a gold medal in the 400m (440 yards at this time) competition at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games with a time of 46.6 seconds.

He grew up in poverty and lost his parents during the Partition of India. Being determined to succeed, he invested in self-training and regular practice. Throughout his days of struggle, he focused on small improvements in his running technique and endurance. His dedication paid off when he won multiple medals.  A man widely known as the “Flying Sikh” from India.

He is Milkha Singh

 

She is an Indian player who won a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics and a bronze medal at the 2020 Olympics. She was educated at Hyderabad’s Auxilium High School and St. Ann’s College for Women. Even though both of her parents were competitive volleyball players, she decided to play badminton.

Her success is the result of years of hard work and dedication. She started practising at a young age and trained tirelessly to improve her skills. She continued to work hard and make small improvements to her game daily. She faced many setbacks and lost matches in continuation but never surrendered to fate. 

 

She is P.V. Sindhu

Not just PT Usha, Narayan Murthy, Milkha Singh or P.V. Sindhu; when you study the life story and the struggles of many other such heroes, the common denominator is “Continuous Improvement”. Adding small updates every day with regularity can transform a novice into an expert. You may be desirous of learning a new language or a musical instrument; you may be preparing for your examinations or working on some crucial project; all that is required to move closer to successfully accomplishing your goals is to keep moving ahead. 

Even if you improve just 1% daily, you become 37.78% upgraded over 365 days. The 1% improvement isn’t noticeable daily, but it can lead to meaningful returns in the long run. That is the power of compounded investment.

 

Do contact me in case you have any career queries.

Dr. Ajit Varwandkar is the Director of myaglakadam.com. He is a leading career counselor and can be contacted on 9826132972 or email him at info@fsindia.in

This column was originally published by the author in The Times of India