Written by Jitendra Rathod
Jitendra Rathod is a content strategist and marketing writer who has worked, and continues to work with, a wide variety of institutional clients in the tech, life sciences and marketing space. Currently, he serves as the Director of Operations for a tech solutions provider, 500X Tech Labs Pt. Ltd. Previously, he worked as Assistant professor in the Department of Microbiology, Vidya Pratishthan’s Arts, Science and Commerce College, Baramati (Dist. Pune).
“Fate is what you’re given; destiny is what you make of it.“
I wanted to be a doctor. I’d tell anyone who’d ask or care to listen that I wanted to become a super-specialist. People believed me, since they only thought it natural for the doctor’s son to go on and become one. But as they say, fate doesn’t care about your plans. I ended up being a Microbiologist. Maybe, I thought, I’d do a Ph.D and be called a “Doctor” after all!
I did my Bachelor’s in Microbiology after I realised that I wasn’t cut out to become a surgeon (aptitude- and attitude-wise!). I was advised to do an MBA and enter the corporate set up. But again, I simply went with the flow and joined my friends as we scrambled for a seat in the Master’s program, which back then was run in only three departments. I was lucky to get a seat in the Microbiology Department at Abasaheb Garware college. This was in 1999.
I have many fond memories of time spent in Pune. Looking back, the two years played a key role in shaping me into the individual I am today and also strengthened my bonds with the people I am proud to call friends even after 25 years. One friendship turned into something bigger – a commitment for a lifetime.
And yet, I only had a vague idea of what I wanted to do in my life. My constitution was (and probably, to an extent, is) of a laid back, happy-go-lucky individual. And lucky I have been all my life! While most of my friends were still struggling to find a job, I got an opportunity to work on an industry-sponsored project at Agharkar Research Institute in Pune, as a Research Student within weeks of completing my Master’s degree, in 2001.
It was during that time when I found out I had passed the National Eligibility Test (NET) for Lectureship (actually I was gunning for a Junior Research Fellowship). In a rush of “let’s see what happens,” I applied to a few colleges under the University of Pune. And because fate had already chalked out plans on my behalf, I got a job at Vidya Pratishthan’s Arts, Science and Commerce College, Baramati.
I took up the job as, what I loved calling, a “stop-gap arrangement.” Little did I know that I had no motivation to change the status quo. And before I knew it I had made myself extremely comfortable in the job. It was a well-paying, secure job, based on which my family, which was initially reluctant, let me marry the girl of my choice. After our marriage, my wife Manjiri also got a job in the Department of Biotechnology. Before I knew it, I bought a home and expanded my family with the birth of my son.
As the years rolled by, I learnt a lot. Again, looking back, those eight years taught me many things and I am thankful for the learnings I received from my superiors and my colleagues. I loved being in the company of young minds and I am happy to have played a small part in their lives. (Many of my past students still call me and tell me that I did a good job! That is very heartening.)
As 2009 was stuttering to an end, I was overwhelmed by a feeling of inconsequentiality. I became detached with my work and wasn’t feeling too happy with it. Other incidents happening with my family in my hometown Nasik led me to decide on my future. Call it pre-midlife crisis if you please, but I took the decision to leave my teaching job. July 31, 2010 was my last day as Assistant Professor of Microbiology.
If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we’d literally astound ourselves.
I opened a gelato franchise in Nasik. The how and the why are beyond the scope of this story, but before I knew it, I was a businessman! I had a bricks-and-mortar business that I loved. My entire day involved making Italian ice cream in the kitchen of my shop and selling it to delighted customers.
But before you, dear readers, get any fanciful and fairy-tale notions about a rollicking business centred around making and selling ice cream, I would request you to hold your horses. The business did not proceed as planned. After three painful years, two major pivoting events, and a mini fortune down the proverbial drain, I was forced to shut the shop. There goes the dream ☹.
But the designs of fate again manifested in its true glory as I looked to transition into something meaningful to support my young family. Cut back to my disillusioned time in late 2009. Trying to find something that I can do instead of teaching in college, I had stumbled upon “content writing.” I consider myself a good writer. I am able to express myself way better in written words than spoken. And so content writing came naturally to me. I could research well, thanks to my science background, and I could write well. And what was even better was that people were ready to pay me for my writing! I tasted success early and so it was only natural that I took to professional content writing after the failure of my ice cream business. It was the middle of 2014 and a new chapter in my life was being written 😊.
The transition was difficult but fun. On the basis of my skills as a writer, I started getting gigs that paid me – first small, then slowly substantial. Because I was a late bloomer in this field, I had no choice but to move fast up the ranks from being an also-has to a superlative writer. Along the way, I picked up other skills – editing, content strategy, SEO tactics, and so on. I started networking furiously and worked with an exclusive clientele of international and domestic businesses.
My success as a content strategist and creator can be summed up by the fact that I was able to buy my second home within three years of me shutting shop and transitioning into a full time professional writer. My income was supporting my family – which had welcomed another member, my daughter, in 2013 – and our generous lifestyle. I was working with businesses in the Life Sciences space – pharma, genomics, holistic wellness, medical devices, advisory and venture capital – and tech – blockchain and cryptocurrency, SaaS, AI and so on. Every day was challenging and the work I was doing was extremely satisfying. I have never experienced Monday Blues since I left my teaching job.
We don’t meet people by accident; they are meant to cross our paths for a reason.
In 2016, I came in contact with Sheell Desae, a technologist and futurist who I would work with and who would go on to become a very dear friend and business partner. I joined his ventures – Alatar Consulting, first, and then SDP (Sheell Desae and Partners) – as a content consultant and marketing writer. We did good work together with many clients. But again, fate had other plans.
By this time, I am sure you may have realized the power of fate in my life. I am a firm believer in fate. What is meant for you won’t pass you by. However, I am not a blind follower of design by fate. I believe that our fates are written in a much more complicated manner. Our story follows a linear path only till we reach a crossroad, or a bifurcation, that calls our Free Will to make a decision. And then depending on our decision, our life follows a different story.
To make it simpler, if I had decided to remain in my job as a college lecturer, my story was already written. But because I took a decision at the crossroads of my life, I am following a different story. In short, while all alternative mini-stories are written, your decisions will create your true life story.
The power to shape your life and manifest it in the way you desire is still very much in your hands. This power comes from passionate, nay, obsessive thinking about the things you wish to achieve, and dedicated, focussed work towards your goal. If you leave everything in the hands of fate, you are destined to live a life that will never do true justice to your immense potential, something every individual is born with.
You are exactly where you are meant to be; if you aren’t, then your life story is about to take a grand turn.
The global pandemic has changed the very paradigm of life – both personal and professional. Millions of people around the world have been affected in ways we cannot even start to imagine. My work, thankfully, did not get affected much, but I knew I had to pivot one final time to something where I can create long term value, and maybe, leave a legacy.
This was the time Sheell and I decided to transition from SDP to start a brand new tech company – one that focuses on creating high-end tech solutions for all kinds of businesses. Today, 500X Tech Labs Pvt. Ltd. serves a number of businesses in a wide range of industries by creating cutting-edge tech solutions and digital strategies to navigate a changing world. In my more than 12 years as content strategist, I have worked with many tech and deep tech companies and I have gathered a pretty decent understanding of how tech affects us and our businesses. At 500X Tech Labs Pvt. Ltd., I serve as the Director of Operations.
I also recently started a passion project – The Allergy Mentor – where I use my learnings from curing my long term allergy (allergic rhinitis, or hay fever) to help other allergy sufferers make sense of their conditions. I have also researched holistic methods that can help them cure their conditions and live a happy and healthy life. I continue to create content and courses around this concept and attract as many fellow sufferers as I can.
Happiness is not a goal; it is the by-product of a life well spent.
I believe that a life full of satisfaction is more important than one that is measured by the success parameters of others. As the old adage says, “Never judge another person until you have walked a mile in his moccasins.” And to add to it, never be fazed by the progress and success of others; we are all running a different race and living a different story.
I have enjoyed every moment of my life, with all its crazy turns, many of which are way beyond the purview of this story. But all of my experiences have shaped me and continue to drive me to achieve my objectives – that will make me happy without falling into the “success trap” of society.
The power to shape your future is in your hands. My story should not be construed as run by fate alone. I have had to do my portion of hard work, have had to sustain my positivity in times of dejectedness and keep my eyes focussed on the end goal – of creating something worthwhile that you’d be proud of when you hang your boots. Have faith in yourself, your immense potential to do marvelous things and in the designs of the Universe, that will align things perfectly for you if you are honest in your efforts and true to yourself.
Edited by: Pratibha Siwach
Anuja Madhekar
Anuja Madhekar is an Assistant Professor of Microbiology at Fergusson College Pune with 9 years of teaching & 2 years of research experience. She has a certificate in science journalism from ISCOS (Lucknow). She is a content writer for the journal Resonance: Journal for Science Education by IASc. She is a science enthusiast with an interest in science popularization.
Payal Kapoor
Payal Kapoor is an Assistant Professor in the postgraduate department of biotechnology at the Khalsa College, Amritsar. She received her Ph.D. in molecular biology and biochemistry from GNDU Amritsar.