The first time I gave a presentation in North Block, Raisana Hills for the Government of India, my feet were trembling in fear and nervousness. Being the project manager and leading a team of 5, I gave the presentation, and eventually, it was a huge success for us.
After the presentation was over, I told the Chairman of my organization how nervous I was and how much preparation I had done for the day.
And he replied.
The best presentations are the ones that look natural for the audience but the presenter had left no stone untouched in the preparation.
It turns out the harder you try for things, the more it brings a sense of nervousness because you give a damn about them!
Many a times, the 21 year old me had questioned when starting my career, how was the CEO of my organization giving such a flawless presentation or how Martin Luther King delivered his speech like a poetry when he said, "I have a Dream". Turns out, most successful deliveries have years of effort in the background. In real-life, successful people and outcomes are a function of non-exciting disciplined learning and preparation.
Today, Barack Obama may be a rockstar orator, but how many of you know about the initial flop-shows he had delivered during his campaigning. Being a management consultant or policy consultant looks glamorous from the outside- the reality is 95% of the work is spent analyzing data, verifying it, and preparing for the d day around the clock.
But just because something now looks mundane to you doesn't mean that it's not meaningful anymore- you just have to pick and choose the option where you are ready to do the once exciting, now mundane work every-day so you deliver your own version of, "I Have a Dream".
Fantastic career success and delivery require finding the craft you love, owning it, and acquiring mastery in it.
And then perhaps, one day, a 21-year-old might walk up to you and say, "You have inspired me. I would want to be like you".
If you are interested in learning about GGI's MBA Scholar program, you can learn here.
Author- Shatakshi Sharma, Cofounder Global Governance Initiative, Ex- BCG, Advisor, Tony Blair Institute
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