Mohanji, the founder of the Mohanji Foundation and various charities and organisations such as Ammucare, ACT Foundation, Himalayan School of Traditional Yoga, World Consciousness Alliance, and Early Birds Club, who expressed the wish that the ITCC Conclave will become a prominent feature, underscored the need for global growth when it comes to businesses. He was addressing the opening function of ITCC Business Conclave 2023.

“The seed for it, that needs to germinate and grow into a global entrepreneurial venture, is buried inside each and every one of us,” he said. According to Mohanji, businesses in the country have always been comparing themselves to their foreign counterparts. “Now, that itself has become an imitation. The one point a businessperson needs to keep in mind is that innovation needs to be the focal point and not imitation. There is a lot of space for innovation in the world. However, when it comes to imitation, the space is very limited. It entraps a businessperson,” he said.

“People tend to go with trends since they are tried and tested. Hence, the chances of failure are limited. But it is just that. No growth happens in that space. Growth comes to examples of how innovative companies and people are. Google and Microsoft, along with Apple, Facebook, Orkut, and immigration-driven platforms like Zoom are some of the examples that highlight the importance of how innovation has unlimited scope,” he said. This is the first point that I wanted to highlight, said Mohanji.

“We too can carve out a space for ourselves. All we need to do is put forth original ideas. There is a lot of space that can accommodate everyone,” he added. Another point that he tried to explain is the need to continuously perfect oneself. “One needs to compete with oneself. And it should be a continuous process. It should be understood that perfection is not an end. One should never become complacent and think that they have achieved all levels of perfection. When a person does that, it is the beginning of stagnation, and the next thing that happens is the person will not be able to go forward,” said Mohanji.

Another aspect that a person planning to start a business got to have is to invest in an idea about which they have a clear understanding. “It is often seen that whenever especially Gulf returnees plan to launch a venture, they are bombarded with ideas from all and sundry. They bend to the will of their family and friends ending up setting up a venture for which they have no idea about and finally lose money,” said Mohanji.

He said, “Life is an experience. We should give value and respect to the experiences that we constantly have in our brief lives. We also need to be daring to take up those experiences. It is individualistic.” Mohanji urged the delegates to do things that they enjoy.

“It would be good to ask yourself whether you are happy. If you cannot enjoy what you do, then it is certain that the path you have taken is not right. You will not be able to achieve success,” he added.

Also, success is not wealth or growth, he said. “It is a feeling that you should get daily, the satisfaction that you get daily. For a person to be successful in business, they should not be emotional. The onus should be on intellect. Emotions will only take a businessperson backwards,” Mohanji said.

Another point that Mohanji highlighted was the importance of unity in these post-Covid times. “The need of the hour is to form a consortium of business people and present a united front in the business world. The consortium should come together producing different products. Once such a united front is presented, local businesses will have value even on a global platform.” The ITCC Conclave, he said, “is not about doing things that I want to communicate, then,” he added.