While most of us curse our luck for things not going our way, this inspiring story makes us believe that we make our own luck.      

This Humans Of Bombay post talks about an orphan turned IAS officer who did not have anything handed over to him on a silver plate. It is about this resilient man who had to struggle his way through every step of his life to find himself a life that he believed he deserved.     

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I went from being an orphan at 5 to an IAS officer at 23. When I lost my parents, I was at the mercy of my relatives. But I had to keep going, I had no other option. Because I didn’t have any support system, I used to be very poor in academics, especially Math. At that time there wasn’t much exposure; no easy way. 
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At an age when people are living the best part of their lives, this man was relentlessly working, not just to get a scholarship but also to get a proper meal.    

After much struggle when I finally finished my schooling, I had no money to study further. My relatives couldn’t support me anymore either. So I had to go to Allahabad because they had a scholarship there. I slept on the floor of the university for days, just to get in. I had to scramble for every meal. 
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While all of important decisions are weighed in by many people close to us, this man only had himself to take him forward. 

I put in all my effort, because I knew that no one had my back. Everything I did was to secure my own future. And it paid off! I topped my university and then eventually landed a job there as an assistant professor! That’s when my life kick-started, and with a stable income, I had the chance to study for the Indian Administrative Service exam.     

His commitment to achieving what he wanted in life is a lesson to everyone that with persistence and the drive to achieve their goal, nothing and no one can beat them. Circumstances is something that one’s just born with, it shouldn’t be something one should die with as well.            

I worked extremely hard, studied day and night, and finally became an IAS officer. I worked as one for 38 years…And today, I’m proud of where I am, and I’m even prouder of all my struggles. They’ve taught me that nothing worth having comes easy, and that you can only achieve what you want if you put in your 100%. 

You can read the entire post here. 

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“I went from being an orphan at 5 to an IAS officer at 23. When I lost my parents, I was at the mercy of my relatives. But I had to keep going, I had no other option. Because I didn’t have any support system, I used to be very poor in academics, especially Math. At that time there wasn’t much exposure; no easy way. You had to either buck up or get out of the race. After much struggle when I finally finished my schooling, I had no money to study further. My relatives couldn’t support me anymore either. So I had to go to Allahabad because they had a scholarship there. I slept on the floor of the university for days, just to get in. I had to scramble for every meal. But when I finally got the scholarship… my life changed. I put in all my effort, because I knew that no one had my back. Everything I did was to secure my own future. And it paid off! I topped my university and then eventually landed a job there as an assistant professor! That’s when my life kickstarted, and with a stable income I had the chance to study for the Indian Administrative Service exam. I worked extremely hard, studied day and night, and finally became an IAS officer. I worked as one for 38 years…And today, I’m proud of where I am, and I’m even prouder of all my struggles. They’ve taught me that nothing worth having comes easy, and that you can only achieve what you want if you put in your 100%. Your path can only be paved by you, and that makes your success all the more sweeter.”

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