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The true power of community
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Suresh U. Kumar - Sat, 12, Apr 2025
- 14:03 EDT
- 94
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Representative Image / Canva
One of my primary responsibilities as the president of TIE-NJ Chapter, a leading nonprofit organization that supports entrepreneurship, is to be the 'Listener-in-Chief'.
On average, every week I get about 10-15 emails and 5-6 calls from members or their children to discuss an idea or to seek advice about their future plans. Of late I have noticed a heightened concern in the voices of members who have lost jobs, or whose startup dreams are teetering on the edge of collapse due to the pace and scale of change and disruption happening all around us.
Having survived 3 large scale disruptions- post 911, the financial crisis of 2007-08, and Covid19 (2020)- I would like to share my personal perspective on handling massive disruption.
"Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face" - Mike Tyson, World Heavyweight Champion.
I thought about this famous quote as many Americans and businesses are facing multiple "punches in the face" over the recent weeks, months, and I would argue even a few years. The list is endless- AI led disruption of existing business models, unexpected job losses, high prices, funding cuts, civic unrest, immigration challenges for students and visa holders, and most recently turmoil in the stock markets.
We tend to react by trying to pin the blame on a political organization, or business, or someone, or a group of people. However, this does not reflect reality. In my humble opinion, the big picture is that we are working through a global confluence of massive technology-driven changes, political unrest, and economic instability that are Systemic— in ways and at a scale we have not seen in our professional life, ever.
This is the reason that all over the world we see incumbents removed from power by the people. Many professionals and business owners within and outside our network are between jobs or between startups, between the poles of feeling safe or vulnerable in their roles.
One thing is clear - there are no easy solutions. The vast majority of leaders and elected officials - regardless of political affiliation- do not have the courage or the will or the wherewithal to show us a way to be nimble and help people get back on their feet. Perhaps we should learn the wise words of an aging boxer— a man who took many 'punches in the face' and yet found a way to stand up and mount a comeback.
So, how do we do this?
There is no one right answer, as each of us will have to tailor our response based on our particular circumstances. For instance, in my case, I started to take action over the last couple of years.
First I paused my startup launch plan as soon as I understood (or to be honest was confused by) the disruptive power of AI and invested time to pursue my dream of becoming a published author (it worked out for me, but AI is disrupting the old book writing and publishing models). Last year, as the interest rates spiked, I paid off my home mortgage and started to move to a higher cash position in my investment portfolio.
Last year I also applied for a Sabbatical so that I could step back from my teaching responsibilities and re-learn and re-tool and be a more effective professor and mentor. None of this is perfect, but my past experience with disruption helped me be a little better prepared this time around.
I believe that this is a time when we all must look to our respective communities and professional networks with gratitude and humility — and ask for help, advice, fellowship, or even just a call to catch up. To me this is the true power of any good network.
PS: Coming back to Mike Tyson's advice, the real question is not if you have been punched in the face, but when it happens, what will you learn and what will you do next?. For that will show the world who you really are.
The author is the President of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE)--NJ.
(The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of New India Abroad)ADVERTISEMENT
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