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“I am Sima from Mumbai”
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Made mutton curry in a mini insta pot last evening…
Why do so many desi men have foot fetishes?
How much money do you want to earn? Follow the path which takes you there. I want to make only 4M and I think consulting can do that. I am much older than you and HHI is much lower than yours
Money is a big factor but not the only one. However, the regret may come not just from money but rather a combination of things (building stuff, money, etc.)
It’s all about inner peace. HHI is around 260k living in California. I see people with a lot of startups and with huge stack of money. I also get ratified at times but learned a valuable lesson need to have inner peace as the rest of things are coming and going. Enjoy what you have. People would kill to have the life you have.
My 2 cents...I have realized there is no end to the FOMO. I have come to terms with the fact that the day I enter my grave I will not have the same accomplishments, networth, lifestories and experiences as some of my peers and people my age. It is just not possible as life is so unpredictable.
I have relatives/cousins in their 40s and 50s who constantly compare themselves with me. They pick one data point that makes me seem more successful than them but conveniently ignore or are not aware of the struggles behind the scenes. This also gives me perspective anytime I catch myself comparing to someone else who appears more successful.
E2 - with EY, your HHI is 650k? Tell us your secrets
Pro
To win it all - you have to risk it all. Those friends of yours who have successful startups also had options to come to the US or get a regular salaried job. They chose to risk it all. They didn’t choose the “safe” path. Success rate is less than 1%.
Close friend of mine left his safe BCG job in New York. Went on a year long back packing trip across Europe. He moved to India and formed a startup based on some ideas he developed while on the road.
Successfully exited a few months ago for $$$$$$$.
Not everyone is cut out for that.
Learn to be content and thankful for where you are. Happiness comes from contentment.
I came here to say what D1 said. You need to decide what kind of life you want and live it. You don’t get crazy success on a well trodden and safe path, but the level of risk taking isn’t for everyone. Neither is safety.
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Lifestyle, and quality of life, is very different in India. If you pine for the Indian lifestyle then go back. No amount of money here is going to get you that here.
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This sounds hokey, but you have to pick the journey you want, not the destination. I think people get enamored but the successful outcomes and that data set is massively skewed towards the minority of those who’ve made it. People tend to ignore what the everyday is, the chances, the challenges, the ups and downs. If that excites you and inspires you, go for it.
I have many friends with failed startups and a few friends in unicorns, what I find common to all of them is their energy and passion, I have none of those and frankly their life sounds 10x more exhausting to me. On the flip side I have friends in big tech, to whom my life sounds miserable but I look at their work and find it not of my interest either.
All of this to say, you have to find the lane you want so you enjoy it, the success and failures are byproducts of a lot of other things.
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A classmate of mine who cheated from me for most of our under grad exams in india is now a partner at Tier 1. I am a manager at T2. Never worried about this or other unicorns frok my school college . I enjoy shooting , teaching etx . And I am able to pursue my hobbies and interests very well . That gives me more joy than the partner pay cheque
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@D6 I said Tier I and not Harvard :)
@Op I think many of us have this fomo but only some admit it. So first of glad that you are getting your feelings out. Being personally from the undergrad batch which produced half of big Indian start ups turned unicorns, I have had my share of the same.
I am sharing how I thought about it personally in case that could be helpful for you.
1. The path to get featured as success stories is quite difficult and does have very low probability. Hence first of all one needs to be ok with ending up as a “failure” having lost 3-4 years of your life and potentially no way of getting back into the same life situation you were in before. I was ok with this as I had a safety net built out through savings and my resume and my spouse was ok going back to india and living there for good.
2. Many of the successful entrepreneurs I have seen very closely are fully dedicated to work 24/7/365. So this next 3-4 years will be very tough personally on you especially playing all roles from the one who cleans the office to the CEO. I was ok with that.
3. As a result of #2, you will have very little time to spend on family / kids. My spouse was absolutely not ok with this. So this became a deal breaker for me.
If you and your family is ok with all 3 you should take the plunge. I feel age is on your side.
Sorry didn’t clarify. I am still in US. I pondered going back a lot, conceptualized an idea, created a team back india. Took a break for a couple of months from BCG to get the product right. But realized in those months that it’s a 24/7 thing. Personal front got screwed up. I was enjoying but Wife was not ready to put up with this for next several years. Folded and back to pavilion.
Contd... how do you cope with this? I don't want to look back 10 years down the road and see missed opportunities because I did not want to take risk. But at the same time I need to cope up with this FOMO. How do you think rationally about making such a decision.
Okay. Now share your experience and thought process as OP requested :)
Enthusiast
What are your goals in life? If your friends become investors after selling their startups, will you then try to emulate them? There is no end to this.
Enthusiast
If you enjoy investing and all the effort is fun, most likely you will be good at it. If it’s not fun then it will be a slog
Have thought about this too. Know a lot of people who left consulting/ a safe job and joined a startup or started one in India. At some point they will have NW more than I do. But I realise that journey is not for me - leaving a safe job to work really long hours in an uncertain environment, with heavy competition from other startups. Just can’t take that stress right now.
Which city are you at? My partner and I turned 30 and have HHI of only 270K in a HCOL city in California. Don't kill yourself, you are most definitely doing way better than most people in your age group.
I struggle with the comparison issue everyday and it kills me but I have come to realize there are only limited number of items within my control.
This bothers me too. If you have good savings and your wife is willing to work and support you - it is definitely worth a shot (provided you are willing to work hard in India coz it won’t be easy). You just hit 30s so time is in your favor. The ‘regret minimization’ framework is important for your heart and soul in the long run.
There is something about these big 4’s though - if you have good relations and you’re a strong performer… they will re-hire you in a heartbeat.