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Devnag Padavala
Devnag Padavala
CTO - Digital eXperience
Published Nov 21, 2021
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“Nag, don’t you think I have the right capabilities to grow, but why is my growth stagnant?” one of my ex-colleagues asked me in a casual chit chat. Though I convincingly answered him saying “You do, Buddy… but wait for the right time”. I knewTimingis something that everyone tries to blame, but shouldn’t that be the last resort after you exercised all your options?Capability Vs Growth– While it is prevalent in the IT industry, it’s a much-talked subject in any industry. We observe some people with decent talent, scale to greater heights while someone with killing skills, struggles hard to get recognition. Where do you think is the gap? I’d say it is all aboutSurroundings and Choices. Before I dwell on it, let me share a theory I read about - Goldfish theory or the Fish tank philosophy.
According to this theory, goldfish growth is mainly dependent on its surroundings. The theory says that if a goldfish is put in a bowl or a small tank, its growth will be unnoticed. Whereas you leave the same fish in a pond, it grows bigger and if you give it a chance to grow it in a river, it grows much bigger than it could even imagine. Though scientifically or biologically, this theory isn’t proven (or at least I couldn’t find any references), it has a great message to all of us. Goldfish can do the impossible when it is given sea-like surroundings.
When a goldfish is dropped in a bowl, the maximum it can do is swim around in circles, wait for the feed, rest for some time, and repeat the same… even if the bowl is inside a billionaire mansion. When you leave the same fish in a large tank or pond, what will happen? It will get an opportunity to explore inside the pond like - swim longer, learn from other fishes, protect itself from predators, and try out different natural foods. Naturally, Goldfish gets the required growth both in terms of physical and intellectual. What change did you notice in Goldfish here? ADAPTABILITY. Yes... Adaptability is one of the most important life skills, which can accelerate your career growth. Let me draw some analogy here to address my friend’s million-dollar question.
When your talent is not yielding the deserved growth, it’s time to review your surroundings and your adaptability. Your organization may be the largest, but is the department/environment where you work, a bowl or a pond? If your environment offers you a pond of opportunities, then review your adaptability, come out of the rut, and refresh your habits. But if the environment is like a fishbowl, unlike goldfish… there’s no one to pull you out from the bowl and put you in a pond. It is your career and hence your choices. If you are dreaming big, think big and look for big choices. Once again, Big in this context has nothing to do with the size of the Organization, but with the size of the opportunity.
What are your thoughts? Reflect it through comments.
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Masud Aftab
Agile Transformation Leader | Lean , Kanban, Scrum, SAFe
1w
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Nicely articulated Devnag Padavala ! Indeed , human identity and development are intricately shaped by the contemporary canvas of our surroundings, where the physical realm acts as a dynamic theater for our personal journey. Like a river shaping its course, our experiences sculpt the landscape of growth. Our surroundings, akin to a cosmic stage, orchestrate the symphony of our lives, silently scripting the narrative of our identity, beliefs, and actions onto the parchment of existence.
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Ambili Ramkumar
Associate Director | Cognizant - Insurance Digital Transformation, SaaS Implementation
2y
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The truth well written Devnag Padavala ..Growth is multi dimensional ..where learnings, opportunities, engagement, network/relationships, being in the right place at the right time, being visible, valued, ability to deliver, perform, negotiate etc play in synergy.. and the environment is key which drives us forward..
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Prakash Vaidhyanathan
2y
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Well written Nag! Organization, managers, co-workers are all equally important to be a goldfish in a pond!
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Jananaayagan Vetrichelvan
QA Automation Engineer | TestProject | Java | Selenium | Cucumber BDD | TOSCA | API |
2y
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👍
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Kodanda Ram
Associate Vice President - Enterprise at Qualitest
2y
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Very Good one Nag and well explained.!!!
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