In his TEDx talk, Mr. Ankit Jain shares insights on leadership, adaptability, and problem-solving through real-life examples. Using urban flooding as a case study, he emphasizes that “leaders don’t change the goal, they change the plan.” This speech inspires both current and budding leaders to embrace agility, innovation, and growth outside their comfort zones.
Urban Flooding Example
Mein aapko ek realtime situation me lekar chalta hun. Garmi ke baad jab baarish shuru hoti hai, sabko accha lagta hai. Lekin kabhi kabhi yehi baarish waterlogging aur floods le aati hai. Jaise pichle saal Gurgaon mein hua tha. Roads par paani bhar gaya, traffic ruk gaya, aur log gharon tak pahunchne mein struggle kar rahe the.
Yahaan ek sawaal saamne aata hai: Agar koi problem baar-baar repeat ho rahi ho, kya iska matlab hai ki woh unsolvable hai? Ya humein apna plan change karna hoga?
Leadership Insight & Strategic Shift
Goal har kisi ko pata tha: Urban flooding ko mitigate karna. Problem plan mein thi, goal mein nahi. Traditional approach – pumps lagao, paani nikaalo – next year problem wapas aa jaati.
Leadership ka real moment aaya: repeat old approach ya rethink strategy? Cosmos Pumps shifted from a product-driven approach to a technology-driven approach, keeping the goal fixed but making the plan flexible.
A.C.T Framework for Leadership
- A – Accept Reality: Accept when the plan isn’t working, despite time and effort invested.
- C – Change the Plan: Rethink the approach (Plan B, Plan C), analyze gaps, and implement a better plan while keeping the goal unchanged.
- T – Thrust Again: Full commitment and execution of the new plan. Leadership is not about abandoning the goal but applying energy to new strategies.
Key Insight: Plans evolve, learning evolves, goal remains constant.
Audience Activity & Comfort Zone Example
Safe decisions = stability
Risky decisions = growth
Discomfort drives transformation
Life Example: Mr. Jain shared 3 failed startups, highlighting that the goal was never wrong, only the plan was. Returning to the comfort zone provides safety, but growth happens outside it.
Analogy: Destination = goal, Route = plan. Roadblocks don’t change the destination; they change the route.
