Mechanic to Trader - My Journey

Hello,

My name is Parvej Alam, and today, on September 25th, 2025, I celebrated my 43rd birthday. As reflected on my life, I realized that many years had slipped away. Inspired by this realization, I decided to create a journal to document the significant events and experiences that have shaped my journey.

Schooling and collage

Jabalpur

In 1996, I enrolled in the 10th grade. Among my siblings, I was the academically weakest. My father had very low expectations for me to excel in all my academic endeavors, so he advised me to simply avoid failing in any year.  In return, I was expected to take on all the household chores, including fetching gas cylinders, wheat flour from the chakki, and paying electricity bills. Since online payment systems weren’t available back then, I had to physically visit these places. I diligently took care of these chores on behalf of my father.

Beyond the classroom, I learned valuable life skills from these experiences. I discovered how to talk to people, negotiate, overcome challenges, manage money, and maintain accounts. In essence, I was becoming street-smart and gaining practical experience alongside my best friend, Neeraj.

I don’t recall the exact moment when i met Neeraj, as his house was just a few houses away from mine. It’s likely that we were friends even before we started coaching classes together. During that period, we both managed to clear our 12th-class exams in 1999. Although I barely passed, the grace marks in chemistry saved me. I found physics particularly interesting because it delved into topics like electricity, voltage, wires, and provided opportunities for hands-on learning in practical classes. 

In 1999, it was time for me to apply for college, but I wasn’t interested. It wasn’t just because I was weak in studies; the books didn’t excite or engage me. So, I decided to change my stream and get admission into a commerce college so that I wouldn’t have to attend college regularly or study so hard just to pass the exam. Neeraj continued with his B.Sc. in another college.

In 2002, I graduated from college with a bachelor’s degree in commerce, but I had no clue about jobs or careers. I applied for a salesman job at a TVS motorcycle showroom in my hometown, Jabalpur. I did the job for a few months and realized that it wasn’t my field. I had an interest in electronics. Neeraj failed in his final year and had to study one more year to clear his backlogs.

Mobile Mechanic

While exploring the city, I stumbled upon an advertisement for a course called “MobTech - Learn to Repair Mobile Phones.” Intrigued, I inquired about it. Although the course duration was 2 months, the cost was 6000 rupees, I convinced Neeraj to join me in this course since we both were in a similar situation. 

I had about 4-5k rupees from my previous job, and I managed to convince my mother to contribute an additional 1-2k rupees. Both Neeraj and I joined the mobile repairing course, and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience. However, Neeraj found the theoretical aspects less engaging because he was studying similar concepts like resistance, capacitors, diodes, electrical, and electronic principles in his B.Sc.classes.

During the course, I began assisting and teaching other students, and I also started repairing mobile phones that arrived at the training center either from students or nearby shops. Neeraj and I were both delighted, learning rapidly, and applying our creative thinking to solve problems by brainstorming and utilizing various tricks and hacks. Occasionally, we would even earn a small amount of money if we successfully resolved significant issues on expensive mobile phones, and the individual who brought the phone would receive a substantial payment from the customer.

As time passed, we realized the need to earn more money to purchase equipment to continue our repairing work. Since we had no personal shop or contacts, we decided to take an innovative approach, or at least I believe it was an unconventional thinking at the time, a "Virtual Shop".

We visited a General/Gift/Kirana store in our area and spoke to the shop owner’s son, who was managing the gift and fancy item section. We explained our idea: we would display a small banner in our shop stating, “Mobile Phone Repairing Available.” Whenever he received any mobile repair work or inquiries, he would inform us, and he would receive a 50% commission from the repair profile we would create. Since we didn’t have our own phones, either myself or Neeraj would visit the shop every evening, or the shop owner would send someone if anything urgent arose.

One sunny day, we were both thrilled as it marked our first income from our own business. Anil Bhaiya, the son of the shop owner, paid us 350 rupees after deducting his commission for the first work we completed in this virtual shop. If I recall correctly, it was a ringer replacement in a Panasonic GD55 phone, and the cost of the ringer was 150 Rs. We charged the customer 450 rupees, resulting in a profit of 150 rupees. Neeraj took out 50 rupees for the prasaad and donation at our Hanuman Mandir, and I joined him too, because without his support, our venture wouldn’t have been feasible.

Back then, mobile phones were considered a luxury, and repairing them was a lucrative way to earn money. Gradually, our business gained momentum and offered us two benefits: 

1. We were making a profit and gaining recognition. In our town, there were only a few skilled mobile phone repairers, and we were among them. 

2. People in this field began to take notice of us, and we now had multiple virtual shops similar to this one. Even people started approaching us directly to have their mobile phones repaired.

Despite our growing success, we still lacked our own shop and we were dependent on the equipment at our training center to repair our personal customer phones, which was not permitted. We would do it when the owner or trainer was away for lunch or had other commitments. We had basic tools such as screwdriver sets and multimeters but we needed a primary machine for IC and Chip level repairing, known as an SMD station.

Undeterred, we continued working diligently and saved enough to purchase our own SMD 850, Micro Iron, IC Re-Balling kit, and other essential tools for approximately 12000 rupees.

Neeraj and another friend traveled to Delhi to purchase equipment because he was familiar with the Delhi market due to his visit with his father. Unfortunately, I couldn’t join them because I had become a full-time trainer at the same training center, with classes to teach.  I was good at teaching mobile repairing, so MobTech hired me for a monthly salary of Rs. 6000. I accepted this job not only because I enjoyed it but also because I needed to be inside the center to conduct our shady business, similar to the Rocket Sing movie.

I was teaching and repairing inside the Center and Neeraj was busy collecting work outside as he wasn’t allowed inside the center because he hadn’t paid the full fee. He used that money to buy old mobile phones from Delhi which we planned to repair and sell for a profit.

In 2003, we had our own set of equipment, but we still didn’t have our own shop. We set up a table in my storeroom corner and started repairing phones without any need to go to the training center. However, I continued with training center because we were still getting good business from there.

The business was good, and the money was flowing, so we decided to buy our first shared mobile phone so that customers could reach us directly. We both together bought one second-hand Sony J5 phone. Buying a mobile phone wasn’t an issue for us because we could have bought any not-working phone for a cheap price and repaired it ourselves. However, the cost of incoming and outgoing calls was too high at that time. (Incoming calls cost Rs. 2 per minute, and outgoing calls cost Rs. 3 per minute.) We became the first people in our neighborhood to own a mobile phone. One day, I would keep the phone, and the next day, Neeraj would.

Money often brings about negative habits. I can’t recall when we both started smoking, but it became our go-to place for discussing business and making plans.

MobTech asked me to relocate to their branch in Chindawara to teach the mobile repairing course. They were expanding their operations across Madhya Pradesh, India. I discussed this with Neeraj, who decided to take care of local repairing work, while I would go to Chindawara. This way, we could easily bring the extra repairing work to us.

Chindawara

It was the monsoon season of 2003 when I first arrived in Chindawara with another trainer. Unfortunately, he left within two to three days of reaching. I continued working alone. The center was a computer training center, and the owner had franchised a mobile repairing center from Mobtech. I was now the trainer for the mobile repairing course.  

We were setting up the lab and repairing equipment, and the students were still inquiring about the course. I had a lot of free time, so sometimes I was invited by the computer class attendant, Ajay, to the computer class.

One day, I was sitting in the computer lab with Ajay when he suddenly took control of the computer I was using and played the song “Leena O Leena, Dil Tune China” on it. I didn’t mind, but after a while, two girls entered the class, gave me an angry look, and left. Ajay was laughing loudly, and I was still trying to figure out what had just happened.

Later, I discovered that both girls were students of the PGDCA course they were taking at this center, and Leena was one of their names. I confronted Ajay, apologized to the girls, and explained the situation to Leena. This was my first encounter with her.

Mobile repairing courses commenced in Chindwara, and as anticipated, I found ample work. Local shop owners and mobile showroom owners began approaching me to have their mobiles serviced from this small city and its surrounding areas. We also started buying and selling old and dead mobile phones for parts, motherboards, and ICs. Now we had contacts in various nearby areas across Jabalpur and Chindwara.

However, soon, Mobtech encountered disagreements with the Centre Owner in Chindwara, and I was called off to the Bhopal Centre, which served as the headquarters of Mobtech, for training purposes. Before departing for Bhopal, I visited my elder brother in Nagpur, who was pursuing his MCA degree. I gifted him a second-hand mobile phone since he didn’t have one.

Meanwhile, in Jabalpur, Neeraj was completing his final year of B.Sc. and desired to leave town for a while to explore the world.

Bhopal
In 2004, I was teaching mobile repairing to students in Bhopal. There, I met Ashish, a long-time Mobtech trainer who was leaving to join another institute. I took his place and continued teaching. Since he was also in Bhopal and had repairing-related needs, we used to meet frequently.

One day, Ashish expressed his desire to open his own institute and wanted to partner with me. I, too, was dissatisfied with my current job, as the repairing industry in the city was flooded with skilled technicians, resulting in limited additional income. Additionally, Neeraj from Jabalpur had informed me about the rapid opening of new repairing shops in the city, indicating a slowdown in business.

I asked Neeraj to come to Bhopal and take my place so that I could accompany Ashish in exploring the institute business. I convinced the Mobtech owner to try Neeraj as a trainer and i bid my farewell to MobTech.

Indore
Ashish and I decided to open our institute in the heart of the Indore city, Geeta Bhawan Square. We secured funding, rented a spacious office, and officially launched Global Infotech. To save on rent, we also rented a flat and moved together.

Soon, it turned out to be a disaster. We had invested too much capital in it and lacked the experience to run a business like this. We were merely trainers who knew how to train and repair mobile phones.

The final nail in the coffin was his love affair with the girl he met in Banaras when he was a trainer at one of the mobtech franchisees. He had planned to appoint her as a receptionist at our institute, but things changed once she arrived. She was controlling Ashish and the money, and the business was going downhill. I was losing interest.Neeraj was also not very happy teaching in Bhopal. It was his first time conducting the training, and he was not comfortable with it. He even got a fever on the first day he faced the students. Soon, he left the job and returned to Jabalpur.

After some time, I also decided to leave Indore and the business with Ashish. One fine day, I packed my bags and left for home. We had earned enough, spent enough, and lost enough money by then.

In 2005, I found myself back in Jabalpur. During that time, we had lost all our contacts and our local business. All the virtual shops were either doing their own repairs or had hired someone else to take care of it, because we were absent. We still didn’t have a personal shop to start repairing work, and we lacked the capital to buy or rent one because we had lost most of our money in Bhopal and Indore.Upon my arrival in Jabalpur, I discovered Neeraj already working on a mobile shop in the city, earning a daily wage of Rs 300. Considering this was still a good amount of money, I asked him to make some arrangements for me as well, since I couldn’t sit at home ideally.

Neeraj introduced me to the shop owner, Anna Jee, a South Indian man with a renowned mobile repairing shop called “G Mobile World.” Anna Jee was impressed by my work and hired me because there was ample repairing work to be done on his shop due to the telecom boom. Most people now owned mobile phones, which had become a necessity rather than a luxury. Repairing them was still a profitable job, and one could earn a substantial income due to the high volume of repairs.

In addition to my repairing work, I also started training some students at Anna Jee’s shop, who were interested in learning mobile repairing. Anna Jee shared the earnings made by training with me . By that time, I was quite familiar with computers, as it was used for mobile firmware upgrade and filling memory cards with songs, ring tones, wallpapers, photos, and videos. These services were still in demand back then.

Neeraj received a better offer from another shop owner in town and joined there to undertake repairs. I continued working with Anna Jee. We were earning Rs 300-400 per day from the shop and additional income from our personal customers who needed repairs done. Considering that our fathers were earning the same amount, it was still a good amount of money for that time.We continued working together, and again we both had money and a new habit. After the shop shutters closed and we were paid for the day, we would occasionally visit a bar and share a beer together. We would reminisce about our past experiences, discuss our love affairs, and plan our future, including opening our own shops.

In 2006, I opened my own shop in Gadarwara, a nearby town, due to the intense competition in Jabalpur. However, I faced a significant challenge. As a newcomer to the area, the local goons were drawn to my shop and mobile phones, particularly the trendy ones that were popular at the time. They would simply walk into my shop and take whatever they desired. One day, the person who helped me set up shop there confronted one of them, but unfortunately, the same evening, he was brutally beaten by them. Overwhelmed with fear, I made the difficult decision to close my shop within two to three months.

Neeraj opened a shop in Ranji, just two kilometers away from our homes. It was a local market area of VFJ Estate. He didn’t want to leave Jabalpur because he was having a love affair, but for me, this wasn’t the case. I was in a long-distance relationship with Leena. Neeraj was doing well in his shop and still needed time to pickup. Unaware of another challenge he was about to face, the name of which was “China,” cheap Chinese mobiles started entering the Indian market. The profit of repairs started going down because these phones had little to repair. They were made of a single board with pasted ICs and a display. Before that, there were Nokia, Samsung, Panasonic, Ericsson, Motorola, and Alcatel phones with many parts and room for repairs.

I was depressed with my recent and another failure. I was back home when my mamu arranged a job for me in Muscat, the capital of Oman. I decided to take this job because I was losing interest in repairing work.

Store Keeper

Muscat, Oman
On October 15, 2006, I arrived at SEEB International Airport, where my mamu received me. He arranged for me a storekeeper job at one of the largest construction company in Oman, Galfar Engineering & Contracting.

The company offered me comfortable accommodation, complimentary food, and free transportation. While the salary was decent, it was slightly lower than what I was earning from mobile repairing work. However, I was open to the opportunity and eager to explore this new field. By that time, I had realized that if you possess a skill that is relatively new and in high demand, people are willing to pay for it without hesitation. Salary or money wasn’t a weakness to me anymore

Oman was a completely new country and culture for me. My job was to issue materials for electrical and plumbing work and generate material issue slips (MIS). Initially, I was thrilled, but soon I began to feel bored because the work wasn’t to my liking. I had no desire to return to repairing, even though it was still an exciting work for me. I was simply doing the job and saving money because I knew I would quit as soon as I found something interesting. More than money, I needed excitement in my work or studies, or I wouldn’t do it.

In 2007, I was still working at company store in Muscat. One day, our computers stopped working, and the store manager called for the IT department. While I was busy smoking Marlboro with other store workers, I noticed a guy coming towards our office. I went to check if he needed any material and found him looking at our computers. He introduced himself as a member of the IT department and explained that he was there to fix the system issue.

After some time, he started tracing a blue color cable from my system and reached a cabinet. I discreetly watched him and followed him as my work was halted due to the system failure. He opened the cabinet, revealing a whole new world to me. Inside, I saw a box (a Cisco Switch) with numerous LED lights blinking like a disco ball. These blue cables ended in the box. I asked the guy what he is doing, and he explained that he is a network engineer. His purpose was to connect all the computers to the network switch, enabling them to access the internet.

This task seemed intriguing to me. Once he had completed connecting the cables, I asked if he would like to smoke. He nodded in agreement, and I offered him a cigarette. As we smoked, I couldn’t resist asking him as many questions as I could about his work and computer networking.

You see, cigarette smoking isn’t always harmful. If you go to smoke with someone, you’re stuck with them until you throw the butt.

I decided to explore this further. The more I learned, the more intrigued I became with computer networking, especially considering the limited number of network engineers globally and the projected surge in demand for them in the coming years.

As I prepared to leave, I was clueless about how or where to pursue this path that could lead me to becoming a computer network engineer. However, during a conversation with the IT department representative, I discovered that we didn’t necessarily need to complete a full 3-4 year engineering or similar course to achieve this goal. He also mentioned the availability of basic networking courses that could be completed in a few months, which provided me with sufficient information to make an informed decision.

I called Neeraj and shared my new plan with him. He was equally excited and expressed his interest in joining me on this journey forward. Although he didn’t explicitly state the reason, I assumed he wanted to take his love relationship to the next level and seek a more reputable job. After all, we were still mobile repair mechanics, a blue-collar job, and both of us yearned for a change. Neeraj was also taking a RedHat Linux course (RHCE) locally in Jabalpur, as he planned to leave mobile work as well.

On December 20, 2007, I packed my bags and my passport received an exit stamp. I had essentially burned the bridge and returned to my hometown.

Network Engineer

In 2008, I was back in Jabalpur and began my research with the assistance of my younger brother, Firoz, to determine the availability of the course I sought. Unfortunately, it was not offered in nearby cities but only in metro cities. The course name was CCNA, and at that time, the best institution for CCNA was in Bangalore, “Mohans Networking Institute.”

On a positive note, this course was a two-to-three-month program that cost around 15-20K. However, the downside was that they only taught in English, which posed a challenge since we were Hindi-medium speakers. Consequently, we decided to join the English-speaking course at Nihar English Classes, as Nihar was a friend from college who had excellent English skills and was renowned for his teaching abilities.

In addition to preparing for the CCNA course, we also engaged in self-study to gain a basic understanding of computer networking. We even hired a person to teach us the fundamentals of computers and networking, paying him 500 in advance. However, he only showed up for a few days.

As I dreamt about Bangalore, I calculated the expenses, which weren’t just course fees but also accommodation, food, and the CCNA exam cost. I wasn’t worried because I never wasted my earnings and had enough savings. I also had the skill to repair mobile phones, which I could use to earn extra money if needed.

Bangalore

Mid of March 2008, I arrived in Bangalore alone. Neeraj needed some more time as he was busy with his shop and personal affairs. The next day, I visited Mohans Networking Institute to inquire about the course. I was informed that the new batch would commence on April 1st. The institute was located in Raheja Arcade, Koramangla, with a large hall for theory classes on the 3rd floor and a spacious lab in the basement. When I was shown the lab, I noticed the same Cisco boxes with disco LED lights, which made me feel at ease, knowing that I had found the right place.

Language posed a challenge for me as I was still not proficient in speaking English, and few people responded in Hindi. However, I could understand English and had a good grasp of its meaning. Somehow, I managed to find a PG accommodation and booked a room for two people, hoping that Neeraj would join me soon.

I began attending the institute, but Neeraj had not arrived yet. The hall was packed with students, and there was not a single seat left vacant. This made me feel both happy and nervous. Happy because I knew that my research was correct and that there was a high demand for this course, and nervous because I was aware of the intense competition that awaited me. On top of that, the constant use of English in the classroom made me feel anxious, as every student was either an engineering student or a working professional.


The institute provided us with a lab manual and a CCNA book, but I found it difficult to read them. Most of my time was spent searching for the meanings of the English words in the dictionary. Although I could understand English, I struggled to read or write properly.

I was growing increasingly frustrated and called Neeraj to explain the situation, doubting that he would back off since his English was worse than mine. However, he said something that completely changed my perspective, and that’s why I like him. He reminded me of how we had defeated the so-called electrical and electronic engineers when it came to repairing mobile phones. We focused on specific mobile phone models, read the circuit and diagrams, and searched for solutions rather than explaining the problem. That day, I decided to focus on improving my core skills in networking. I realized that English and communication could be taken care later. I became completely shameless and started asking my doubts in class in Hindi, for which I received replies in English. I also began making my notes in Hindi, without hiding it from the person sitting next to me, who occasionally looked at my notes with surprise. I was aware that he might laugh at me, but he was unaware that my concern for his laughter could cost me a lot of money. So, I chose to not care.

After a full month, Neeraj arrived. He handed over his shop to his elder brother and made arrangements to get the repair done through our contacts. His brother was jobless, and he wanted to help him. He also didn’t want to burn the bridge like I had. Once he arrived, we shared a room in the PG. However, he didn’t enroll in the institute, like our mobile repair course. He asked me to explain whatever I was learning in the institute, and we both prepared for the exam together. This was one trick he always played to save his course fees. Maybe I was a good teacher, or he knew I would teach him in Hindi.

I completed the course and spent most of my time in the lab doing practicals. I needed more time than other students to understand the concepts, but I was able to find answers to most of my questions and was getting confident in networking concepts. Once again, the institute owner hired me as a lab assistant to help other students with practicals and setting up labs in advance. By this time, I had figured out how the simulations worked and could explain the lab to Neeraj without needing the actual hardware devices like routers and switches. I used a software called Cisco packet tracer to explain the lab to Neeraj.

We both prepared for the exam, and I went first to appear on July 28, 2008. I cleared it, and then Neeraj created it too. We were both very proud of this achievement.

Soon, I was terminated from my position as a lab attendant at the institute. The reason cited was that my communication skills were inadequate. However, I was certain that this was not the case. I had made a pact with another lab attendant to manage the English-speaking students, while I would handle the Hindi-speaking students. I believe that the person in charge of the lab disapproved of my friendship with the other lab attendant, or perhaps it was my interest in explaining concepts beyond the course syllabus, which was causing the lab to remain busy for an extended period.

We packed our bags and headed back to Jabalpur because we weren’t prepared for the job in this field and needed hands-on experience to apply for it. We both reached home, and Neeraj went to his shop because his brother couldn’t manage it, and the customers were leaving. He needed to do damage control.

I don’t remember the date, but that evening, I was thrown out of the house because I was caught drunk. Drinking alcohol is considered a sin in most religious Muslim families, but I wasn’t aware if my family was that religious. I was never religious and had no Muslim friends. Neither my father nor mother ever complained about me not being religious.

All of this happened because of this guy named Kamlesh. He was one of our dear friends and still is, even though he was much older than us and had run away from home a long time ago to marry a girl. He lived in a nearby colony with his wife. That evening, we met on the street and started talking. He told me he had vodka that didn’t smell and that the effects of the alcohol would wear off in a few hours. I joined him for a few drinks, and although I was sober, I somehow got caught anyway.

Neeraj suggested that I go to Ahmedabad to stay for a while because Nihar, who was trying his luck as an English teacher in Ahmedabad, was there. I called Nihar, and he welcomed me with open arms. The next morning, I was on a train to Ahmedabad.

Ahmedabad

After reaching Ahmedabad, I discovered that Nihar wasn’t residing in the city but in a small town called Pundhara, several kilometers away. It took me about 2-3 hours to reach Pundhara, as it was approximately 60-70 kilometers from Ahmedabad. I couldn’t ask him all these details beforehand because the entire plan had come together unexpectedly, and I had no other choice.

Pundhara was a village in the Gandhinagar district of Gujarat, not even a town. There, he was teaching English to someone, but I had no idea about his role. Since I had no work to do, I decided to improve my English skills by working with an English teacher. I started reading easy English novels, primarily written by Chetan Bhagat. I vividly recall finishing “I Too Had a Love Story” by Ravinder Singh within 2-3 days. This experience boosted my confidence and motivated me to read more English books.

During my visits to Ahmedabad for job hunting or simply to explore the opportunity, I would buy these books. However, I wasn’t finding any success and was concerned that I might lose the computer networking skills I acquired in my CCNA course if I didn’t apply them soon. In light of these concerns, I decided to move to Mumbai. My elder brother was already there, having completed his MCA and secured a job in a software company. 

Mumbai

I’ve never seen so many people at once, but Mumbai truly showed me that. It was way too crowded for me. My brother was sharing a tiny 1-bedroom apartment with five more people, not a 1BHK but a 1BK, and it lacked a hall. To be honest, I didn’t like it. It was suffocating, both inside and outside. There was too much crowding outside and so much congestion inside. I always liked my bathroom clean and shiny, even though my room could be messy, but here, the bathroom was the dirtiest part of the apartment.

The plan was to stay with my brother for a few days, find my own place to live, and then Neeraj would join me. However, while staying with my brother, one of his roommates arranged a telephonic interview for me, which I failed miserably. Mumbai seemed more promising for job opportunities, but my heart wasn’t in it.

Soon, Neeraj arrived, even though I had asked him to stay back for a bit longer so I could find our own place to stay. But this time, he was in a hurry, and I couldn’t understand why. Usually, he would leave the heavy lifting to me and join me later, but this time, it was different. I didn’t want to become a burden to my brother, and with Neeraj, it was way too crowded in that room. So, I decided to go back to Nihar in Ahmedabad. The next day, we both boarded the bus from Mumbai to Ahmedabad.

In 2009, I found myself in the Pundhara village once again, accompanied by Neeraj. He informed me that his love affair had come to an end, leading him to close his shop permanently and sell all his mobile repair-related items. This was the reason for his hurried departure from Jabalpur. This time, he had taken the initiative to sever all ties and was resolute in his decision not to return to Jabalpur.

A few days later, on an evening, he asked Nihar to arrange a bottle of whisky, and he began drinking from that moment on. It was the wedding day of his beloved, and that night, he let out a torrent of tears. Nihar and I did nothing but allow him to cry as much as he desired. We hardly spoke a single word to each other that night; all we could do was stay by his side and keep a watchful eye on him. I don’t recall when I went to sleep, but he was awake all night, drinking until the bottle was empty by the morning. 

After some time, things began to settle down. I often visited Ahmedabad in search of a job, and sometimes, Neeraj would join me. However, for several days, we were unable to find any job opportunities related to networking in the city. I believe we were ahead of the demand for such jobs or were simply searching in the wrong places.

My job search strategy involved looking in newspapers, but I hardly found any suitable opportunities. Alternatively, I would simply roam around Ahmedabad city, near the major offices where companies with names ending in “TECH” or “Technology” were located. At that time, I was not very familiar with online job portals like Naukri.com or Monster.com.

One day, while wandering through the city near the SG Highway, I noticed something written on the notice board. It was a company called Chandranet Pvt. Ltd. that was starting its operation to provide outdoor wireless services and broadband connections in the city. They were looking for network engineers to do the field work, installation, and configuration of Outdoor Wireless Systems (OWS) devices.

I submitted my resume to the receptionist and was asked to wait. After about 30-40 minutes, I was called for the interview. It went well because I was fully prepared and had done enough practicals in the lab at Bangalore. After the interview, they asked me to leave and they would update me if I was shortlisted.

The next day, I received a call from the company. They informed me that I had been selected and could join from the following week. I started reading about the Outdoor Wireless System as the company was working on it. It was an interesting and futuristic concept. The company’s plan was to make the entire city of Ahmedabad Wi-Fi, where Wi-Fi would be available in every corner of the city. You wouldn’t have to take a broadband connection personally. You could just subscribe to the monthly plan, connect to the Wi-Fi available everywhere in the air, and use it. 

They offered me a monthly salary of 8,000 rupees, which was quite a low offer, considering the work involved. It was just 8K/month without any additional allowance or perks, and it was significantly lower than my mobile repairing work or the salary I was withdrawing in Muscat. However, I was determined to give it a try because I was passionate about network engineering and wanted to make a career in it. I knew that I would never be an engineer since I didn’t have an engineering degree and came from a non-technical background (B.Com). But at least I would be working in a promising and exciting field. If nothing else, this job would provide me with hands-on experience that would help me find another job and make me less of a fresher.

Neeraj and I were laughing about our backward career growth, but we knew how to reach the top. We weren’t experts in network engineering like we were in mobile repairing, and we needed to start as fresher again and earn the same pay as a fresher.

I joined the company in February 2009. The company was located at 401, Parshwa Tower, near Pakvan II on the S.G. Highway in Bodakdev, Ahmedabad. By that time, Nihar had gotten a teaching job in Kalol City, which was just 30 kilometers away from Ahmedabad. We all moved to Kalol, and I would catch multiple buses to get to the office from home.

The work wasn’t as easy as I had imagined. The company was initially building the hardware infrastructure, which involved carrying a 10-12 feet iron pole on the top of the building and mounting it on the parapet wall using a drill. Then, they would install a large box from “Strix System” called the Outdoor Wireless System (OWS). They would provide electricity from a nearby source to the OWS box and then connect various types of antennas to it. (I won’t bore you with all the technical details, but there was much more to it.) Later, a senior engineer would come and configure the box using a laptop. Most technical work I’ve got to do so far was standing on the pole and tilting the antennas left and right as instructed by the senior engineer so that the box could catch the signal from nearby towers.

I spoke to my manager and made a place for Neeraj as well. He joined the company only a few weeks later, and we both started commuting to Ahmedabad from Kalol every day. After reaching the office, we boarded the company pickup truck or tempo and headed to the godown. 

There, we loaded the poles onto the truck, collected the drill and wire, and other necessary equipment. We were divided into groups of three to four people, each including one electrician. The truck would drop us off at the installation point, where we unloaded all the items shown in the picture and climbed the building to proceed with the installation.

Each team member, regardless of whether they were an electrician or a truck driver, earned the same salary as me. However, this didn’t bother me because I was optimistic and hoped that after the installation was complete, they would need people like me to manage and configure the actual network.

We had moved to Ahmedabad by this time to avoid the long travel time from Kalol. The rent and food costs were significantly higher than our salary, and we were surviving on our old money and savings. Many months passed, and the installation was still ongoing. By then, I had come to the realization that there wasn’t much technical work for me to do, as the senior engineers weren’t involved in any technical tasks either.

During this time, Neeraj had moved to the server room and was busy installing the Linux servers for the company. He was exempted from the field work. I tried to find a core technical job, but I realized that my skills were still very basic, and I am at the bottom of the pyramid like the pyramid of Cisco certification.

Once again, I decided to return to school and acquire the skill to move myself from the bottom to the middle, at least, if not to the top. I shared my plan with Neeraj, who was engrossed in his work and uninterested in my plan. Perhaps he was merely pretending to enjoy it and didn’t want to take any risks that could lead him back to Jabalpur. This marked the first time we diverged on different paths. I yearned to pursue this opportunity as soon as possible, as my savings were dwindling rapidly. If I continued like this, I would soon run out of money to pay the course fees. One day, I decided to leave my job and boarded a train to Bangalore to enroll in the CCNP course. By that time, Leena had completed her M.Sc and had secured a job with a state government agency. She was currently undergoing training in Gwalior.

Bangalore

in 2010, September was the month when I arrived in Bangalore and visited Top Gun Network Technologies in Rajajinagar to enroll in the CCNP course. Classes commenced promptly, and I relocated to a nearby PG. I’m not entirely sure when or how, but this time, language posed no obstacle for me. I effortlessly communicated in English and comprehended English books. It could be attributed to my daily practice with Nihar or my consistent reading of English novels. Alternatively, it might be because I ceased paying attention to grammar and concentrated on expressing my thoughts using gestures and signals in broken English. When it comes to reading technical books in English, the primary focus shifts from grammar to concepts. 

Once again, I received a set of books from the institute, and classes commenced. I studied diligently, as it was a critical situation for me. I had limited funds left to cover the course fee, food, and accommodation. This time, the course fee was significantly higher. It was 45,000 rupees for just the CCNP course, and there were additional 35,000 rupees for the three exams (Routing, Switching, and Troubleshooting). If you wanted to pursue CCIE, the course fee itself was over 75,000 rupees, and the exam fee was more than 1 lakh rupees. I chose to focus on CCNP only because I barely had enough money to cover it until the exam.

As our course was nearing completion, during a class discussion, our instructor, Mr. Ajay Pandey, suggested that I consider taking the CCIE exam instead of the CCNP exam. I should not waste my money on the CCNP exam and directly attempt the CCIE exam. There was hardly a 20-25% increase in the theoretical content, but there was a significant amount of practical preparation required for the CCIE Lab exam. The Lab exam was an all-day exam conducted directly by Cisco in its own lab in Bangalore. However, securing an exam slot was another challenge. Rich students would travel out of India to secure a seat.

I was torn between choosing the CCIE exam and the CCNP exam. If I chose the CCIE exam, I would have no money left for the exam or even to cover my food and accommodation costs, as it would take a full year of preparation. My long-distance relationship with Leena was also not going well. We had had a few breakups in the past few years, but somehow, we managed to get back together. However, this time, it was different. She was under pressure from her parents to get married, and she was pressuring me to take the lead. I wanted to focus on my career and the 10-12 month long course, I decided to pursue the CCIE course. My plan was to complete the course, find a job, and prepare for the exam simultaneously.

I stopped talking to Leena because she was draining my energy with her complaints, suffering, and tendency to talk excessively. When I couldn’t console her, I simply ignored her. This is what the boys like  me do: subtly shift the focus to the bigger problem. However, we occasionally emailed each other. I continued with the CCIE course and was due to pay the remaining 25,000 fee to TopGun. One day, the Institute receptionist, Mrs. Beena, disappeared from TopGun. Rumors circulated that she had run away with all the fee collection and taken the account register with her. In my batch, whoever was due to pay, never spoke about the fees, and the Institute never asked for it either. Essentially, we were getting the CCIE course at the cost of the CCNP.

Feeling doubtful about the future of the institute and seeing it on the verge of shutting down, I decided to change my plan. I decided to prepare for the lab exam instead. Once the institute closed, I wouldn’t have the chance to practice the lab. I asked my parents for some money and borrowed some from friends to book the exam. However, Leena transferred the money to my account without asking. I might have mentioned it to her in an email, and we had each other’s account details from the beginning.

In 2011, It’s been almost a year since we started studying for the exam. I was up all night, studying hard while my roommate Vinod studied during the day. I chose this schedule to avoid the distractions and conversations between students during the day. I usually start studying around 9 PM after dinner, when Vinod falls asleep while watching a movie. He’s not a night owl, so he can’t stay awake after 10 PM. I keep studying until 5 PM when Vinod wakes up. We usually go out for tea and buns, and then I go to sleep. Vinod starts his studies right after. We had a tiffin service for lunch, but the food was just packed in plastic bags and delivered. Vinod wakes me up when the food arrives and hands me the plastic bag. I eat it directly from the bag and go back to sleep. I wake up around 2-3 PM and join the other students in their study and discussions with our seniors. They have some riddles for us to solve, some to test our knowledge and others to brag about.

We were around 10-15 students, including a few from my batch and some from either the senior or junior batch, residing in the same PG and preparing for the CCIE or CCNP exams. As we were approaching exam time and needed to complete comprehensive revision, a significant number of students from my batch stopped attending the institute and opted for self-study. Meanwhile, students from our senior batch began appearing in the exams, but unfortunately, the passing rate for the CCIE Lab exam was extremely low.

During this period, Chandan, a student of CCIE and residing in the room next to ours, introduced me to a movie titled “The Secret.” I was thoroughly impressed by the concept of the book, particularly the concept called "Law of attraction". The movie was based on the book “The Secret” written by Rhonda Byrne. I began to believe in this concept and started envisioning myself as a CCIE-certified Network engineer working for a prominent multinational corporation.

This PG was a four-story building, and my room was on the third floor. There were five or six other rooms on each floor, with a two-foot open pathway between them and a parapet wall that we treated as a balcony. During my study sessions at night, I would go out onto the balcony for a quick smoke and dream about my career, future, and Leena. After smoking, I would try to throw the cigarette bud between two parallel electricity cables that ran from one pole to another, which I could see from the balcony. The cigarette bud never went through, but it became an obsession for me to try it after every smoke, just like a basketball player trying for a three-point shot. I somehow connected this obsession with my exams and believed that if I could throw the bud between the wires, I would be able to pass the exam. However, my batchmates started failing their exams because Cisco recently changed the version of the exam and introduced new labs that no one was prepared for. Once you fail an exam, you lose the entire exam fee of 1 lakh rupees and have to wait a month to reappear in the exam by paying full fees again. This news terrified us, and we had no other choice than to laugh at our luck and go for the exam anyway, hoping to pass it with only partially prepared for the new version.

Left to Right - Parvej,Chandan,Jawed,Vinod

I booked my exam in August or September and received the date of October 5, 2011. I became fully focused on preparation and completely disregarded any fear of failing, worries about money and the future, and Leena. I also stopped burning myself out with excessive studying or overthinking. Instead, I made sure to watch at least one movie on our laptop daily as part of my recreation. I focused on improving my skills so that I could find a job even if I failed the exam. However, I continued practicing the law of attraction because I believed in it. But I also started enjoying the time I spent imagining my dream career and work.

Finally, the day arrived. I had to reach Cisco Office for my lab exam the next morning at sharp 8 AM. Vinod was supposed to drop me off at the Cisco center on Chandan’s bike. That night, I revised some important points and decided to sleep early. Before going to bed, I went for a smoke on our balcony. Instead of dreaming about the future, I was preparing myself for the big day tomorrow. After smoking, I threw the bud and turned toward the room door when I suddenly stopped and a smile came to my face.

Tonight, I had forgotten to throw the bud between the wires as I was engrossed in thinking about the exam and not paying much attention to smoking. I had completely forgotten about my obsession with Budd and wire games. I couldn’t believe what I had just seen. I saw a cigarette bud hitting the first wire, bouncing, and then dropping straight between the two wires.

I turned back and started gazing at the wire when thousands of thoughts came rushing through my mind: “How? Why? I didn’t even try this time. Is it a sign? How did I forget to do this today? Did it really happen, or am I just hallucinating? How foolish of me to believe in all this pseudoscientific theory.”

I went to bed with all these thoughts, but I wasn’t sure when I was asleep. It was surely too late for the person who needed to wake up at 5:30 AM and have an exam at 8 AM.

On October 5, 2011, Vinod tried to wake me up from 5:30 AM, but I was still sleepy. He was prepared to drop me off at the exam center in Marathalli, which was about 25-30 kilometers away from our PG and would take at least an hour to reach. Despite my efforts to stay asleep, I somehow woke up at 6 AM and got ready to go. Vinod dropped me off at the center just in time, and I went inside the Cisco building to meet with the exam proctor to verify our documents. The exam was a full-day affair, lasting 8 hours. I’ll skip the details of the exam, but if you’re interested, you can check it out on this link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CCIE_Certification

I was inside the lab room where three more candidates were accommodated. The center had only four seats, meaning only four students could write the exam each day. This was the reason for the long waiting time for exam slots after booking. Cisco had set up this exam center only in Bangalore for India, and students from nearby countries were also coming to Bangalore to take the exam.

The test began, and the first two-hour section of Troubleshooting went smoothly. However, the main challenge was the next six-hour section of Configuration for the actual networking devices. I re-verified the first section again because there was no going back once submitted. Before starting the second section, I decided to take a quick break. The proctor asked if I needed a cigarette, but I was carrying my own pack. When I returned, I hit the start button for the next section and, to my surprise, it was the lab from the old version. I was fully prepared for this kind of configuration set.

I solved the questions one after another and was on track to complete the exam before time. However, one of the students left the exam in the middle and went out in anger. This was what we students joked about and called it “1 Lakh Rs Sandwich.” During our exams, we were provided with a sandwich, and if you failed, you just had to eat one sandwich worth rupees 1 lakh.

I finished all the questions and verified them well in advance of the end time. I took a smoke before submitting it. When I returned, I re-verified it and hit the submit button. I collected my cellphone from the proctor but didn’t turn it on because I knew my batchmates would start calling for the update soon. Instead of going back to PG, I took an auto and headed straight to my younger brother’s place, who was also in Bangalore. That night, I relaxed and we watched a movie together. I went to bed early because I was tired.

Cisco usually takes 24 hours to provide the result, so I didn’t bother to check my email in the morning when my mom called and asked me about it. While talking to her, I thought I’d check my email on my brother’s laptop, and there was an email from Cisco in my inbox. It had just arrived a few minutes before, so I thought it might be the confirmation or an update email. But when I opened it, I was surprised to see a congratulations message from Cisco congratulating me on becoming the 30,714th CCIE in the world. I shared the good news with my mother and my brother, who was standing next to me and jumping with joy.

That evening, I borrowed some 2-3 thousand rupees from my brother and headed back to PG. On the way, I called my batchmates and told them about my result. I knew I had to throw a party for them. We had a great time that night.

By the end of December 2011, I was able to secure a job in a MNC named Dimension Data Asia Pacific ( now NTT Ltd. ) with an annual package of 600,000 rupees with some additional perks like medical insurance, performance allowances, and internet and mobile bill reimbursement. I was getting many more offers with higher pay, but my seniors suggested that I join Dimension Data if I wanted to learn and implement the things we had studied so far and was willing to sacrifice money for the sake of better hands-on experience. I chose to sacrifice money, and my seniors were correct.

In 2012, Dimension Data (DD) deployed me to its client location at Embassy Golf Link Business Park (EGL). I joined the Network Operations Center (NOC) and was responsible for managing three data centers across the globe for a client called [24/7]. I worked with a team of five members. It was an open playground for me to test and implement my theories and learnings. I was very proud and happy because this was my first MNC job and a white-collar position. I had become an engineer.

I was incredibly dedicated to my work and thoroughly enjoyed it. I started staying in the office late after my shift to assist my colleagues, perform additional practical work, and study more. Soon, I was spending 12-14 hours in the office every day. On top of this, my manager would occasionally call me to come into the office on odd hours to address issues or provide assistance. Occasionally, he would even pick me up from the movie theater or shopping mall to go to the office on Sundays or other days off. Despite these occasional interruptions, I never minded because I was gaining confidence and realizing my importance. Soon, I was convinced that I was truly an engineer now, as I was far more proficient than my colleagues in terms of technical skills. Trust me, within a year, I had gained the equivalent of 3-4 years of experience and realized that I was worth much more than I had previously thought.

My relationship with Leena almost ended when, after getting the job, we decided to tell her parents about us and plan for marriage. But as I was a Muslim and she was hindu, her parents got paranoid and instructed her not to think anymore about me. She did not want to go against her parents and was not ready to leave me either. As a result, she started transferring her suffering and worries to me, and now you know what I did in this situation. When I couldn’t console her, I ignored her. I decided to focus on my job.

In 2013, I decided to leave the job/company and look for better opportunities, but before that, I wanted to complete my half-built home in my hometown, so I left the job in Feb 2013 and reached home again, where I started the work and completed the construction of my dream home, which took almost 1 year. I was not worried about the job as I needed no money and had no plan for marriage.

Noida

In 2014, In Feb, I joined HCL Technology in Noida as an associate consultant, where I got a package of 800,000 P.A. After completing a couple of projects, there was no project, and I was on the bench for some time. Then I voluntarily took the project, which was located in the Chennai branch, as I was simply getting bored. But before going to Chennai, I pulled my CCIE batchmate Javed on this company, who got Chennai as his first location and was there waiting for me.

Chennai
I was in Chennai with Jawed, and we were going to the same office, but the shifts were different. In one more way, we were in the same situation: relationship. He was also having an affair with someone at his native place, and after getting a job, he was waiting for her to come to him and get married. We both were failures.

My parents initiated the conversation about marriage and introduced me to a girl within my community and relatives. I had given up on Leena and decided to go with the flow and started talking to this girl about marriage. I had known this girl for a long time and had been in touch with her for a while since she was from my relatives’ side. However, we had never discussed marriage or romance. After talking to her, I realized that she would be a good fit for my parents since they are religious and wanted someone like a housewife for me.

When I was almost in agreement with this girl about my expectations for marriage and the future, including my past affair with Leena, my parents decided to back off on the issue of dowry, which I was uncomfortable with. They rejected the girl, and I abandoned the idea of marriage altogether. I left home and my parents for good. It was such a relief because I knew I was a difficult person to live with, and my marriage could potentially end sooner than later.

In Chennai also, I was not getting enough work to keep me busy as I was used to working 10-12 hrs a day, and here I was going to the office to simply smoke with colleagues and come back to the flat which Jawed had rented in the hope of settling down soon.

In 2015, I joined Alphaserve Technologies as a Network Service Desk Engineer, earning an annual salary of 1,200,000. I excelled in my role, driven by my passion, extensive knowledge, and a commitment to going above and beyond for my team and the company. Their recognition of my value led to a significant increase in my compensation. After completing my first year, I received a 30% raise, and this kind of appreciation and appraisal continued throughout my tenure.

By this time, I learned that Leena had been transferred to a nearby city near my hometown and was living alone. She had left her parents’ home due to their pressure to get married and had cut off all contact with them. She never told me about this because she was angry with me for leaving her in such a difficult situation.

In 2016, I received a promotion and a significant salary increase. This allowed me to withdraw over 1 lakh rupees per month, which I diligently saved. I had learned from my past mistakes and understood the importance of having cash in hand. I never wasted any of my earnings. Despite this financial success, the name “LEENA” kept resonating in my mind. One day, I decided to meet her in person. I informed her that I was coming to meet her. In December 2016, we booked our first under-construction flat in Bangalore, hoping to settle down together soon. 

In 2017,  I received another promotion in my company, accompanied by a 20% salary hike. Consequently, my monthly income surpassed ₹150,000. Initially, I paid the first installment of my flat as construction commenced, and the builder demanded systematic payments. Since I had no loan for my flat, I decided to pay the amount in cash when the handover was scheduled, in 2018.

However, my life took an unexpected turn when my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer. I was compelled to take a six-month leave from work to be by her side and accompany her to Mumbai for treatment. The doctor recommended chemotherapy, and we decided to return to our hometown and started the chemotherapy.

Upon our return, I fulfilled my dream of buying my first car to provide comfort to my mother. This car, too, was purchased entirely in cash, without any loan, as I had sufficient savings. I had always detested loans from the outset. 

It was my father who taught me to stay away from loans. Loans not only deplete your savings but also destroy your peace of mind. They are not recommended for luxury purchases and should only be considered in emergency situations.

In 2018, I was still residing in my hometown when I began working from home while my mother was battling cancer. Most of the time, she had to be admitted to the hospital. Tragically, we lost her on June 15, 2018. On August 31st, I returned to Bangalore with my paralyzed father and my younger brother Firoz.

My father’s health was deteriorating as he lost interest in life and stopped eating properly. I knew he wouldn’t survive for long, so one day, I took him to my office in his wheelchair to show him where I had reached. Since he had very little expectations from me, I wanted to demonstrate my work and the large office where I worked. My father always thought I must be a machine repairing computers in some company in Bangalore, since he had seen me repairing mobile phones in Jabalpur. However, I was actually the "Team leader" of a network engineering team of 12-15 members and held high regard from my managers and colleagues.

This year, I also paid the full amount of my first flat and decided to buy another flat where I was currently living on rent with my brother and father. As a novice buyer, I had learned from my experience of buying my first flat that there are many legal concerns to check before purchasing a property. The easiest way to get a flat financed from SBI Home Loan is because they thoroughly check everything and only finance A-Khata properties in Bangalore. So, I decided to take a loan of 25 lakh just to be on the safe side, which I paid within a year.

In 2019, my father passed away on January 19th, and I finally started focusing on my work again. Since I had nothing else to do, I was constantly in touch with Leena. We had been in a long-distance relationship, and the plan of getting married had been postponed due to all the family crises. This time, she didn’t bother me as much because she knew I was going through a tough time. She was also busy with her work and government duties. Now, being together was more important to her than getting married. We both crossed the age of 35 and had no plans of having children.

I started working hard and partying even harder with my team.

         
     

In 2020, I received another promotion and withdrew over 2.5 lakh rupees per month by the end of the year so bought another flat in 2020. I had no idea what to do with that money, where to invest, or how to invest it. The only investment I knew and had heard about was buying or building a home, so I bought three of them. Now, I was also earning rental income in addition to my salary, which made me realize the confidence and comfort of having a second source of income. 

Due to COVID-19 our company given every employee work from home option and i happily left the Bangalore and went straight to Leena where she was posted, we got married and started living together after 20 year of relationship.

in 2021, As I continued working and we both were earning, I thought to explore other investment options since I was tired of buying flats. I decided to invest in the share market and opened a Demat account for both of us. I started buying a few shares for her and a few for myself, although I was eager to sell my shares on small profits and applied stop-loss to avoid incurring significant losses. However, I was mostly losing money, while she was holding it tightly and was able to convert every loss into a profit. So, I decided to invest and forget like her. 

In 2022, I began to feel bored with my 9-5 job and the repetitive nature of my work. I was losing interest in Network Engineering because I couldn’t keep up with the rapidly evolving technology. The excitement of technology had faded, and I was more interested in spending time with Leena. I started to get irritated when people asked me to work extra hours, so I decided to end my full-time job and become a consultant. As a consultant, I’m paid based on the work I do or the projects I undertake.   

After 7 year, on September 2022 i resigned from my full time job.

With ample free time, I embarked on a journey of reading, nurturing an interest in human psychology, philosophy, and meditation. Osho’s books left an indelible mark on me, captivating my thoughts and teachings on meditation. I began practicing meditation and delving deeper into the complexities of psychology and philosophy. In the meantime, I patiently awaited an intriguing and exciting work that could reignite my passion. Until then, I chose to embrace the present moment and savor the joys of life.

  

Trader

In 2023, while watching something on YouTube, I came across Vivek Singhal’s video on trading. Impressed by his ideas, I decided to attend his online class. This time, it was school that found me. inspired by his Simple concept of trading instead of investing, i decided to delve deeper into it. I completed  5-10 books on finance and trading, and I was determined to start trading seriously with an initial capital of 35 Lakh. I plan to gradually deploy this capital into the market from September onwards. 

I created my twitter account @ParvejKhan2009 on same month to follow him and stay updated when i got the idea to use twitter as my Trading journal to register each and every trade i take, on 18th September 2023 i took my first trade and i was unstoppable from that time. From September 2023 to March 2024, I bought and sold shares worth 11.5 lakh rupees, resulting in a profit of 2.5 lakh rupees with a 28% profit margin. While some may consider it beginner luck, this success was enough to keep me in the market.  

Year	Buy Value	Sell Value	Profit	Profit %
2023	902934	1156936	254003	28.1%

In 2024, I continued my trading alongside my consulting work and managed to earn a profit of 7 lakh rupees, with a profit margin of just 15.2% from April 2024 till March 2025.

Year	Buy Value	Sell Value	Profit	Profit %
2023	902934	1156936	254003	28.1%
2024	4702224	5416064	713841	15.2%

In 2025,  this year is still going slowly, as evidenced by the profit booking and margin figures. However, I am genuinely passionate about the process and aspire to become a full-time trader within the next two years, when I turn 45. I plan to quit my consulting job entirely and dedicate myself to becoming a full-time trader. 

by end of the year i was able to make 7Lakh from trading and so far i was blessed to make close to 17Lakh from trading with a CAGR of 16.1% which is not bad i guess. 

This year was very exciting, full of learning and joy. If someone had seen me from a distance, he might have thought what a boring person I am, since most of the time I was working, trading, reading, or writing something. But for me, it was much more fun than going out and meeting people and talking nonsense.​

I have jotted-down most of my philosophical thoughts on this blog:-  https://mymindchattering.blogspot.com/

Somehow, I started enjoying being in isolation and discussing philosophy with myself instead of with other people. I guess this is what the philosopher Socrates meant when he said, “Know Thyself”.