On 23rd August 2023, I witnessed a live telecast of the landing of Chandrayaan-3. With this India became the first country in the world to land on the south pole of the moon. It was a proud and joyous moment for all Indians as we achieved something that nobody has done in the past and that too at a relatively low cost.
This day has not come easy. I have a vivid memory of watching the landing of Chandrayaan-2 early morning on 6th September 2019. The final moments were heartbreaking as the lander deviated from its trajectory and crashed. There was an eerie silence in the command center. It is hard to imagine what was going on in the minds of the scientists involved in the mission. Their years of hard work had dashed in that one moment. Our Prime Minister was present in the command center at that time. With his silent gesture, he stood behind the team to prepare for “A New Dawn”.
What it takes to be a trailblazer?
The Role of Scientists
The work of a scientist is difficult and unique compared to those in the other opportunities. It requires dedication, a lot of patience, and perseverance. There is no instant gratification. One needs to have a different mindset to be a successful scientist.
Leadership’s Crucial Role
The vision of the Leadership team is very important for these missions. The missions are often risky and prone to failure. They take a long time and go through multiple cycles of failures and success to achieve something meaningful and useful for the humanities. In these scenarios, preparing the team for failure is more important so that in case of failure, the team does not give up and continues the pursuit of eventual success.
Stakeholder Engagement
The commitment of the stakeholders (such as the government) plays a crucial role in the success of these missions. Their active engagement in these endeavors communicates to the team that these missions are of paramount significance to the country. Providing reasonable resources against competing priorities is important as there are only limited resources. It is difficult to monetize these investments and sometimes it may take a lot longer to get any commercial value out of it. A failure can raise many eyebrows and discourage investment. An unwavering support to the mission team during tough times shields them from external distractions and keeps them focused on the tasks at hand.
Building a Supportive Ecosystem
Building an Ecosystem to support these missions is important. Many times these missions require a significant amount of investment and resources. It is very difficult for the government to foot the bill on their own. Involving the private sector to bring money and manpower expedites the timelines of these missions.
Navigating the Process
When there is no precedence, you play with your imagination and stretch it. You start with small ideas and validate them till the time you have a model in place. Once the model is in place, it is time to test it and the most important thing is to simulate a testing environment that is close to the real world which nobody has seen or experienced. You then test it and test it till the time there is a conviction to launch it in the live environment.
A Promising Start
This event is a historic first for India. India’s journey has just begun and the aspiration of a young India knows no bounds. It will encourage and motivate millions of Indians to dream big, unlock their potential, and work hard to achieve them. The country is rejuvenated and is ready to lead the world. India’s time has come.
Disclaimer
The writer occasionally writes about topics that are unrelated to personal finance and are a reflection of his own experience.
The writer is a SEBI Registered Adviser and Founder of FinMyn (https://finmyn.com). He provides Fee-Only Financial Planning and Investment Advisory services.
He has advised many clients in India, the US, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Europe, and Australia.
To know more about him, click on https://finmyn.com/about/.