Aditya Birla Group - My Forever Companion - Ritu Sinha, IIFT Kolkata

Life is full of challenges, but these challenges are only given to you because God knows your faith is strong enough to get you through them. Someone has rightly said the above. There has been one particular challenge of my life which has changed me as a person today. Ever since I can recall, I had always been the quiet kid in the class. While others used to play games in the lunch break, I on the other hand would read the novel I had brought along. It was not that I didn’t have friends. I always felt blessed to have one of the most lovely and supportive friends in my life. But usually I would refrain from speaking to a crowd unnecessarily. This rule of thumb had worked for me flawlessly until I joined my under graduate college and was exposed to a whole new world. In the second year of my college, I was told by my teacher to co-host the fresher’s party. Up until that point I had never spoken on stage in my entire life. The dread had set. I was haunted by the thought of something going wrong and making a joke of myself onstage. It was then that my father motivated me to not worry and speak up with confidence. He taught me speech techniques, helped me work on my speaking skills. On the day of the event, I had a list of points I had to speak on in my hand. As I went up to the stage, I saw the entire hall glare at me with their complete attention. For a moment I thought I couldn't do it. But then I saw some familiar faces in the audience, rooting for me. My friends. I took a deep breath and spoke. It was the most liberating moment in my life. I spoke well and was commended for my anchoring skills by my professors. The event was a success and it started a new chapter in my life. From then on, I started hosting all kinds of events. I fell in love with the stage. It gave me the confidence I needed in my life to achieve my dreams. I went on to participate in many more events, winning badminton championships, cricket tournaments and much more. I will never forget that day in my entire life.