Friday 5 August 2016

Hello Our Avid Reader, 

This time I am sharing the article based on relationship with money & how one generation can teach or make the younger generation how to Value Wealth & how to retain .In this context real time example of Mr Savji Dholakia - 54, chairman of the diamond company, Hari Krishna Exports Pvt. Ltd. A big time Diamond Trader from Surat - Gujarat having a turnover more than 6,00,000/-, Who sent away his son Mr Dravya Dholakia, 21 to Kerala to gain a hands on life experience to earn & live in Kerala without using his father influence nor use any money.


WHEN RICHIE RICH WENT SLUMMING

A father ensures impeccable life lessons for the 21-year-old heir to his Rs 6,000-crore diamond empire.

This is a story wholly about money, starting with the name of the protagonist, Dravya Dholakia, 21, the son of one of India's leading diamond merchants. In Hindi, dravya means liquidity, and the word is often used to signify cash.

Last week the Times of India reported the story of how Suratbased Savji Dholakia, 54, chairman of the diamond company, Hari Krishna Exports Pvt. Ltd., sent his son and heir Dravya on a unique life hack: Dholakia senior wanted his son, raised with a diamondencrusted golden spoon, to understand and appreciate the value of every single rupee. Towards this end, he challenged his son to go to far-flung Kochi (where he was bound to encounter language difficulties) for a month and earn his keep doing odd jobs.
On June 21, Dravya, who studies as a second year student of Bachelor of Business Administration at Pace University, New York, set off for Kochi with three sets of clothing and Rs 7,000 that was to be used only in case of an emergency.

What follows is an account of how that eventful month unfolded and how it has indelibly changed his life.

Dravya grew up in a beautifully appointed 11-storied home on the banks of river Tapi in Surat, and which he shares with his extended family comprising uncles, cousins, aunts, several nephews and nieces. Save for one month in Kochi, when he had to take the bus, he has only ever driven around in Bentleys and Lamborghinis when in India. The family's diamond business has its footprint across 71 countries and at last count the business was worth Rs 6,000 crore.
His father, not just a canny businessman but also someone with an astute understanding of life, had previously sent four of his nephews too to different parts of India on a similar challenge. Now it was the turn of his young son, who was often in the habit of demanding and getting all the fripperies that a luxurious life offers.

Savji Dholakia chose Kochi for his son to go and earn his daily bread because he had had an unpleasant time when he had gone there and he knew that problems with language would up the difficulty levels in this game that he was devising for Dravya.

For starters, upon his arrival in Kochi, when he began to look for odd jobs, Dravya encountered Kochi's 'No Malayalam, No Job' rule.

For the first two days he had no luck with a job but had to shell out Rs 250 a night from his emergency fund to rent a room in a lodge. Unlike back home in Gujarat, where homeless people are often allowed to sleep in a temple premises, Kochi temples offered no such haven.

Dravya decided he would tell prospective employers that he was a farmer's son from Gujarat, keen on making a living in Kerala. Having never had to earn his money, the first hurdle Dravya faced was to "ask" for a job. So even if he learnt of a vacancy in a shop, he would just go and stand outside the place, agonising for hours. "I just could not bring myself to walk in and ask for a job and more so, because I was shy. But I soon realised that if I did not want to starve I would have to overcome my hesitation."

On the fifth day in Kochi he got hired as an assistant by the bakery at Arya's restaurant. His job was to weigh and sell bakery items and for which he was offered Rs 9,000 a month, for an 11-hour shift per day. Soon, he moved out of the lodge and into an 8X8ft cubbyhole — far smaller than the size of his personal bathroom back home — with five of his co-workers. There were two toilets in that building, which were shared by over 25 people. There were no mattresses and no one cleaned the room that also had a clothesline running from one end to the other. He bathed and washed his clothes out in the open, like his roommates did. "I was given Rs 3,200 for my 14-day stint with Arya's. They should have paid me more, but they chose to keep a part of the salary with them, to ensure I continued working there." He left the bakery as his father had stipulated he should work at multiple places before his month was up.
Kicked out of second job

The hunt for the second job lasted two days. He approached an Adidas showroom for a job and was almost rejected, but their regional manager intervened. "He realised that I was badly in need of a job and asked me to join the next day, which was a Sunday. I turned up, but as I was terribly stressed I was a bit glum-faced. This irked the store manager who asked me to leave. Can you believe it?  I lost that job within two days all because I did not smile?

He next tried his hand at a BPO job and cracked the interview within minutes owing to his fluency in English. His work profile entailed making 800 calls in eight hours to sell a solar campaign to US clients. "I was doing well and they did not want me to leave. I requested them to pay me on a daily basis. They paid me Rs 250 on my fourth day at the BPO and Rs 500 on the seventh day. Thanks to this job, I got to use a public bus for my daily commute; this was an experience I had never had in India."

Of the 23 days Dravya was employed in Kochi, 14 were spent as a shop assistant at three different branches of Arya Restaurant's bakery section, two at an Adidas showroom, and a week at a call centre. He also got employed at a McDonald's, but by this time his father's assistants came down to document his experiences.

In the time he was in Kochi, Dravya was not allowed to speak to his mother or his three sisters. If something urgent arose he could give his father a "missed call" from someone's number and the call would be promptly returned. "Most of his concerns related to the dilemma of trusting people. I would patiently listen to his stories. I was there to lend an ear, but he had to find his way out," recalls Savji Dholakia.

Some of Savji's fortitude comes from his own modest beginnings. A first generation entrepreneur, Savji had come from Amreli to Surat to work as a diamond polisher for which he earned Rs 170 a month before going on to achieve his phenomenal success. The idea of sending the new generation of Dholakia boys on these tough missions came from a family trip to London eleven years ago, recalls Savjibhai. "We had gone for an Indian meal to a restaurant and were shocked out of our wits when we received a hefty bill. A single papad cost 4 pounds, then approximately Rs 250. I decided then and there that when our children grow up, they must be taught a way to understand the value of each and every rupee."

Dravya reveals with pride that not only did he earn a precious Rs 3,950 from the various jobs he undertook, he also saved Rs 55o from the emergency cash his father had given him at the start of the trip. When his stint at Kochi came to an end, Dravya went back to all the places he had worked at and showered his co-workers with gifts. Those he had shared a room with, he gifted them a bed, offered cash to a watchman, who without knowing him had offered to help him. A photocopier, who had photostated his CV for free, was also given gifts. He gave gift vouchers to his colleagues at the BPO, as he also did to the Adidas store manager who had sacked him for teaching him a valuable life lesson.


HERE, DRAVYA SHARES HIS TAKEAWAYS FROM MISSION KOCHI:

1 KNOW YOUR MONEY'S WORTH: I was in Ahmedabad recently for a retreat when I suddenly felt thirsty. I could have bought myself a 500 ml bottle from the nearest pizza shop for Rs 40, but I waited until I found a small shop that charged only Rs 10 for a bottle. This, I feel, is what has changed the most about me. Having worked 12 hours a day for just Rs 300, I know where to put my money.

2 VALUE WHAT YOU HAVE: I think I was foolish to have toyed with the idea of buying a luxury watch worth Rs 45,000 six months ago. I have always received expensive stuff from my parents without asking for it. Still, I used to crib a lot. I did not value what I already had. I would complain about the food being too spicy, or too sweet. But in Kochi, when I lived on two subzis, sambhaar and rice every day, I began to value the meal my mum prepared for me. In Kochi, I had to check out 30 shops to zero in on the one that offered me food within my daily budget of Rs 40. Besides, I used to be conscious of my health and avoid maida. But in Kochi, I preferred food with maida in it as it requires a lot of time to get digested. That meant fewer hunger pangs and less spending on food. I learnt that you eat to survive; it is not the other way round.

3 BE HUMBLE: There were people who treated me like their servant. They would not address me by my name. It would always be, 'aaee, idhar aa (hey you, come here)'. But when they learned who I was, they were suddenly all nice and polite to me. 'Tu' was replaced with 'aap'. I really don't get this: do we respect money or the human being? I have learnt to respect everyone, irrespective of their social status.

4 BE HUMAN: My shoe-store experience in Kochi taught me to be more considerate towards others. Unlike my employer who sacked me, I am not going to fire somebody only because he did not smile. I will try and understand the reason behind his unhappiness and try to address his problem. Also, I will utilise a person's skills to the maximum, irrespective of whether he smiles or frowns. Employers need to learn to be civil and more understanding.

5 LEARN TO ADJUST: I learnt how to deal with people and circumstances. On the first two days in Kochi, I was in tears because I did not know how to approach people or handle a particular situation. I was put up in lodge with a dingy room and a dirty toilet. Now, this situation is something I had never imagined I would be in. Now, whenever I feel uncomfortable about something, I close my eyes and think of the Kochi days. It just takes a minute for me to be at peace with the present. Instead of complaining, I cherish each moment now. I am grateful for every meal and the time spent with my family.
6 BE COMPASSIONATE: People put their faith in me and helped me when I had no job, no money. They were not going to benefit from this gesture, but they still decided to help me. I must now pay this forward