Arun, you nailed every shade of the new kind of anxiety living among those of us who worked hard to get somewhere, only to watch it stop mattering. Keep writing :)
👍. 💯. Uncertainty is part of every life. Every person's life. The grass on the other side always looks greener till you visit it and see what it takes to keep it that way.
The Indian economy is much better now. Job scarcity and uncertainty existed in the 70's 80's 90's too. My elder sis who is an english major gold medalist graduate, then journalism PG gold medalist. Didn't get employed for over a year in main media, advertisement, then when she got one it was for a 🥜 salary. That is when she decided to give IAS exam and cleared it. It was not just her. All during that time. Will you believe Engineers starting salary used to be 2,000/-.
Hence PM Modi continues to win elections, people saying he will continue to be the PM. In fact it is even more important now that it remains our PM. So that tge progress gets cemented.. it won't go back to the pre- PM Modi era - economy.
Things are better than before, no doubt. But better does not mean good, especially in the private sector. We built one of the largest IT industries in the world, and yet most of it runs on serving others… executing, delivering, outsourcing. The part where we research, build, and own something is still thin. Most investors tend to chase quick returns and avoid long-gestation projects, which is exactly what real innovation needs. Startups that tried to go deeper never really got the financial backing or the ecosystem to survive long enough to matter.
And on the ground, the math feels off. A street food vendor running a small setup today can clear more in a day than what many developers take home monthly. That is not a knock on anyone… it just tells you something is broken in how we value the people building the digital infrastructure of this country.
Meanwhile team sizes are shrinking. The honest translation is cost cutting dressed up in the language of the future. AI is being made into a very big thing, and maybe it is… but right now it is mostly being used as a reason to do more with fewer people, not as something genuinely transforming what we build or who benefits from it.
True. 💯. Same fear was there when computer was introduced. And was resisted for decades. And we remained a backward country. Nothing remains same. The trick is: those who don't get beaten by it are those who continously learn, develop their talents, enhance their skill, remain optimistic and stay ahead. They Survive. Prosper. So will you. Try and Remember this whenever you begin to feel insecure.
As a writer, i am as very much affected. And share your anxiety. Even as a cartoonist i did, i was told who will pay for your drawings when they are available for free on the internet.
These are very similar to the thoughts I was having a year ago. It almost feels like you read my mind.
It often feels like a loop: people are given just enough to get by, to survive, but not enough to truly thrive. Meanwhile, new products and services keep getting launched. But if people’s income streams are shrinking or stagnating, who is going to buy them?
Building a business takes immense time, effort, and resilience, yet there are no guarantees. You can do everything right and still struggle to make it profitable.
Sometimes I can’t help but wonder if the system is designed to benefit only a select few. And if you know what I mean, there are certainly people for whom money seems to keep flowing regardless of what happens around them.
You are right. And I think that visibility is what stings the most… not just the struggle, but seeing clearly how differently the cards are dealt.
Money is not the main problem. Everyone needs it. But there are people who grow by pulling others back and that is the part that is hard to make peace with. Collective growth sounds good in theory. That said, I do believe phases like this do not last forever because people find their way through despite it all. Hope we both do.
Hope it all works out for you buddy....🤞
Thank you... I'm praying for the same 🙏
Arun, you nailed every shade of the new kind of anxiety living among those of us who worked hard to get somewhere, only to watch it stop mattering. Keep writing :)
Thanks Rabia. Just hoping for better times ahead…
👍. 💯. Uncertainty is part of every life. Every person's life. The grass on the other side always looks greener till you visit it and see what it takes to keep it that way.
The Indian economy is much better now. Job scarcity and uncertainty existed in the 70's 80's 90's too. My elder sis who is an english major gold medalist graduate, then journalism PG gold medalist. Didn't get employed for over a year in main media, advertisement, then when she got one it was for a 🥜 salary. That is when she decided to give IAS exam and cleared it. It was not just her. All during that time. Will you believe Engineers starting salary used to be 2,000/-.
Hence PM Modi continues to win elections, people saying he will continue to be the PM. In fact it is even more important now that it remains our PM. So that tge progress gets cemented.. it won't go back to the pre- PM Modi era - economy.
Things are better than before, no doubt. But better does not mean good, especially in the private sector. We built one of the largest IT industries in the world, and yet most of it runs on serving others… executing, delivering, outsourcing. The part where we research, build, and own something is still thin. Most investors tend to chase quick returns and avoid long-gestation projects, which is exactly what real innovation needs. Startups that tried to go deeper never really got the financial backing or the ecosystem to survive long enough to matter.
And on the ground, the math feels off. A street food vendor running a small setup today can clear more in a day than what many developers take home monthly. That is not a knock on anyone… it just tells you something is broken in how we value the people building the digital infrastructure of this country.
Meanwhile team sizes are shrinking. The honest translation is cost cutting dressed up in the language of the future. AI is being made into a very big thing, and maybe it is… but right now it is mostly being used as a reason to do more with fewer people, not as something genuinely transforming what we build or who benefits from it.
True. 💯. Same fear was there when computer was introduced. And was resisted for decades. And we remained a backward country. Nothing remains same. The trick is: those who don't get beaten by it are those who continously learn, develop their talents, enhance their skill, remain optimistic and stay ahead. They Survive. Prosper. So will you. Try and Remember this whenever you begin to feel insecure.
As a writer, i am as very much affected. And share your anxiety. Even as a cartoonist i did, i was told who will pay for your drawings when they are available for free on the internet.
Yeah, we are messed up in that way but as they say, God will save us and show us correct path when we need him the most.
💯. 👍
These are very similar to the thoughts I was having a year ago. It almost feels like you read my mind.
It often feels like a loop: people are given just enough to get by, to survive, but not enough to truly thrive. Meanwhile, new products and services keep getting launched. But if people’s income streams are shrinking or stagnating, who is going to buy them?
Building a business takes immense time, effort, and resilience, yet there are no guarantees. You can do everything right and still struggle to make it profitable.
Sometimes I can’t help but wonder if the system is designed to benefit only a select few. And if you know what I mean, there are certainly people for whom money seems to keep flowing regardless of what happens around them.
You are right. And I think that visibility is what stings the most… not just the struggle, but seeing clearly how differently the cards are dealt.
Money is not the main problem. Everyone needs it. But there are people who grow by pulling others back and that is the part that is hard to make peace with. Collective growth sounds good in theory. That said, I do believe phases like this do not last forever because people find their way through despite it all. Hope we both do.