Today, I spoke to Sidhanta Patnaik, who was the man behind all Nike events in India since quite some time apart from a few corporate events. In this interview, Sidhanta gives insights about his job, career, difficulties faced and how he dealt with them in order to do what he loves to do. I fired in 10 straight questions at Sidhanta and here are his answers :
I love my job
1. Are you happy with your current job?
Job! That’s a new word. Till date I have never got into a scene where I have had to do a job. Every day I have just done what I love to do and because I have followed my heart, I can remember most of my days that I have spent at my work place.
2. What is the best part about your job and what do you love most?
I like everything about my profession. In my 21 months of stay at my present work place, I have boarded a flight 55 times and have visited 13 new cities across the country hence building an India wide network. Every day is a new day. You never know what is next!
3. What is your dream for life?
Dreams are meant to be pursued. Let’s all continue pursuing them and not talk about it.
4. I have read somewhere that you wanted to be a cricketer, since that was not fulfilled did you choose this field specifically to remain close to cricket?
Cricket is my passion and I grew up in a surrounding where Cricket was the only thing that was discussed or did. In my locality we had 10 playgrounds and it was only Cricket that was played there. I organised my first Cricket match when I was in Class 3. It was a section match and I still remember the score of that match. I opened the innings and remained unbeaten on 6(Laugh). Since then there has been no looking back and I kept on deriving happiness by organising tournaments. I always asked myself how I can make Cricket my career and today I have found an answer though there is still a long way to go. It’s just the beginning and there are lots of tasks to be done before I actually reach there.
5. Event management does not seem familiar to many people, especially with the people of our parent’s age, what did your parents say when you said you want to pursue a career/course in event management?
I was sitting at my aunt’s place in Bangalore in 2002 when the moment of Eureka happened to me. That was my first year outside home and I was watching TV and a television commercial on an event captured my imagination. I could relate that advertisement to my skills and that day it was decided. When I called my dad and said about my choice of career, he asked me to come back to Bhubaneswar and start a tent house instead of wasting time and resources in Bangalore. But today when he sees me in my profession, he can’t stop from smiling and feeling happy. 2002 to 2009 has been a great transition phase for event management as an industry. Today we are an integral part of the experience business that everyone is talking about.
6. How did you convince him when he made fun of your thought about the career you chose?
There was no need to convince him. He always had belief in my intentions and capabilities and if your parents see that confidence in you, they have to just be the facilitators and roads will keep opening automatically.
7. Did you get the desired profile straightaway when you joined Wizcraft?
It is a very wrong way to judge a task by it’s profile. It is my personal opinion. What matters is intent. If your intent is right, roads open up and from one task you move to another and slowly you get to do what you want to do. This way the journey becomes much more satisfying as you value what you get. My journey in Wizcraft has been pretty much like this.
8. How did you craft your way to that position and how long did that take?
I can just say that I was there at the right place at the right time. However to be there one needs to work hard and hard and hard!!! There is no two way about it.
9. What are your long term goals? And what would be your next step to approach those?
Hmmmmm!!! Long terms goals!!! Tough one to answer. There are so many things that I want to do. But at the same time I know I am just one individual. For me to achieve what I want to achieve, it is very important that I get the right team wherever I go. Goals keep changing. The more you dedicate yourself to a task, the bigger your goal becomes. We started our schooling career keeping a goal of passing class 10th and then 12th and then degree and then masters. Today those things look so small. So it is a step by step process and at every step you need to keep reviewing your stance. Sachin Tendulkar never aimed at scoring more than 80 centuries in international cricket but he is right there at the top now. We all saw his career grow year by year, step by step.
10. What is your advice to the people who know they are in not in the best jobs but are carrying it for money? How do you suggest they come out of it and make a better career and life for themselves?
If you look at this question, I am actually a no one to give any advice to anyone. I have just started my career. As for me I can say when it comes to money or dreams, it is an individual choice that one needs to make. Everyone can’t be lucky. The world runs on the lines of commitment management and to meet those commitments money becomes so important. But again if you don’t enjoy your life how will you give your best to all the commitments that surround you? It actually takes some time (days, months, years) to recognize what you truly love to do. That moment may come anytime. The faster it comes the better it is. But for that moment to come, you need to keep thinking about it. The more you think the more you become clear inside your head and slowly and steadily the right kind of displacements start happening around you and finally one day you realize that time has come to move on to the next step in life.
Sidhanta was an event-manager at Wizcraft International and recently quit to pursue a master’s course in Sports Management from UK. To know more about him read this.
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