Early Exposure in Life …

It is not your qualifications, but your exposure in life that makes you who you are!- Jaggi Vasudev

In my growing years, I never understood the relevance of “Exposures” in life. Exposure to unknown paths, places, ways, and many other things. Curiosity was there but was limited to what was around me. There were many things around me to learn, to observe but I was ignorant of many interesting things beyond the boundaries of my world. To understand and explore them, you certainly need that light of revelation in life. Whatever I experienced, that was the main source of exposure to various nuances of life. Experiences give you the life lessons that you may use in the future when you encounter similar situations. However, learning from experience comes afterward, after you go through the entire journey and you either come out with flying colors or a feeling of emptiness due to an unexpected outcome. But there is something which can better prepare us to absorb and enjoy that phase of our life, that is “Early Exposure”. It helps us to decide the kind of experience we want to plunge into. Exposure is like the gateway of the world full of surprises, adventures, and mysteries. Imagine, if we know about these inlets before we begin our journey. This could make the whole experience memorable and help us to make the right decisions in life.

When I was in school, there was no internet, no smartphone, or laptop. The knowledge was not accessible to my fingertips like the way it is today. I firmly believed in what parents told or teachers taught. It is like you are living in the world of adults and seeing and experiencing what they were preaching. It was certainly not the story of every one of my age. But I lived in that bubble and I was so oblivious of what is outside of it. I was enjoying my ride and never planned or dreamed of dwelling outside of this bubble. It never came to my mind, what if this bubble burst and how would I take this fall?

I always wanted to be a Doctor. It was my dream. When I was in High school, I believed if I would excel in school and get excellent grades, I would get admission to Medical college easily. Based on State college board rules, if you score a higher percentage in Senior school, you may get admission to medical school. The caveat was that college seats were limited but certainly, it was an option. I was quite naïve that neither I explored any other options to get into the medical college nor I thought of the same. I strongly believed that by studying diligently and scoring good marks in STEM subjects, I would certainly get the admission in my desired college. I was not much aware of other ways to get into medical colleges, outside of the State I was living in. I faintly knew they existed but no knowledge of what I needed to do and what is expected from me. In absence of the right experience or early exposure, you just tend to focus on what you know. You think it is futile and a waste of time thinking otherwise. What you know is the best way to do it. As a student, if you are not exposed to wonderful possibilities, you may go after, and things you can learn, then you cannot imagine that world and various channels to reach your goals. If by chance, things do not turn out the way you expect, you accept your fate and may choose to not look beyond. Some of us consider this as a failure and give up. Failing is the steppingstone towards your success and it is a critical experience that you need in life as you move forward. But if you do not reach till the end of the road, where you want to be, due to lack of knowledge or ignorance is not a failure. It is simply the lack of exposure. Failure happens when you give up and do not try other ways. Imagine, if we know various options to convert our dreams into reality, our life would be so exciting and satisfying. There is no single path to reach your destination and I wish I knew it. I never thought of failures till I was in school and did not have the slightest idea how they could shape my life. Unfortunately, I had never failed in life till then. I was overconfident and I did not prepare for Plan B. I never consider thought what if I did not get admission to medical school? What would I do? You must be thinking, how could I put all eggs in one basket? Unfortunately, I was not exposed to other options to get into medical school. Neither I researched on my own nor anyone guided me to prepare for fallback options. I focused on my best bet and worked hard. I had always won and was always a top scorer in school. Was it enough to achieve my goal? I thought so! But life always puts you in a situation you have never imagined or dreamed of. That year I got 93 % in STEM subjects but to my dismay, it was not a Score to get into any medical school. That particular year the highest score went above 95% across the State and many students were in the queue for admission. Finally, I did not make it and the irony was I was short by just 1 mark. If I would have got one more mark in any of the STEM subjects, perhaps I could have fulfilled my dream. I was in complete shock and could not believe my luck. I thought I have failed and there was no way to get out of that situation. I wish I had prepared better and would have explored other options. If I look back now, I wish, I had that well-needed exposure, which could have helped me to have a plan B, or C. I was standing at a crossroad and was not sure where to go. I was devastated and confused. Unless you plan other ways to accomplish your goals in advance, it is very difficult to face adverse situations. My father counseled and convinced me to do Engineering as that option was open and easily accessible considering my grades. I agreed however I still regret my decision….

Due to a lack of early exposure and awareness, I let go of my dream. I had no confidence left to go for what I wanted. I relied on just a single plan and a single path. I never thought through what if I would not succeed. Perhaps I was blinded by my beliefs, confidence and undervalued the need for exposure. I was like that frog in a well, who knows nothing of the ocean. Like the frog in his well, we often believe that what we know, is all that there is to know. It is a ridiculous thought, but this is exactly why we often approach situations and conversations with such dogged determination. The frog lives in a very protective world, high achiever of the small town, and accepts its fate as it comes thinking that is the only option. The frog does not know what is outside of that well and what can be achieved. As it says, if you have not seen it, you cannot even dream it. You may think of it as a crazy dream, but you will not even try for it unless you know and have some exposure to bolster your faith. To achieve your dream two things are needed — Determination and Exposure. Determination & Persistence helps you to realize your passion while exposure, prepares you well for this journey. If any setbacks, you can handle them well as you know your fallback options. Not only, it provides you the clarity in life but also gives you the needed confidence if you stumble. Moreover, it creates a whole new perspective. Do you know, Bill Gates’s first exposure to computers came while he was attending the prestigious Lakeside School in Seattle. A local company offered the use of its computer to the school through a Teletype link, and young Gates became entranced by the possibilities of the primitive machine. Could Bill Gates be a “Bill Gates of Microsoft” today if he would not have received exposure to computers at an early age? Well, that is the impact of exposure at an early age. It transforms your life. You gain strength, knowledge, and confidence to go on to achieve your dream. “Exposure” gives you the direction, enlightens you with so much knowledge and experience beforehand, that helps you to make the right decisions in life. It is an important step in the learning process. In this world, there is so much to learn and understand. There is no single recipe to get what you want. There are multiple ways to achieve your goals and reach your destination. Unless you get exposed to those unknown paths, it is impossible to navigate in that direction.

If exposure is so important, then how inventions happened in this world? Inventions and discoveries happened because of the curiosity and eagerness of the discoverer to reveal the truth and to expose the unknowns. But somewhere behind every invention, there is an element of exposure to something which sparks the interest of an inventor or a discoverer. Wright brothers, who took the first flight in Aircraft did not know or be exposed to this idea anywhere. However, when they were young, they got exposed to rubber band-powered toy helicopters. It was gifted to them by their father. This small toy sparked the interest of the Wright brothers. Later they attempted to build their helicopters as well Without exposure, growth is not possible. Exposure leads to growth. Exposure leads to expansion. Exposure is not only required for students at an early age but for everyone, whether you are a student, or a worker or a parent, or just “you”. Keep challenging yourself, keep navigating unknown paths, accept opposing views, open your eyes, and just do not accept what life throws at you and stop looking & trying. Be open to new radical ideas and do not confine yourself in that safe bubble. Exposure may happen in different ways — This could come from a disagreement, an opposing political view, social perspective, or even challenging your religious beliefs. No matter how exposure happens, it forces growth.

When we are too comfortable, we avoid new exposures, like things just the way they are. Like I was too comfortable in my world. I was contended, happy, and never challenged my beliefs or tried to expose myself with new ideas, options, different ways to reach my destination. Sometimes, we avoid exposure because we are scared that it could be highly disruptive, and we will not be successful. But, from my experience, I would advise, early exposures in life are critical as it creates expansion. It helps you grow and choose the right path when you are standing at a crossroad, confused and bewildered.