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By:

Asha Tripathi

14 April 2025 at 1:35:28 pm

Stop Comparing, Start Growing

Success does not grow in comparison; it grows in focus. Over the years, women have made significant strides in every sphere of life. From managing homes to leading organisations, from nurturing families to building successful careers, women have proved that strength and resilience are deeply rooted in their nature. Financial independence has become a significant milestone for many women today, bringing with it confidence, dignity, and the freedom to shape one’s own destiny. However, along...

Stop Comparing, Start Growing

Success does not grow in comparison; it grows in focus. Over the years, women have made significant strides in every sphere of life. From managing homes to leading organisations, from nurturing families to building successful careers, women have proved that strength and resilience are deeply rooted in their nature. Financial independence has become a significant milestone for many women today, bringing with it confidence, dignity, and the freedom to shape one’s own destiny. However, along with growth has come another silent challenge — the tendency to constantly observe, compare, and sometimes even compete with the journeys of others. But a crucial question arises: Is it necessary to track the growth of others in order to grow ourselves? From my personal experience of more than two decades as an entrepreneur, I have realised something very powerful — true growth begins the moment we stop looking sideways and start looking within. A Small Beginning I had a flourishing career of teaching abroad, but when I restarted my career after moving back to India, my beginning was extremely small. My very first assignment was a simple home tuition for a single student, and the amount I earned was meagre. There was nothing glamorous about it. No recognition, no large batches, no big earnings. Just one student and one opportunity. But instead of worrying about how others were doing, how many students they had, or how much they were earning, I made a conscious decision—my only focus would be on improving myself. I focused on teaching better, preparing better, and becoming more disciplined and consistent. And slowly, without even realising it, things began to grow. One student became two, two became a small group, and gradually, over the years, the work expanded beyond what I had initially imagined. Looking back today, I can confidently say that the growth did not happen because I competed with others. It happened because I competed with myself yesterday. Comparison Creates Noise When we keep watching others' journeys too closely, we unknowingly divert our own energy. Comparison creates unnecessary noise in our minds. It brings doubts, insecurities, and sometimes even negativity. Instead of walking our own path with clarity, we start questioning our speed, our direction, and our worth. True success grows through focus, not comparison. Every woman has her own story, her own pace, and her own struggles that others may never see. The path of one person can never be identical to another's. So comparing journeys is like comparing two different rivers flowing towards the same ocean — each with its own route, its own curves, and its own rhythm. As women, we already carry many responsibilities. We balance emotions, relationships, work, and society's expectations. In such a life, the last thing we need is the burden of comparison with one another. Instead, what we truly need is support for each other. When women encourage women, something extraordinary happens. Confidence grows. Opportunities multiply. Strength becomes collective rather than individual. There is enough space in the world for every woman to create her own identity. Each of us can build our own niche without stepping on someone else's path. Choose Encouragement Envy weakens us, but encouragement empowers us. Rather than questioning how someone else is progressing, we can ask a more meaningful question: "How can I grow a little better than I was yesterday?" Lift As You Rise Today, after twenty years of experience, the most valuable lesson I have learned is simple yet profound — focus on your own work with honesty and dedication, and success will quietly follow you. We, women, are capable, resilient, and creative. We do not need to pull each other down or compete in unhealthy ways. Instead, we can lift each other up while building our own dreams. Because when one woman rises, she does not rise alone. She inspires many others to believe that they can rise, too. And perhaps that is the most beautiful form of success. (The writer is a tutor based in Thane. Views personal.)

Bridge Snub

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin’s conspicuous absence during Prime Minister Narendra Modi inauguration of the new Pamban Sea bridge in Rameswaram was a calculated snub, and a clumsy one at that.


The Pamban bridge, which connects Rameswaram island to the mainland, is a marvel of modern engineering and a symbol of national investment in the region. Stalin’s refusal to attend its unveiling sent a signal of parochialism when the moment called for unity. After all, the bridge is not a BJP project but a national asset, decades in the making and financed by taxpayers across India. Its inauguration was not just Modi’s moment, but Tamil Nadu’s too.


While Stalin cited prior commitments, the boycott coincided with his public demand that the Prime Minister offer assurances on the proposed delimitation exercise, specifically that Tamil Nadu’s share of parliamentary seats would not be reduced in favour of states with higher population growth.


By skipping the event, Stalin squandered an opportunity to project Tamil Nadu not as a periphery, but as a partner in India’s infrastructure renaissance. The message he sent was one of narrow-minded provincialism—more akin to the rhetoric of a perpetual opposition leader than the statesmanship expected of a sitting chief minister. It was a moment to rise above political friction; instead, Stalin chose to sulk in the shadows.


To be sure, Stalin’s concern over the delimitation exercise is not without merit. Southern states like Tamil Nadu, which have successfully implemented family planning policies and brought down population growth rates, fear being punished for their good behaviour.


But the way to make that argument is through deliberation and diplomacy, not petulance. Stalin could have stood beside the Prime Minister at the ceremony, welcomed the bridge as a win for Tamil Nadu, and used the occasion to reiterate his call for fair and equitable representation.


Instead, he handed the Prime Minister the optics of national benevolence meeting regional small-mindedness. And in a place like Rameswaram, the birthplace of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, who oversaw the earlier restoration of the old Pamban bridge during his presidency, such symbolism matters. Kalam belonged to both Tamil Nadu and India. Stalin, instead, chose to stand apart.


Such slights are not forgotten easily by Modi, whose political memory is long and strategic. A man with a finely tuned sense of symbolism, Modi is known to return every political cold shoulder with calibrated force. Stalin’s absence will not go unanswered; Tamil Nadu may find itself edged out of future high-visibility projects or economic largesse. The BJP does not yet hold sway in Tamil Nadu, but it has been making steady inroads. What better fuel for its rise than the optics of a petulant regional satrap refusing to share a stage with the elected leader of 1.4 billion people? India’s federalism is strongest when its leaders can disagree without disengaging. The Pamban bridge was built to connect; Stalin’s absence turned it into a metaphorical divide.

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