How to Let Perseverance Unleash You | Amit Agarwal | TEDxMAIMS

Key Concepts

• Superhero Analogy: Challenges in life are framed as "monsters" and "aliens" that require a "superhero" response.
• Personal "Monsters": Financial struggles, health issues, career uncertainty, student stress (placements, exams, social media), and unexpected crises.
• "Superhero Moments": Instances where individuals overcome significant challenges.
• "Least That You Can Do" Mantra: A problem-solving approach focusing on the smallest actionable step when faced with overwhelming odds.
• Perseverance: The ability to continue despite difficulties, exemplified by multiple personal experiences of the speaker.
• Brain's Autopilot Mode: The brain's innate programming for survival and comfort, which can hinder risk-taking and growth.
• "I'll Try" vs. "I Will": The critical difference in commitment and accountability between these phrases. "I will" signifies a commitment to action and results.
• "Be Your Own Parent" System: Taking personal responsibility for setting rewards and punishments to drive action, similar to how parents guide children.
• Belief and Perseverance: The ultimate "secret sauce" for defying odds, emphasizing faith in oneself and persistent effort.

Summary

Introduction: The Superhero Within

The speaker begins by evoking the excitement of superhero narratives, where extraordinary beings save the day from overwhelming threats like aliens and monsters. He then draws a parallel to real life, where individuals face their own "monsters" in the form of financial struggles, health issues, career uncertainty, and student-related stresses. He asks the audience to identify with these daily battles, acknowledging that everyone faces their own challenges.

Personal Journey and "Superhero Moments"

The speaker, Amit Agarval, an entrepreneur and author of "Unlock Your Inner Superhero," shares his personal experiences of defying odds.

• COVID-19 Lockdown (March 24, 2020): Faced with an urgent request to transport life-saving medicines and oxygen cylinders during a nationwide lockdown, Agarval's initial response was that it was "impossible" due to stranded trucks, closed warehouses, and absent drivers. However, a pivotal question from a client, "Amit, is there at least something you can do?" became his mantra. He mobilized his team and drivers, overcoming logistical hurdles like food for drivers, truck repairs, funding, and permissions, by consistently asking, "What is the least that you can do?" This effort, sustained for six months, helped save countless lives and was a significant "superhero moment."
• Company Shutdown Due to Union Strike: Agarval recounts a period where his company was shut down for six months due to an illegal union strike. Despite feeling like a failure, he refused to give up, stating, "I won't let this beat me," and rebuilt his business "brick by brick, client by client." This exemplifies perseverance.
• Forced Relocation: He also shares an instance where he had to leave Mumbai overnight due to a personal issue, leaving behind his childhood, memories, and contacts. Arriving in a new city like Delhi with uncertainty, he again adopted the mindset, "I will not let this beat me," and rebuilt his life.
• First TEDx Talk: The speaker humorously points out that even delivering his first TEDx talk, something he had never done before, is an act of defying odds and a bucket-list item.

Understanding the Overwhelming Nature of Challenges

Agarval posits that the reason challenges feel so overwhelming and scary is rooted in our brain's programming.

• Survival Instinct: The brain was designed millions of years ago for survival, prioritizing safety and comfort. It operates on an "autopilot mode," discouraging risks and encouraging staying within the comfort zone.
• The "Carefree Chill Friend" (Autopilot): This autopilot mode is personified as a "carefree chill friend" (e.g., "Bablu"). This friend encourages snoozing alarms, watching Netflix instead of working on assignments, and avoiding worries by suggesting partying. This is the brain tricking us.

The Deception of "I'll Try"

Agarval identifies two "bad words" that hinder progress: "I'll try."

• Lack of Commitment: He argues that "I'll try" is a lie because it lacks commitment, obligation, and accountability, leading to no action and no results.
• Yoda's Wisdom: He quotes Yoda from Star Wars: "Do or do not. There is no try."
• Personal Anecdote: Agarval himself struggled for four years to write his book, constantly telling himself, "I will try to write this book." It was only when he changed his narrative to "I will" and set specific deadlines (e.g., "I will finish my book by August 24") that progress occurred, leading to the publication of his first book and the ongoing work on his second.
• Call to Action: He urges the audience to change their narrative from "I'll try" to "I will."

The "Be Your Own Parent" System

Even with the "I will" commitment, stepping out of the comfort zone remains difficult. Agarval introduces his system: "Be Your Own Parent."

• Parental Guidance: He explains that as children, parents enforce discipline through rewards and punishments, making it easier to do hard things (e.g., "Wash your hands," "Do your homework").
• Adult Responsibility: As adults, we lack this external enforcement. We must become our own parents, setting our own rewards and punishments to drive action. Without them, "I will" and perseverance can die.

The Ultimate Secret: Belief and Perseverance

Agarval concludes by revealing the ultimate "secret sauce" for defying odds: Belief and Perseverance.

• The Fakir Baba Story: He narrates the story of a fakir baba in an Indian village who would dance and make it rain. When children tried to imitate him, they failed because they danced without belief. The fakir baba succeeded because he danced with the unwavering belief that it would rain.
• The Core Message: The children danced but lacked self-belief. The fakir baba danced with the conviction that it would rain and he would continue until it did.
• Application to Life: Agarval emphasizes that talent, luck, and superheroes won't save us. Only belief in ourselves and perseverance will.
• Inner Superhero: He concludes that when we possess belief and perseverance, we realize that the superhero was always within us.

Conclusion/Synthesis

The video argues that while life presents challenges akin to superhero battles, the power to overcome them lies not in external saviors but within ourselves. By understanding our brain's natural inclination towards comfort, consciously shifting our commitment from "I'll try" to "I will," adopting a self-disciplining "Be Your Own Parent" approach, and most importantly, cultivating unwavering belief in ourselves and perseverance through difficulties, we can indeed defy odds and become our own superheroes. The core takeaway is that the capacity to overcome adversity is an internal one, unlocked through a change in mindset and consistent, determined action.