Amazing Edutech Entrepreneur

 

BYJU RAVINDRAN

Byju Ravindran  was born in Azhikode village of Kerala. He studied at a Malayalam medium school where his parents were teachers.

The accidental entrepreneur in the educational technology (edutech) sector realized where his calling lay when he was able to help his friends crack the CAT entrance exam for admission to management programme.

For a lark, he also appeared for the test twice and scored in the 100^th percentile. He worked as a service engineer with a multinational company, before starting Byju’s classes for CAT in 2007. It helped CAT aspirants crack the exam by making them understand the concepts behind the questions. In 2011, he co-founded the online edutech company ‘Byju’s’ with his wife Divya Gokulnath.

In 2015, as the screen size of smartphones increased, Byju launched an app which students could easily access on their handheld devices, for the purpose of learning. By October 2018, “BYJU’s – The Learning App” was being used by students in the UK, the US and other English-speaking countries.

The test prep business that Byju founded in 2007 has now emerged as a giant in the Indian education technology space. It teaches maths and science concepts to kids from classes IV to XII and offers preparation for several entrance exams.

Byju, who often skipped classes when he was in school, had to catch up with his studies on his own. This was when he first began to develop the learning methods that he now imparts to the 1.6 lakh students who are paid subscribers on the Byju’s network, as well to those who have downloaded his free app. It has also enabled students to take on the primary responsibility for their learning.

Rulers of India

 

Abbakka the brave

“In brief, her aspect and habit represented rather a kitchen-woman or a laundress than a delicate and noble queen. This is how an Italian traveller had described Abbakka Rani, the queen of Ullal in Karnataka. However appearances can be deceptive… for this plain-looking lady was a thorn in the path of the Portuguese in the late 16^th century.

Abbakka was a strong-minded Jaina queen trained in the art of warefare. When she learnt that her husband, ruler of Bangadi was keen on allying with the Portuguese, she left him to manage her home turf, the prosperous town of Ullal, which exported spices.

At that time, the Portuguese were vying for control of the western coast, to monopolize the lucrative Indian spice trade. When Abbakka refused to pay them to carry on her trade with the Arabs in West Asia, the Portuguese raided her ship on the high seas. Not one to be cowed down, Abbakka daringly attacked their base in Mangalore.

Thereafter, the Portuguese launched several attacks against Ullal, but were repulsed each time. Her fame spread far and wide as the fearless ‘pepper queen’ who successfully kept the mighty European power on their toes.

Once, the Portuguese managed to seize the city of Ullal, but the intrepid queen escaped, gathered a band of 200 soldiers, and counter-attacked them, forcing the invaders to flee in disgrace.

Eventually the Portuguese did capture her with the help of her estranged husband, but even in prison she revolted, and died fighting like a soldier.

 

Abbakka was as benevolent as she was brave and worked for the welfare of her subjects. She maintained good relations with people of all communities and religions, employing them in her army and administration.

Words Worth Reading

 

Lessons from Abraham Lincoln

1. Take responsibility for your life.

“You have to do your own growing - no matter how tall your grandfather was.”

2. Remember that greatness is possible.

“That some achieve great success, is proof to all that others can achieve it as well.

3. Believe in and go after your own success.

“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to success is more important than any other one thing.”

4. Prepare yourself to succeed.

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four hours sharpening the axe.”

5. Become worthy of a good reputation.

“Reputation is like fine china, once broken it’s very hard to repair.”

6. Always see the brighter side of things.

“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”

7. Be committed to constant improvement.

“The way for a young man to rise is to improve himself in every way he can...”

8. Live your life fully.

“And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

THE WISDOM OF THE SWALLOW

 The Wisdom of the Swallow

An old swallow resting on a bean vine saw a farmer sowing hemp seeds in his field.

“Beware, friends!” he said to the pigeons around him. “That farmer is going to destroy us.”

“What makes you say so?” asked one little pigeon.

“Because he is sowing hemp seeds!” said the old swallow. “When the hemp grows, he will make them into cords and tie them into nets to trap us. My advice to you is to pick up the seeds as soon as he leaves!”

However, the birds did not pay heed to his advice. A few days later the old swallow died.

The hempseeds grew into plants.

Then one day, as the birds were about to fly out in a flock, the farmer caught them in his newly-made hemp net.

“Alas!” cried the pigeons as they fell into the net, “If only we had listened to the old swallow!”

Moral of the story: Destroy the seed of evil or it will grow up to be your ruin.

words Worth Reading

Smile Is Mightier Than a Grin

The most bankrupt person in the world is one who has lost joy.

Every great and commanding movement in the history of the world incorporated enthusiasm.

Nothing great was or will be achieved without it.

So decide to become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.

A smile is the shortest distance between two people.

Greet the unseen with cheer, not fear.

Follow the advice of Norman Cousins, “Laughter is a form of internal jogging. It moves your internal organs around. It also enhances respiration.”

Happiness is always an inside job. Our first choice should be to rejoice. For every minute that you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness.

Two things contribute to happiness: what we can do without and what we can do with.

People are about as happy as they have made up their minds to be. Happiness can never be found, because it was never lost!

One seldom meets a person who fails at doing what he or she likes to do.

Don’t worry about the job you don’t like. Someone will soon have it. There is only one way to improve one’s work - love it.

Be like the steam kettle, though up to its neck in hot water, it continues to sing.

- Excerpt from the writings of John Mason’s book‘ You are Born an Original Don’t Die a Copy’.

Sanskrit Story

 Satyanishtata

Motivational

 Focus on what you can control

Tom met with his older mentor Dwyer, for his weekly chat.

“You seem troubled,” observed Dwyer.

“You know that project that I’ve been working on? It just didn’t work and I couldn’t get the result that I was after. In fact, I worked so hard on it, that I certainly deserved a better outcome,” responded Tom with frustration.

The mentor took Tom outside and pointing to a plant, said, “See this dead tomato plant. I did everything right when I planted it. I watered it, fertilized it and made sure that there were no weeds around it, but it still died. No matter how much you want to control the final outcome, you can’t. All that you can do is control the controllable, take responsibility for doing all that you can and leave the ultimate outcome up to God.”

“So what do I do? If I can’t be guaranteed success, should I just give up?” asked Tom, preparing to leave.

Giving him a basket full of large, juicy, bright red tomatoes, Dwyer said, “Of course not every tomato plant died. If you consistently do the right thing, you will significantly increase your chances of delivering successful outcomes. But if you give up due to one or two negative results, you’ll never reap a reward.”