Note From President Vineet Bhatnagar

“… (HE) WAS BETTER THAN HIS WORD. HE DID IT ALL AND INFINITELY MORE….”

Dickens used these words in a different context and for a very different character in his classic Christmas Carol. But these were indeed the words that popped in my head as I sat transfixed, listening to every word that our guest speaker, Vikas Swarup, used to describe his journey as a diplomat and as a best-selling author of three novels.

Our members were enthralled when he took us through his list of seven things that a life in diplomacy had taught him. Each of the seven items had some relevant and exciting anecdotes which kept everyone glued to their seats. The list that he shared included – Open mind, Curiosity, Adaptable, Tactful, Patience, Value of compromise and Big Picture.

Each item resonated with the underlying factors that contribute to the success of an individual or even an organisation. Upon reflection, it is easy to map these items even with the model of service that Rotary has followed till date.

It is indeed the big picture vision of creating impact through its global network that Rotary continues to deliver for more than a century. The changing world and its associated challenges have also meant that Rotary has remained adaptable and open minded. The keen sense of participation of Rotarians in making a difference to their communities is driven by curiosity and their realistic assessment of ranking the myriad issues that brings out better value of compromise. Finally, global problems that require sustained efforts such as almost complete eradication of Polio exhibit the importance of patience and tactful collaborative approach to make the lasting difference.

By the time I finished mapping the above, I was overwhelmed with the simple and generic lessons that our guest speaker had introduced us to. And the spontaneous standing ovation that he received was a reaction to how much bigger he was than his words.

— President Vineet Bhatnagar