One Conversation Can Change Your Destiny - Dr. Ravi Gundlapalli

Hi, this is Ravi Gundlapalli, founder and CEO of Mentor Cloud and the author of the Art of Mentoring. Today I'm going to share with you three stories, all with a single theme. And the theme is one conversation can change your destiny.

The first story.

I was a speaker and in the US State Department. At the invitation of then US Secretary of State, Mrs. Hillary Clinton, I had a chance to address a global audience, to share my mission about mentoring beyond borders. And later that day, I was taken to the White House as a special guest for a Change Maker event they were having. It was a beautiful day, very inspiring, and met so many wonderful people.

Now.

Rewind. About maybe 12 weeks earlier, I was in Sunnyvale attending at a tech event and I was listening to a panel discussion and there was Dina Shakar. Deena is amazing. And after the final discussion, I just went and introduced myself, acknowledged that her comments were so inspiring, talked about my mission of mentoring beyond borders, and within weeks, she told somebody else about our conversation. Our conversation probably lasted about five to six minutes. And then that word spread and eventually someone from the US State Department came to visit me in Silicon Valley just to make sure if I'm real and wanted to know about my background and the company. And eventually here I was in the State Department. Interestingly, they were originally asking me to present up to five slides maximum. And I hate slides.

But just that morning they said, hey, you know, we don't want to use any slides, you know, just to keep the flow of. Because my. The speaker before me was Mrs. Clinton. And so I said, great, I love it. So no slides. I was just there talking about mentoring beyond borders. So that one conversation when I was having at that time, there was no indication, you know, that, you know, she will go tell somebody else and then that will lead to a speaking opportunity at the U.S. state Department in front of a global audience. So one conversation can change your destiny. Story number two, I once made a MIST dial. You know, I haven't told this story to a lot of people, actually. So I was part of what I call a decelerator, supposed to be an accelerator, but it was terrible. It was based in Livermore, and it didn't work out for us. They weren't being honest, but it was a very bad experience. So There were about five or six other CEOs in our group. And after having a bad experience, a few weeks later, I just called a number thinking that belonged to a fellow CEO and just wanted to know, are they still in business or did they just wind up shop and go. Because all of us did not have a smooth experience. But then the number I called did not belong to the CEO. It belonged to a person by name, Rajesh. So on the other side, he said, hi, this is Rajesh. And I'm like, no, I'm trying to reach somebody else. But then we got talking. And those of you who know Rajesh Sethi, he's just an amazing individual, a great soul. So fast forward several years, which seems like a whole lifetime of me and Rajesh becoming great friends.

And he inspired me even today. And he got a book out of me. You know, he was the first one who said, ravi, you should write a book on mentorship. And I said, I don't. I don't know if I have the material in my head for a whole book. And his persistence, his inspiration, his motivation, eventually got the Art of Mentoring book out of me. And today I am enjoying all the rewards and the pleasure of being an author and being invited to speak all over the world. Again, that goes back to one conversation. What if I did not dial that day? What if I said, oh, wrong number. I would have hung up, having that open mind to say hi to him. And of course, Rajesh also has the same mindset. Let's say hi to Ravi. So being open and not feeling shy to have a conversation without knowing exactly what the outcome could be can bring the power of the universe to you. If you choreograph the input, the output is also very deterministic. But if you let the input, you know, be open where you're having a conversation with somebody experienced or someone who, who you really feel good about, either because you, you know, read their blog or you watch them on a panel discussion, etc, or somebody introduced you to you as he's a great mentor or she's a great mentor, you should have a conversation. Don't have, you know.

Don'T let your second guessing come in the way. Be open. If you can afford half an hour and if the other person is willing to have the conversation, have the conversation. And you'll be amazed at how many new possibilities happen. Now, I have mentioned this before too. When you're watching a video, it's very unlikely that the video is going to open up new possibilities. It may definitely inspire you to think differently, introduce some new ideas and new concepts. Same thing with a book. You can read a book, but the book never talks back to you, whereas a human being can. It can open so many new possibilities that you didn't even imagine.

And third story, this is really funny. I serve on the Advisory board of Global Mentor Network.

Which is actually founded by the ever inspiring, amazing, and you know, my role model, you know, for being a great entrepreneur, a great philanthropist, and a great leader and a wonderful human being. Keith Krack. So let's remind. How did that happen? I did not choreograph anything here. So I was once sent an email saying, hey, there is this startup pitch competition in la. Would you like to come and just share with people about Winter Cloud? Now, I knew that audience was not the right audience, and I said, I got time. I found a cheap ticket. So I said, from Silicon Valley, let me head over to la. And I did the presentation. Obviously, everybody was looking at some apartment complexes and, you know, actual real estate investments. Nobody wanted to invest in anything close to a technology software that I was pitching. But regardless, somebody from the audience came up and said, I really like what you said. I would like you to meet Keith Farazi. I was like, of course. Because Keith Farazi was actually featured in my book. I considered him an amazing guy because he talked, he wrote the book never eat alone, who's got your back? And I actually had him in my book. So I said, of course I know Keith Farazi. I would love to meet him. And so I was made. I was introduced to him, we had a great conversation. And then he said, but we never got to meet in person.

And then he said, hey, I'm going to Vancouver. Would you like to join me there? And I said.

Why Vancouver? You know, he was. He was, you know, speaking at ted, and I said, I don't have a ticket. I said, yeah, okay, no problem. But if you like to come and hang out, you know, we can meet in the lobby and we'll get to, you know, talk. So I did this crazy move. I said, okay, and, you know, when will I get the opportunity? So I flew to Vancouver and I got to meet so many amazing people and, you know, one thing get to another. And here I am.

So honored and privileged to be serving on an advisory board of a company founded by a true visionary. So I hope these stories give you an insight into my journey personally. How crazy I am when it comes to making those calls. I never second guess. In fact, that's my next book I'm working on. Don't second guess, because your second guessing is based on your past. But your success is all in the future. So if you're left, if you let your past determine your decisions, then you will never let the superpower of the universe help you open new doors. So to all the entrepreneurs to all the professionals who are watching this message today, be open. You know, if you want to pour something into a vessel, the vessel has to be open, right? Otherwise you cannot get anything into it. Similarly, you got to have an open mind and be open to conversations. Be open to spontaneous, serendipitous, in the moment conversations. And don't second guess thinking, why should I talk to that person? I don't have any issue to talk to. So don't wait for issues. You know, all of us exercise because we want to avoid the emergency room, but don't wait for that emergency situation to come because at that time you may not have a Rolodex of people to talk to. So start today, every week, have a conversation with someone you don't work with. Have a open, no obligation, no expectation conversation with amazing people and uncover the magic that is soon to happen in each and every one of your journeys. As a working professional, as an entrepreneur, as a leader, as a retired executive. Does not matter. A human conversation, one conversation can change your destiny. All the best.