Blood Heart & Soul

A leader is one who sees more than others see, who sees farther than others see and who sees before others see. These words by author Leroy Eimes have been my guiding principle. There’s a sea of difference in doing things right vs. doing the right things. Managers and management are for doing things right, whereas, leaders are focused on doing the right things.
I was able to transform Climax Overseas, an automotive rubber components exporting company, from a small scale industry with a 60-member workforce into a pioneering multi-million dollar business over a period of less than 15 years primarily because of one reason: my unflinching faith in myself.

Even when my own kith and kin opposed my ambitions and propositions, I did not cower. I stood upright and trod the path I chalked out for myself with the conviction that if I succeeded it would be a vindication of my vision and foresight and if I failed it would only be a learning process. In 1968, my father, Daljit Singh Sood started Climax Overseas with a lean investment of just Rs. 1,000. He acquired knowledge of rubber technology over the next one decade through extensive reading and research and went on to establish his name in the field of rubber technology at a time when there were very few such entrepreneurs in this industry, in the country.

Discovering Life’s Calling
Although, right from the beginning, I have rebelled against my father's ideas of how to do business, I think, he has been my guide and mentor as far as finding an answer to why do business. After I discovered the why of business, the how of business fell in line with great clarity. He sowed the seeds of this angst and also helped me discover the answer.
In 1999, after my graduation, I wanted to pursue post-graduation in business management in the US and make a living in that country. I did not want to join the family business because, at that time, I thought it was not a white-collar business. In my youthful hot-headedness, I dreamed of being a part of something more glamorous; something bigger and better. My father didn't approve; he wanted me to join the family business.

We had a lot of arguments regarding this issue. One argument that made a deep impact on my entire way of thinking was when my father said that I was being selfish in wanting to pursue a goal that revolved only around my needs. Here was an opportunity that would enable me to touch other lives. Today, he said, we are making a difference to 50 families. With my participation, we could make a difference to may be 500 families in the near future.