The Question That Changes Everything
A short creative non-fiction from Quiet Clarity
I was delivering a seminar on entrepreneurship once in an average-rated college when a young man stood up and said,
“Entrepreneurship is for students belonging to good colleges.”
I wanted to respond with examples of countless entrepreneurs who had either dropped out or graduated from mediocre institutions and still built successful ventures.
But his tone and expression told me something.
He had already decided.
On another day, a friend of mine who had started a bicycle startup said,
“Entrepreneurship is for people who have money, connections, or access to both.”
This friend was a graduate from one of the top engineering colleges in the state.
I didn’t agree, of course. I had seen too many entrepreneurs succeed without either.
Then I read the story of Nick Vujicic — and it shifted something in me.
When Nick was born, the doctors were shocked.
He had no arms.
No legs.
Just a small foot-like limb.
He was bullied in school. He questioned his existence. As a teenager, he even attempted to end his life.
If anyone had a reason to focus on what they didn’t have, it was him.
He didn’t have:
Hands to hold things.
Legs to walk.
The body the world calls “normal.”
For years, he asked the same question many of us ask — in smaller ways:
“Why don’t I have what others have?”
But something shifted.
Instead of staring at what was missing, he began exploring what remained.
He had a voice.
He had a mind.
He had humour.
He had empathy.
So he started speaking.
First in small groups.
Then in schools.
Then on stages.
Today, he has spoken to millions across the world. He runs organisations. He is married. He has children.
The world saw what he lacked.
He chose to use what he had.
Most of us are not born without limbs.
But we walk around saying:
“I don’t have enough money.”
“I don’t have enough education.”
“I don’t have the right background.”
“I don’t have connections.”
We keep staring at the missing pieces.
And in doing so, we ignore the strengths already in our hands.
Nick’s limitation was visible.
Ours are invisible — but just as powerful.
The difference wasn’t his body.
It was his focus.
He stopped asking,
“What don’t I have?”
And started asking,
“What can I do with what I have?”
Sure, the world is not always fair.
But no one has everything.
So instead of complaining about what you lack, ask yourself:
What do I already have?
Because you don’t need more.
You need to use what you already have.
P.S.- Short story from upcoming non-fiction book “Quiet Clarity”
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