June 2025
To the one who fears the unknown,
in plain sight
yet hidden from you,
with all you want
and more than you knew,it lingers in silence
where comfort feels tight,
a whisper inside
says something’s not right.
Sometimes, that quiet whisper inside knows more than we give it credit for. This is a story of the first time I listened.
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It was 2014, eleven years ago as I write this. I was 500 kilometers from home. It was the national round of iKen Scientifica, a science competition I had spent months preparing for — outside of school — having cleared two rounds among hundreds of participants to get here.
What was at stake?
A week-long trip to Orlando.
The Kennedy Space Center.
NASA.
It was more than what an 11-year-old from Jaipur could’ve imagined at the time. But I had to win. And I was the youngest in the 11–14 age category.
The problem statements, announced on the spot, required us to build working models of two out of four described machines using the material provided — in two hours each — and present them to a jury. I vividly remember the problem book and the four machines: a tower crane, a solar flour mill, a water sprinkler, and an automatic drum beat machine.
They might sound equally challenging — or not — but here was the catch: the first three had all been part of the practice material we received when we started preparing. Any participant who had trained well would've built them already. So had I.
The jury judged us on the quality of the models and our presentations. It was a no-brainer to build what you’d already practiced. And so, everyone chose one of the three.
So did I.
I started with the model I was most confident about: the solar flour mill. I did great. I knew I was a strong contender for the ticket to NASA — so far.
It was lunch. We were allowed to speak again. Everyone kept their next model a secret — and everyone knew it was going to be one of the three. We had all seen each other’s first builds.
I kept it a secret too.
The secret?
I didn’t know.
Everyone else seemed sure of what they'd build next, so I pretended I was too. But I was lost. I had built those two other models before — and I knew I couldn’t build either within two hours.
The next round began. Two hours on the clock. I flipped through the pages of the problem book, trying to recall which one might take less time. None of them sparked anything.
Until I stopped at the drum machine again.
Unlike the other models, I hadn’t built it before. But this wasn’t my first time building something new. That’s what I had practiced all along — building something from scratch. Not building the same thing again.
And there it was. I knew I had the time I needed. I trusted my skill. The real no-brainer had been right in front of me for all this time — just invisible to my mind until then.
The next thing I knew, I was going to NASA. Even before the results were announced, I knew it was me. I was the only one who chose that model. The only one who built two beautifully working machines. And I presented with the kind of confidence only honesty brings.
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Life is like that competition.
It gives you choices — some familiar, others mysterious. And most of us, the average participants, take the familiar. But only the unknown leads to the ticket to NASA.
That day, I didn’t want to settle for the familiar — not when it came with unease. And in life too, we hear that same voice inside — a quiet discomfort when we’re forcing ourselves to choose something that doesn’t feel right.
Treat that discomfort as a signal. It’s not fear. It’s the call to change.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: Siddh, everyone says that. Step out of your comfort zone. But it doesn’t help, does it?
So, here’s something better. Not motivation — but a method.
Skills. Develop your skills.
The 11-year-old me chose the unknown not because he was brave, but because he knew he could. He had practiced building things he didn’t know before. He had trained himself to estimate what it takes to figure something out.
That practice gave him the confidence. That confidence gave him the edge.
So, learn. And when you're learning — only learn. Apply it to understand — not to expect results.
And when you're ready — go. Nail it.
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Back then, I didn’t know what I’d done. I thought NASA was the prize. But years later, with a little more wisdom, I saw that day for what it was: a moment where I chose the unknown, with everything at stake — and won.
don’t bury the weight
when ease turns to ache,
let that discomfort
be the sign you take.waiting for you,
is the unknown —
so, lead with skill,
and make it your own.
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From the other side of the leap,
Siddh