MANAGEMENT MANTRA

“Decide To Succeed”: Nitin Mittal, Mentor,Shanti Devi Mittal Foundation

Nitin Mittal is one of the leading charted accountants (CA) in the country. Nitin Mittal & Co, his CA firm based out of New Delhi, has been in the business of accounting and auditing for over two decades. Beyond accounts and audits, Mr Mittal, who is also a law and management graduate, is passionate about serving the underprivileged sections of society. An active FreeMason, Mr Mittal has been engaged in a number of social service activities.

The mentor of New Delhi-based Shanti Devi Mittal Foundation – a non-governmental organisation (NGO) engaged in upliftment of the underprivileged – Mr Mittal has been instrumental in identifying the goals of the foundation and ensuring their completion. He is extensively involved in fund-raising activities and manages the social media as well as all accounting and legal activities of the NGO. The foundation is primarily engaged in imparting various skills to children of poor and weaker sections of society.

Interestingly, Mr Mittal’s NGO began with an initiative, Hope Special School, in two rented rooms, catering to special children with autism and other disorders. “It was very emotional and difficult to deal with such children, educate their parents and raise funds for the NGO,” recalls Mr Mittal. With hard work and support of well-wishers, Mr Mittal was able to set up a full-fledged, free skills centre, imparting skills in stitching, beauty industry and computers. Every year, around 350 people are benefited from these courses. Besides, free coaching is imparted for boys and girls from grade III to grade VII. “I get special satisfaction when I meet these people at our centre on their passing out and convocation and on hearing their success stories,” reveals Mr Mittal. 

Mr Miital and his foundation were actively in involved in serving the society during the recent lockdowns, triggered by COVID-19 pandemic. He took various initiatives through the foundation and distributed clothes, masks and sanitisers, conducted public-awareness campaigns about the viral epidemic and undertook many employment-generation initiatives to help the affected people.

In a refreshing conversation with Sharmila Chand, Mr Mittal outlines his management principles and practices that drive him to excel in his business as well as in charity.

Your five management mantras...

Be yourself; Everyone is dispensable, including you; Don’t let others take your goodness as your weakness; Manage things, and lead people; Be quick to praise, but slow to reprimand; Praise in public, but reprimand in private.

A game that helps your career...
I seldom play badminton but practise Yoga and meditation daily for the last several years. It keeps me energetic, eases anxiety and stress, improve thoughts and working. It makes me strong from both mind and body. The main lesson learnt from any game is to participate, keep on trying and you will succeed.

Secret of your success...

Keep on learning, be self-disciplined, try a lot of different things before you decide, speak your mind and be honest and candid.

Your philosophy of work...

As Lord Krishna says in the Gita: Focus on work and not on results. Try your best each and every day without being afraid of the outcome.

A person who has inspired you...

Dr A P J Abdul Kalam inspires me. He is the missile man of India, a true patriot who had ambition to make India a superpower. Even after he became the president of India, he led a simple life and is regarded as the people’s president. He had always personally encouraged the youth of our country to be hardworking and to use their talents for the nation. In one of his speeches he said: “Dreams are not what you see while sleeping, dreams are what you see while awake.”

Best advice you got...

When you know better, do better

Your sounding board...

My wife, Rajni Mittal, with whom I discuss problems or ideas and also possible solutions to the problems

Your favourite book

I like Chetan Bhagat’s non-fiction books which are stress-busters.

Your fitness regime...

As I mentioned earlier, I practise Yoga and meditation daily and try for an evening stroll. As we are sitting almost throughout the day, my yoga instructor advises different asanas (positions) to improve general body posture, well-being, stamina and provide exercise for internal organs.

Your five business mantras...

Decide to succeed: Dr Kalam used to say that dreams are what you see while awake. Success comes to those who dare to dream, who pursue or chase their dreams and who truly want to succeed. It does not come knocking on the doors of people who only wait for things to happen on their own. There is no success spell. So, if you want it, go, and get it.

Be bold: Success does not come easily. Life throws various challenges which need to be fought hard. You might fail numerous times to achieve your ambition. The success ratio of a lion to hunt is only 25 per cent, but he does not stop trying. Never let failure be an end as there is always light at the end of every tunnel.

The push-pull theory: One of the unique ways to grow fast in any organisation is to force your superior or the manager to grow. Once the manager is promoted, he can translate into your promotion if you are next in line. A manager can thus pull you up rather than employing a new candidate. If we restrict someone’s success in our group, it only creates frictions within the team members.

Work hard and party harder: You are not a machine. So, work hard, but party harder. Only work and no fun will make your life dull and stressful. Give yourself a weekend break. Open up, go out, indulge in adventure, and go for a drive, a dinner or a drink with friends. Relax and rejuvenate. A healthy body and mind will always reap superior results.

Competitor analysis: Know your rivals and competitors, study and analyse their business, techniques and help your company counter them. Once you help company to increase revenue and profits, you also get suitably rewarded with a promotion or a bonus.

Be passionate about your profession, love what you do, and do what you love. Always believe in yourself that you are the best, and then make sure, you are!

Your message on management to youngsters...

Be Yourself. This is your opportunity. Make sure your voices are heard.

 

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