The speaker shares a personal journey that encompasses childhood dreams, experiences in Japan, and the development of a meaningful career. The tale begins with a traditional upbringing in India, where educational aspirations clashed with familial expectations. After moving to Japan, the speaker faced cultural and geographical challenges, ultimately leading to the decision to establish a school to cater to the international community.

The story progresses as the speaker successfully launches the American School in Kofu, Japan, dedicating immense effort to its establishment. Beyond educational efforts, the speaker embraces Japanese culture through the Temari art and launches a jewelry brand inspired by a family legacy. This ongoing journey of entrepreneurship and cultural integration showcases the use of personal experiences to create value and meaning in life.

Main takeaways from the video:

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Key Vocabularies and Common Phrases:

1. realization [ˌriːələˈzeɪʃən] - (noun) - The act of becoming fully aware or understanding something. - Synonyms: (awareness, understanding, recognition)

And most important, a realization that life's essence is to create meaning and not just to find it.

2. naive [naɪˈiːv] - (adjective) - Having a lack of experience or sophistication, often resulting in an overly innocent or simple perspective. - Synonyms: (innocent, unsophisticated, inexperienced)

I was so naive that I didn't even know the difference between a duvet, a mattress, or a comforter.

3. prospectus [prəˈspek.təs] - (noun) - A printed document that advertises or describes a school, commercial enterprise, or investment opportunity to attract or inform clients or investors. - Synonyms: (brochure, catalog, booklet)

Remodeling, restructuring, recruiting, being the project manager, doing all the prospectus, insurance, legal work, everything.

4. epiphany [ɪˈpɪf.ə.ni] - (noun) - A moment of sudden revelation or insight. - Synonyms: (insight, revelation, realization)

I had an epiphany. Not the one which we all get that, okay? I realized quantum physics or something like that, but close.

5. restructuring [ˌriːˈstrʌk.tʃər.ɪŋ] - (noun) - The act of organizing something (like a business or system) differently to improve its function or efficiency. - Synonyms: (reorganization, realignment, reconstitution)

But that school really needed a lot of restructuring and remodeling.

6. burnout [ˈbɜːr.naʊt] - (noun) - A state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress or overwork. - Synonyms: (exhaustion, fatigue, weariness)

Because, you know, these little things, they go a long way.

7. faculties [ˈfæ kəl.tiz] - (noun) - Departments or groups of teachers in educational institutions, or mental capabilities. - Synonyms: (staff, instructors, professors)

But at the same time, I was lucky that I got a good number of faculty for myself who could also help me.

8. entrepreneurship [ˌɑːn.trə.prəˈnɜːr.ʃɪp] - (noun) - The activity of setting up a business or businesses, taking on financial risks in the hope of profit. - Synonyms: (business, startups, enterprise)

This ongoing journey of entrepreneurship and cultural integration showcases the use of personal experiences to create value and meaning in life.

9. ferocity [fəˈrɒs.ə.ti] - (noun) - The state or quality of being ferocious or intensely forceful. - Synonyms: (intensity, fierceness, aggression)

If you feel that you have the ferocity to fly like a child, then fly.

10. inception [ɪnˈsep.ʃən] - (noun) - The beginning, start, or commencement of something. - Synonyms: (origin, outset, initiation)

It has been 20 years since the inception of the school, and I am so proud to say that it is going on strong and helping so many families.

From Childhood Dreams to Creative Realizations - Shanu Agarwal - TEDxYouth@GIISTokyo

Today, I'm here to talk about my journey. A tale that talks about childhood, dreams, cultural shift, and unexpected ventures that I have gone through. And most important, a realization that life's essence is to create meaning and not just to find it. As the quote goes by James Clear, the secret is not to find the meaning of life, but to use your life to make things that are meaningful.

Now let's rewind and go back to my childhood. I'm not talking about iPads or iPhones or Mario Kart or Minecraft. My childhood was a completely different story. Imagine there's a couch there with cushions on it, and I'm standing in front of that couch and trying to teach those cushions geography. I had a chalk in my hand, and I remember making maps on each and every wooden furniture that we had in our living room. Little did I know that the maps that I made on these furniture were the seeds for my future endeavors, for my future ventures.

I come from a traditional family. My parents, they really believe in giving education to their children. But at the same time, they felt that the daughters should get married at a specific time. And they made sure that they taught me cooking. And also they also taught me that I have to take care of my family. So for them, there was a timeline that I had to get married to. So at the age of 22, after finishing my graduation, I came to Japan.

Now, moving to Japan was a completely different story at all. It wasn't just the language. It was the little things that mattered, actually, because I had never gone abroad. I had never lived outside India. I was so naive that I didn't even know the difference between a duvet, a mattress, or a comforter. I couldn't open a milk carton because we didn't have tetra packs back then. You know, in India, we didn't have that. And the funniest part was we had these sensory doors, these automatic doors, and whenever I would pass by, they would open and they would close on its own. And I was so happy to be around them because I felt that I'm in a Star Trek spaceship.

You know, these little things that happened to me, if I look back, they look very funny, and I smile on it. And these challenges that I went through at that point of time were the things that I remember now. Time passed, and I was blessed with two kids. And as the sun was growing, me and my husband, we realized that there are no international schools or any educational place for English in a place called Kofu, where I got married to.

Now, Kofu is a place which is northwest from Tokyo, around 120 km. And that's where we were living. And there were no educational institutions. So as a couple, we decided to move to Tokyo. Thankfully, my kids got admission in a good, reputable school. But the relocation and the whole disconnect that our family had to go through was a lot, because my husband still had to commute between Tokyo and Kofu every day, 120 kilometers back and forth.

The thought started coming to my mind that it's been. It's not just me. I'm sure there are many families that must have gone through that before, and I don't know how many families that will be going through later. So the thought came to me that I should open a school. But how do I open a school? I couldn't even open a tetra pack. I couldn't even open a milk carton. How do I open up? How do I start a school?

But you know what? That's what I was taught. Where there is a will, there is a way. And I came across a couple of teachers who were there. I could hire them. And the feeling that I had that I had to do something for the community was more than anything else, because I really wanted to find a resolve for the people living there in the community, for the families living there in the community.

Thankfully, I could secure a space which had potential, which could be turned into a school. But that school really needed a lot of restructuring and remodeling. I took it upon myself and I started working day and night. Normally, people say that it's 24 hours and we work for 24 hours, but I started working 74 hours. You would wonder, how can you do that? But I took upon myself to work back and forth every day.

Remodeling, restructuring, recruiting, being the project manager, doing all the prospectus, insurance, legal work, everything. Everything on me. I tried to wear different hats, being my student, being thinking that I'm a student, my pat. But at the same time, I was lucky that I got a good number of faculty for myself who could also help me. And in a few years, in a few months, I was ready to launch my school, American School in Kofu.

The first enrollment that I had is something I can't explain. The happiness that it gave me is so nostalgic, and I really cherish it throughout my life. It has been 20 years since the inception of the school, and I am so proud to say that it is going on strong and helping so many families back in Kofu to stay connected and stay united.

That's where when I feel that as a kid, when I used to draw all these maps and teach these cushions geography, I feel that it all ended up well, that I could have my own school and giving the right education that the children needed. As days passed, as years passed, new chapters and new things started unfolding in my life.

I came on board with Women's association, which is an NGO, and it helps the girl child. And I was lucky enough to be a part on the board over there. I bumped into an art called Temari. A Temari is something. It's a Japanese art. And this is something which many years, many years ago, women would do it and they used it as rattles to give it to the newborn.

But these days, it is used as decorative pieces and giving gifts to each other. It's been seven years since I've been making Tamari Ball. And I'm so happy and proud to be the master of this art and actually spread it. Also by teaching it, by doing this art, it brought the. It helped me with the creativity void that I had in me. And the reason I'm bringing it up is because these days, all of us are so busy with our own work.

We are just so busy with running around trying to juggle the pink of the hats that we all wear. We all need something like this, a creativity thing or a hobby that we could do to keep our sanity on. Because, you know, these little things, they go a long way.

Many years passed, and then I still had to. I had a feeling that I need to do more. I had the hunger to do more. Just this school and Temari were not enough for me. So I come just to give you one more background of myself is I come from a jewelry background. My father, from my childhood. I've always seen my father make these beautiful, creative jewelry, fine jewelry.

And I got a chance to work with him while I was doing my graduation and also to design for my father at the same time. So I actually started thinking that why not do something? Why not, you know, create something of my own? But then pandemic happened and we all became hermits and we were all glued to our seats in front of the screens. And I started realizing, what do I do? I need to do something.

So I had an epiphany. Not the one which we all get that, okay? I realized quantum physics or something like that, but close. I thought that I want to create my own brand. But then how do I create my brand? Again, the same thing. Where do I start? How do I start? So I thought that why not study? Because I didn't know anything about branding or marketing. I just knew as much as my dog knew about dieting. So I thought I should input myself into a course from a very prestigious university in us I actually enrolled myself and it was that prestigious that even my wife had dominated by that university.

But anyways, I completed my brand, my branding course, and the marketing course. And while I was doing it, I realized that I had dived into the hashtags, the SEOs and all the algorithms, which was completely alien to me. But I was trying to learn all that language. But I started missing just having a cup of tea on a Sunday morning and doing my suboctor, solving my suboco puzzle.

But at the same time, with the encouragement of my husband and the complete advice of my father, I thought of starting my jewelry brand. My father used to always say that whatever pieces that you make, they should always be from your heart. Something which will not just catch the eye, but it should be original. Something which people will feel that connects you, which are you. And that gave me a sense of understanding. And that's what I did.

I embarked into a journey of creating those designs which are original, which are authentic. And I'm so happy to hear the response that I've got from the community. And the reason I say that is because I always believe that the community was there with me because they believed in me, because they have faith in me, and because they trust me.

To sum it up, I would just say this, is that be original and be authentic. I feel that if you believe in yourself, the world will believe in you. If you trust yourself, the world will trust you. If you respect yourself, the world will respect you. If you feel that you have the ferocity to fly like a child, then fly. Maybe the world will not trust you or they will not believe you, but you yourself can have your own game and be the hero, the superhero of your own life story. And as for me, I believe that the best is yet to come. Thank you.

EDUCATION, ENTREPRENEURSHIP, INSPIRATION, CULTURAL SHIFT, COMMUNITY SUPPORT, PERSONAL JOURNEY, TEDX TALKS