A jobless man applied for the position of office boy at Microsoft. The HR manager interviewed him then watched him cleaning the floor as a test. 

“You are employed.” He said. “Give me your e-mail address and I’ll send you the application to fill in, as well as the date when you may start.” 

The man replied, “But I don’t have a computer, neither an email.”

“I’m sorry”, said the HR manager, “If you don’t have an email, that means you do not exist. And who doesn’t exist, cannot have the job.” 

The man left with no hope at all. He didn’t know what to do, with only $10 in his pocket. During that season, tomatoes were in great demand. So, he thought of doing some business with it. He then went to the supermarket and bought a 10 kg tomato crate. He sold the tomatoes door to door. In less than 2-3 hours, he succeeded to double his capital. 

He repeated the operation three times, and returned home with $60.

The man realized that he can survive this way and started to go everyday early and return late. Thus, his money doubled or tripled every day. Shortly, he bought a cart, then a truck and then he had his own fleet of delivery vehicles. 

Fifteen years later, the man is one of the biggest food retailers in the US.

He started to plan his family’s future, and decided to have life insurance. He called an insurance broker, and chose a protection plan. When the conversation was concluded, the broker asked him for his email. 

The man replied, “I don’t have an email.” 

The broker answered curiously, “You don’t have an email, and yet have succeeded to build an empire. Can you imagine what you could have been if you had an email?!!” 

The man thought for a while and replied, “Yes, I’d have been an office boy at Microsoft!”

Lesson:

First and foremost what we need to understand is that when an opportunity doesn’t come our way, we should not be disheartened. When one door closes another opens, provided we have an open mind and a positive attitude to grab it. Moreover, as regards career is concerned, it is not necessary that after school or college everybody has take to the same beaten path. Nowadays there are plenty of non-traditional, innovative options available to build one’s career.

Secondly, the internet is not the solution to all our life’s problems. The Internet is of great help in many ways, no doubt, but it is not absolutely necessary to do well in life and be successful. Moreover, our obsession with being connected with the world all the time through email, sms, mms, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, twitter, cell phone, etc., takes away a lot from our personal, family, social and professional life. People have, in a way, started living more in the virtual world, in cyber space rather than the real world. 

There are many people around the world who are not computer literate and yet are doing well and successful. Even if we don’t have the internet, if we work hard, we can still do well and be successful. 

Example: Warren Buffet never invested in any internet or IT business nor does he have a laptop on his desk or at home, but he is still one of the most respected and highly successful billionaire entrepreneurs in the world.