By: John Derric
The wealthiest man in Asia claims that while formal schooling quickly broadens one's knowledge, early experiences made him wise.
At the age of 16, he left school and travelled to Mumbai by rail to try his luck. Three years later, he made his first kill—a commission of Rs 10,000—by dealing diamonds with a Japanese customer.
Gautam Adani, who is currently the richest person in Asia, started his entrepreneurial path at that point.
Though early experiences made him knowledgeable, he regrets not going to college because formal education quickly broadens one's knowledge, he claims.
His father's involvement in what are now known as "forward trades" gave him the early learning, and the dry and difficult living conditions of Gujarat's Banaskantha formed his social behaviour.
Adani relocated to Ahmedabad after leaving Banaskantha, where he spent four years finishing his secondary school.
When he decided to forgo his education and travel to Mumbai, he was just 16 years old, he said.
The topic of why I moved to Mumbai and chose not to work alongside my family is one I frequently am asked in this context.
A teenage boy's optimism and drive for independence are difficult to manage, as many of the children in the crowd would agree.