From The Corner Office to Remaking Interior Spaces

Ganesh Nair, also known as Rajesh among close circles, accomplished a feat that many midlifers might contemplate but are hesitant to pull off: vaulting from a reputed senior leadership position into the choppy terrain of a novitiate in a completely unrelated field. From being the Managing Director of a Pharma multinational to becoming a sought-after Interior Designer. This, when he was already 49 and had two school-going kids to financially support. How did Ganesh achieve this? Are there some broader lessons for those of us contemplating late-life shifts?

Stay Open to Expanding Your Horizons

Like most middle-class Indians who belonged to earlier generations,  as a young adult, Ganesh was not encouraged to think of where his passions lay. He recalls the cultural meme widely in circulation then and perhaps still persistent in many Indian families: wherein the most academic kids are shunted into Science, the middling bunch thrust into commerce, and only the ‘dorks’ licensed to wallow in the Arts.

Though Ganesh already demonstrated a remarkable proclivity for languages – he could read and write in six – this aspect was disregarded by all. After his B.Com, he recalls the manner in which he had no idea about what he really wanted to do. The impetus then was on snagging a job and earning an income.

An MBA seemed like a logical next step. In retrospect, if he could rewind and relive those years with a broader mindset, he might have pursued Architecture. After his MBA, he joined Cipla, a leading Indian pharma company, where he worked for six years. As one of the high performers in the organization, he was promoted every year.

One day, his father brought home an Executive Digest, which advertised programs in Global Business, of which The Thunderbird School of Global Management was marked out as one of the most reputed. In those days, computers were not yet ubiquitous, so he used a friend’s computer to check on the Thunderbird program, and accidentally clicked on a link that triggered an email inquiry.

In a few weeks, a brochure had landed at his Bangalore home, amplifying the appeal of the program. Tugged by an exploratory zeal, he applied after doing his GMAT and TOEFL and got accepted. It then dawned on him that perhaps it was not the right time to go. After all, he had just been recently married and it felt premature to leave his wife and head out to such an uncertain future. Yet, the draw of the unknown continued to beckon. Almost as if he were subconsciously letting destiny make the tough call, he organized to attend the visa interview only on the day he was scheduled to fly out.

While standing in the visa queue, he watched most applicants getting rejected. He was pretty certain he would get rejected too. Much to his shock and delight, he was granted a visa. He recalls that day as being one of the most joyful ever. He then made excited calls to his Mom and brother to fly out to Chennai to see him off at the airport.

Accept Fear and Ambivalence During Life Shifts

Even then his trajectory seemed uncertain. Because after landing in New York, he missed his connecting flight to Phoenix. By then, on the flight to the U.S., he had started missing his wife, Lavanya, and was somewhat remorseful about his decision. At the sprawling John F. Kennedy airport, where he wandered from counter to counter, trying to catch another connecting flight to his destination, he started feeling frazzled and despondent.

Besides, he had to drag his heavy luggage everywhere – lovingly packed by his wife and mother with a pressure cooker, a slew of Indian masalas, kilograms of dhal and rice. It was snowing outside and it wasn’t easy to navigate the impossibly large airport, shuttling from terminal to terminal through the punishing cold. He was also concerned that his I-20 was going to expire in a few hours and he wouldn’t make it to Phoenix on time.

At one of the terminals, he actually slunk down and said, “That’s it, I’m going back to India.” He started ruing the big mistake he had made, in applying to a foreign program and rashly leaving the solace of his family and country. Besides, he had just submitted his resignation to Cipla, so he was going to be jobless on his return. When he sought the Air India counter to book his return ticket, fate dealt him another twist. The staff at the counter had trooped out on a tea break, so there was no one to service his request.

Just then, he encountered some software engineers from India. Bolstered by their cheering presence, the next morning, he flew out to Phoenix. The first night, he slept on a friend’s couch, the second night on the floor, the third night on a couch, till he organized his own stay. In a few months, he had settled into the program. Moreover, his wife also joined him and soon amped up the couple’s social life by enrolling in the International Women’s Club. Ganesh himself was terribly busy during those years since he also had to handle a teaching assistantship and a library job to make ends meet.

Widen Your Multicultural Network

In the meanwhile, he completely reveled in his school’s coursework. Before his graduation, he had already landed a few jobs. Eventually, he joined Merck at its global headquarters in New Jersey. Till then, Merck did not really hire employees who were on foreign visas. But the team was so impressed with Ganesh after a six-hour interview, that they made an exception. In particular, he recalls an engrossing conversation with Robert Salt, who was then the Vice President of the Asia Pacific and other regions.

When Ganesh and Lavanya flew out of Phoenix to New York to report to his new job, they were greeted by an announcement to exit the terminal and await their transport. When they stepped out, somewhat disgruntled since their baggage was lost, they were stunned when a fifteen-foot Limousine arrived to pick them up. Lavanya asked, “Is this really for us?” Inside, they were treated to drinks on the house, in dim, romantic lighting, so they could overlook their missing baggage at least for a while. They were transported to the Merck House, which was situated in the midst of an idyllic golf course. “Everything felt so surreal,” recalls Ganesh. Till today, the couple cherishes the special treatment rolled out by the American company.

The next day, there was a massive snowstorm. Stranded inside their house, they were scrounging around without their bags. Besides, they hadn’t eaten anything for breakfast or lunch. By that evening, grubby and desperate, Ganesh knocked on his neighbor’s door. Eric was 6 feet 5 inches tall. Ganesh hadn’t shaved even and his lips were chapped. He told Eric that he and his wife didn’t have any stuff on them and that they were feeling really hungry. Eric shut the door and Ganesh did not know what he should be doing next. But before he knew it, Eric had opened the door again, with two hefty bags in his hands, filled with all kinds of essentials and lots of food. He had also thoughtfully included a chapstick. The next day, Eric dropped Ganesh at his office and he was to become a long-term friend of the couple.

What they remember most about their six years in the U.S., was that they came across many generous and helpful people like Eric. Eventually, they forged friendships with people from many nations.

Leverage Inflection Points for Introspection

After six years, Ganesh returned to India to set up Merck. Later, he moved to the British-Swedish multinational, Astra Zeneca. His last leadership job was with the German firm, Beiersdorf – a company whose well-known consumer brands include Nivea and Handiplast. At Beiersdorf, Ganesh was responsible for six SAARC countries. Since that entity was bought out by Essity, and since he had invested in the global shares of Beiersdorf, he made a sizeable sum by selling his shares. Since he couldn’t stay with the new company after the buyout, he was at a crossroads. Fortunately for him, his finances were in good shape, so he could afford to take some risks.

It was also an opportunity for introspection. He describes 2017 as being an inflection point in his career: “between what happened in my career and what I actually wanted.” Till then, on a personal front, he had always taken great pains to design each of their homes. He had also received accolades from friends and casual visitors, “Wow! How did you do this?” Plumbing his own passion was not as difficult as it might be for others. He already felt very drawn to Interior Design.

Since he was already in his late 40s, he knew he needed to make the leap right away. Unwilling to rely solely on his aptitude, he was determined to educate himself formally.

Embark on Late-Life Learning

At first, he did a six-month course on Furniture design at the New York-based Pratt Institute. Soon after, he enrolled in a Master’s in Interior Design at the highly-regarded Florence Design Academy. Though he entered the program when he was 49, and the average age of students was 25, he relished every aspect of his back-to-school stretch.

It certainly helped that Florence was one of the epicenters of the Italian Renaissance. Though the Medicis and their virtuosos might have been long dead, the city exuded an artistic vibe as one of the fashion and design capitals of the world. The course helped structure his thinking on various aspects of Interior Design – for instance, the play of light or the alchemy of color. When he returned to India, armed with zesty ideas, he encountered Sameepan Thomas, the owner of an architectural design firm and property developer. Since Sameep and Ganesh seemed to share an aesthetic rapport, they worked together on three projects. All three projects were featured in the Architectural Digest India – a mark of distinction that is usually won after many years in the field.

Ganesh then remodeled an apartment in Mumbai, which was visited by over 300 people. Incredibly enough, he had managed to make a 900-square-feet apartment seem like 2000 square feet. That particular design, more challenging because of its cramped space, went viral. Friends and neighbors started calling in. By April 2022, just a couple of years after his return from Florence, he has been compelled to refuse new client bookings, because he is already too occupied. He had been planning to handle about two or three projects a year, but he is currently jostling five ongoing commitments with six more on the waitlist. He says his time has already been blocked till 2023.

Moreover, at least eight projects have been featured in the Architectural Digest. He has also won many awards, including the “Most prominent designer” awarded by the Architects and Interior Designers’ Association of India. He won the Best Design Award granted by the prestigious Houzz platform.

Sell Your Design Vision

Ganesh observes that some design students are brilliant at design, but not very savvy when it comes to selling their ideas or convincing clients. “You have to make them visualize what’s going to happen.” This is where Ganesh’s previous corporate experience helps. He begins with understanding the style preferences of the client. Whether they favor Contemporary, European, Japanese, Ethnic, Minimalist or other interior styles. He then expends effort in transmitting his vision to clients, a step that many designers fatefully skip.

His knowledge of five Indian languages and English help at this stage. After all, clients are more likely to trust someone who can speak their language fluently.

Retain Your Creative Singularity

Conscious about shielding his artistic integrity, Ganesh does not buckle to all client demands. When he first considers a project, he spends significant time inside the proposed space: at least half a day, peering into every nook and corner. The three-dimensional place then unfurls inside his mind like a blank canvas, filled with rectangles. Everything is tractable, including walls, doors, and windows, many of which might be knocked down or reimagined inside his head. He can almost visualize what the future space can look like – after integrating colors, textures, and patterns into a fluid form in one visual field.

During the execution of a project, he is bound to have some creative differences with clients. But he really puts his heart and soul into every project. He is careful to avoid a cookie-cutter approach. He improvises a lot: “You will never see me repeating any element.”

Be Willing to Inhabit Discomfort

In his new job, Ganesh cannot dwell inside the plush, air-conditioned interiors of a Managing Director’s cabin. Having grown up in a middle-class Indian family, he contends easily with the physical discomfort that the new field entails: riding in buses, working in dusty environs, eating in fly-infested dhabas, chatting with workers and drinking chai inside sooty project sites.

Advice to Transitioners

To other Indian mid-lifers seeking a change, Ganesh suggests they ask themselves the following three questions:

a)   Do you have another skill that you can commercialize?

b)   Do you have enough funds that can help tide you over an interim period, before your alternate career takes off?

c)    Do you really have something that differentiates you from the crowd in your new field?

References

https://www.whitespacedesigns.org/