Collecting ideas for the future you | Rakhshanda Jalil | TEDxMirandaHouse
Rakhshanda Jalil, speaking at her former college at age 62, encourages students to find their voice through reading, knowledge acquisition, and remaining open to learning throughout life. She emphasizes the distinction between information and knowledge, advocates for interdisciplinary education without rushing through degrees, and shares how translation became her pathway to a writing career spanning 51 books.
Summary
Rakhshanda Jalil returns to Miranda House at age 62 to address students about finding one's voice and building a meaningful life. She begins by reflecting on her own college experience, including a memorable performance as Romeo in a college spoof, emphasizing how seemingly random experiences can become valuable later. Jalil stresses the importance of developing a 'magpie mind' that stores knowledge and experiences for future use. She makes a crucial distinction between fleeting information (like train timings) and enduring knowledge gained through reading, conversations, and curiosity. Jalil advocates strongly for extensive reading beyond social media, encouraging students to spend money on books and browse bookstores regularly. Regarding education, she recommends having a solid undergraduate degree in a core discipline but pursuing interdisciplinary approaches for higher education. Drawing from her own experience of completing her PhD 20 years after her master's degree, she argues against rushing through education back-to-back and suggests that taking breaks can be beneficial, like letting agricultural fields lie fallow. Jalil shares her career journey from teaching English to working in publishing, eventually finding her voice through translation from Urdu to English, which became a stepping stone to her writing career. She explains her role as a literary historian, someone who examines the intersection between literature and history, studying how literature represents historical events. Having written 51 non-fiction books, she reveals her pride in her 'unborn child' - her first novel written at age 62, currently seeking publication. This represents her willingness to try new genres despite having no prior fiction-writing experience.
Key Insights
- The human mind operates like a magpie, storing random experiences and knowledge that may become useful later in unexpected ways
- Knowledge gained through reading and conversations stands the test of time, while information like train timings is temporary and time-bound
- Taking a 20-year gap between master's and PhD can be beneficial, like letting agricultural fields lie fallow to gain strength before planting new crops
- Translation work can serve as a stepping stone to finding one's voice as a writer, particularly for those with proficiency in multiple languages
- Literary historians examine the intersection where literature and history meet, studying how literature represents major historical events like famines, partition, or wars
Topics
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