India can create jobs through ideas and enterprise: Narayana Murthy

New Delhi: India can create jobs through ideas and enterprise, which is the only way for the country to become a developed nation in the future, Infosys founder N.R. Narayana Murthy said. He was speaking on “Ethical Leadership, Transformative Growth & Technology – The Infosys Story & the Future of India” at the 17th Anniversary and University Day of O.P. Jindal Global University.

Murthy told students that family values, peers and the social environment shape an individual's approach to life and work. Hard work, honesty, respect and integrity, he said, should come before personal gain.

“It is important to note that everything we do in our lives is the result of the culture instilled in us through family values, peers and our environment as hard work, honesty, respect and integrity must come before personal gain,” he said.

“The softest pillow is a clear conscience,” Murthy told the young audience, stressing that doing the right thing becomes simple when it is set as a personal benchmark.

Recalling his early days, Murthy said he was brought up in a value system that taught him that earning the respect of society was one of the most satisfying outcomes of an entrepreneurial journey.

He also spoke about failure, recalling that his first company did not succeed before he went on to establish Infosys.

“Failure is like a series of steps towards success,” he said. Learning from failures and avoiding the same mistakes can help people overcome setbacks, he added.

Murthy urged students not to let failure lead to inaction. Scientists and researchers, he said, do not give up when they fail to get results but introspect, learn and try again.

“You need to think rationally with concentration and then succeed,” he told the students.