The bright side of failure

Here's sharing a special story with you.

Caution: This is not an AI-generated article. I hope the next few minutes you will spend reading are worth your time, because it was certainly worth mine writing about why experimenting matters and often stumbling along the way leads to the most unique and valuable outcomes, whether it is in public or personal relations.

Thomas Edison once said, “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.” (I asked AI to suggest the quote I was looking for).

Little did I know that the quote would become a defining statement of my life.

About a few million followers online know me from back in 2020, being on and off camera, running the social media scenes of the largest particle physics laboratory in the world, CERN. From starting as an intern, finding my feet in journalism in a foreign land, to being trusted with hosting live interactions with scientists from one of the most renowned scientific institutions—perhaps, these chances arrived because I made my own lane. The journey to reach these moments is the one I find to be most proud of, sometimes even more than the milestones themselves (although the milestones make the journey more memorable).

Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity

Often, the task of branding or speaking of oneself is the one I found the most daunting. It stemmed from somewhat conflicting notions of upbringing from my parents, one who taught me to always be humble, and the other to be fiercely determined. However, I had to overcome this hesitance and shyness to share one’s accolades much earlier in life to grab opportunities.

One such moment in my life was applying for an education loan in India at the age of 17. After a short stint in trying fashion designing, I was captivated by the American dream in budget, the German dream. Intrigued by the renowned automotive sector in Germany and growing land of opportunities, I switched gears from fashion design to mechanical design and secured a position in Mechanical Engineering at a public university of applied sciences in Germany. While the German dream entailed tuition-free access to world-class education even for international students (with an exception of private universities, and public and private ones in the state of Baden-Württemberg), the cost of living as a student abroad was still very high for an Indian student from a middle-class family. For others, it was the cost of an expensive Indian wedding.

At the time, I had heard the possibility of an education loan in India, so I prepared my files and visited every public bank possible in the vicinity. After two leading banks clearly stating that their education loans are mostly only for graduates from the Indian Institute of Technology (IITs), I was dismissed despite excellent marksheets and extracurricular activities. The last bank I visited that day agreed to give me a meeting with the branch manager of the bank.

A lady of my mother’s age, sitting in her office in a bright yellow sari. She introduced herself as the branch manager and asked about my parents’ background and my dedication towards my studies.

It was the moment of escaping my fears, sharing my achievements, but also–motivation.

I mentioned the gender and profile of the branch manager in this case, because I visited the banks with my mother, and most times we weren’t taken seriously without the man of the family. In a world where systemic bias still strongly exists, magic can happen when women support women, and people in power uplift those around them.

My first international flight was at the age of 18, from New Delhi to Düsseldorf, via Moscow. You can tell times have changed as that air route is not possible to avail anymore.

After only a few months into my studies in mechanical engineering at FH Aachen in Germany, I had a revelation hard to accept, but I knew it would serve me well in the long run.

I decided mechanical engineering wasn’t meant for me. So, I again switched my gears to my true passion in storytelling and communications with an interdisciplinary course offered in another university in Kleve, Germany, in Science Communication and Bionics.

After finding out about the change in universities, my bank called me asking, “Weren’t you a student of RWTH Aachen?”

The education loan in the bank was listed only for about 200 universities in the world, including RWTH Aachen—mistaken for FH Aachen in my case (which led me to securing the loan).

The loan continued as I was already paying my instalments back.

My lesson? Luck only favours the prepared.

Choosing Your Lane: Niche Specialisation or Casting a Wider Net?

(I edited an AI-suggested subheading)

From being one of four girls in the class of 100 in engineering, I entered a class of a total of 20 students specialising in science communication and Bionics. I had never been happier, feeling challenged in a field I was keen about and enjoyed exploring.

From learning about moments in history with the importance of science communication, such as the mad cow disease saga in the UK and complexities that surround public communication (the coronavirus pandemic also presented similar challenges), to facilitating dialogue and Responsible Research and innovation (RRI), to practical skills in writing and innovation journalism, specialising in something I care for, made me better in my craft.

A key advantage of choosing a field of my passion was, my hobbies became my portfolio. As an international student in Europe, I observed events around me differently, and penned my take on Little Things That Matter about social causes with a twist, like feminism for men, talking about White Privilege during the Black Lives Matter movement, to the littlest differences in society such as the gesture of being offered free drinking water before food in Indian restaurants, which I dearly missed in Germany. I always found it odd to ask for tap water, and slowly developed a taste for sparkling water.

Soon entering the work sphere with an internship at Germany’s leading international public broadcaster, I realised that I wasn’t specialised enough–and that wasn’t a bad thing!

I was assigned to report on global environmental stories and wrote several articles. Soon, my supervisor noticed my flair in digital journalism, and I was also given the responsibility to manage and produce content for the up-and-coming Instagram at the time and other social networks. We started producing digital stories, where visuals and graphics remained a key focus, and the style of writing was adapted for stories with pictures. In fact, such news ‘galleries’ were enjoyed by both social media readers as well as those reading on the online website. Stories in pictures, whether political, sports, or educational, are something I have not seen much in newspapers (which still remain the most sold news medium among Indian readers) or print magazines, probably because it takes more space per page. Though given the declining reading span and the rising need to quantify, fact-check and visualise representative data, storytelling through pictures could be a very compelling way to attract viewership.

While writing remained my first love, experimenting with digital media and becoming good at it gave me a unique sense of confidence–and it kept things fun. It also enhanced my writing as I was more aware of the digital trends like the importance of one-liner straps for online recommendations, SEOs, and metadata description for searchability. Today, AI has become a crucial tool, though the knowledge of ‘what to ask’ and your creative ideas remains irreplaceable.

·✶·

I learned about the prestigious network of the World Communications Forum Association (WCFA) much later (better late than never), after the success of the global campaign for the 70th anniversary of CERN. It led to both an award for CERN behind the CERN70 campaign as the Best In-House Team of the Year and a personal recognition of my work in science communication over the years across India and Europe as the PR Rising Star in 2025.

While the awards night in Davos was one of the memorable events for me (I almost missed the announcement while being lost on my way back from the restroom to the awards ceremony room of the hotel), I look back and cherish the hard times and figuring out ways to overcome them, that have, in turn, shaped my work and perspective in global communications.

My detours from changing study disciplines, to working in international media, to a prestigious research institution like CERN, to, at present, leading marketing at a French tech startup charging the next generation of energy infrastructure, each shift happened with a search for growth, fulfilment and financial security. But times where there was no financial (and emotional) security, it was crucial to not let it become the driving force behind decisions, but also value motives with lasting impact, such as passion, interest, and competence.

I hope this year encourages you to identify and reflect on the bright side of failure and setbacks in your endeavours, transforming them into a stepping stone to great success and contentment.

This article was originally published for the World Communications Forum Association.