Three Years, & Counting

When you look at an organization three years in — the offices, the teams, the numbers, the systems — it is easy to see the success. Very few people see the story behind it.

Learning Saint did not begin with a big office. It did not begin with crores in revenue, dozens of companies or sophisticated systems. It began with an idea — and that idea belonged to our Founder, Mr. Abhishek Sharma: to me, a mentor, an elder brother and, as I often say, a brother from another mother.

01Where it began

Before Learning Saint existed, Abhishek sir was my manager. One day he began talking about building something of his own — something meaningful, something that could grow, something that could become much bigger than the people discussing it in that office.

I had the privilege of being one of the first people he discussed that dream with. We talked through the name, the logo, what the company should look like and what it should stand for. I worked on the first website, met developers and discussed implementation. At that point there was no Learning Saint you could point to — only an idea, and the belief that we could make it real.

Family circumstances took me away from that journey for a while, and others carried the company through its first year. They deserve that recognition.

02The rebuild

I came back at Learning Saint’s first anniversary — this time not as someone discussing an idea, but as Business Development Manager. The situation was not easy. There were no stable loan partners. Much of what had existed before was gone. Some months, the numbers were close to zero. In many ways, we had to build again.

When you live a journey every day, you don’t notice how far you have travelled. Put those two moments side by side and you understand what three years actually created.

03The cost no one saw

Numbers don’t tell you what it cost to get there. There were days we sat together and discussed whether we would have to reduce the workforce simply to survive — days when there was not enough to comfortably meet payroll.

What I witnessed then, I will never forget. When the company needed money, the answer was never “salaries will have to wait.” Instead, the Founder put his own financial security on the line so that every obligation to our people was met. From the employee’s side, a company can look like a logo, an office and a salary credited every month. Behind that salary, there can be a story you never see.

“My people need to be paid first.” I saw that decision being made — and it is why my relationship with this company goes far beyond a designation.

04Responsibility, and an ecosystem

In December 2025 I was given the responsibility of Managing Director. For me it was not a promotion; it was responsibility — the company I had once discussed as an idea was now something I was accountable for protecting and growing.

One thought has stayed with me ever since: we can never allow Learning Saint to become dependent on one opportunity. In the U.S. business, partners come and go; financial products, markets and compliance requirements change. So we built systems where losing one opportunity would never mean losing the company — where, if one major financing option disappeared, our salespeople would still have another way to keep moving.

Then we started thinking bigger. If one company can face challenges, why depend on one company? That thinking became Abhishek Internationals — an ecosystem of more than 25 companies serving the United States, and still growing.

Never build yourself in a way where one failure can finish you. If five things fail, there should be another twenty standing. If one door closes, we don’t stand outside complaining — we build another door.

05A promise for what comes next

I will not promise that everything will always be perfect. Partners will leave. Plans will fail. We will make mistakes, and there will be difficult months. That is business. But we can promise this: we will never again allow ourselves to become so vulnerable that a single setback makes us question whether salaries can be paid.

That is what growth means to me. Not just making more money — becoming stronger.

06Use what was built for you

Many processes are easier today. There are systems, opportunities and infrastructure around our teams, and numbers that once looked impossible are now achievable. But never confuse an easier road with an easy journey — the road you walk today was built by people walking through places where there was no road.

07Plan Z, and beyond

If there is one attitude Abhishek sir and I share, it is that we don’t know how to give up. When Plan A failed, we found Plan B. When Plan B failed, we didn’t stop at Plan C — we went all the way to Plan Z if necessary. And if Plan Z failed, we created another alphabet.

08Your current situation is not your final situation

I came back around the first anniversary at the business-development level. A little over a year later, I was Managing Director. I don’t share that so anyone looks at a designation — I share it so they look at the possibility. Your current designation, salary or performance does not have to define your future.

Organizations grow when their people grow. Success should not only change the lives of those who founded a company — it should create opportunity for everyone who genuinely builds it.

09From an idea to an institution

There were days we worried about surviving the month; today we discuss how big the next five years can become. That is not luck. It is what happens when people are knocked down repeatedly — and repeatedly decide to stand back up. So celebrate. Then, tomorrow, get hungry again. Because, Inshallah, we are just getting started.

Adapted from the address delivered at the third anniversary of Learning Saint. Edited for reading; stage directions removed.