Investing lessons from Patanjali

These days my work takes me to several unusual destinations. So when I got a chance to meet Acharya Balkrishna at Patanjali Yogpeeth in Haridwar, I readily agreed to undertake the 200 km drive from Delhi. I slept most of the way before I reached the Patanjali campus and Balkrishna’s modest office and our conversation lasted merely 20 minutes. At first, I felt it was a waste of time commuting eight hours in all for a 20-minute interaction. But an hour that I spent at the campus post our meeting and after some introspection made me realise that the ROI (return on investment) from the trip was a lot more, which could only grow if I applied some of what I picked from the interaction.

Clarity
The science of Ayurveda rests at the core of Patanjali and through a perfect merger of the latest technology and ancient wisdom, they have clearly managed to get their message across. This is exactly what one should look from any investment—it should have clear stated objective and work towards achieving it through changing business and economic environment.

Discipline
Across the campus you come across directions that are simple to follow in two languages, checklists on procedures and processes, courteous helpdesks and instructions on dos and don’ts. Having visited government and private hospitals where chaos prevails despite the guards and bouncers, Patanjali campus was all well organised and maintained. The lesson for investors is cut the noise and stay disciplined with your investments—write them down, check their performance and make sure it is doing for you what it is supposed to. Basically you should know why you’re investing, what you are buying and be sure that you get the best price for the investment.

Healthy body and mind
I am not getting into the benefits of yoga, but the food served at the canteen is wholesome and complete. Just like you’re healthier when you eat a variety of foods, your portfolio is healthier when you have a lot of different types of investments is an automatic lesson.

Patience, starting small and the fact that it is never too late are other common sense lessons that I picked which are very much what you need to follow with investing as well. When asked about the profits and economic impact of Patanjali products, Balakrishna was very humble with his reply, “Hamne ye kaam vyapaar aur munafe ke liye nahin, upkaar ke liye kiya hai” (The work that we do is not for profit but an act of benevolence).

But this is one lesson that you should not follow at all—you cannot invest for charity, you should invest to profit and gain. But to achieve that outcome you need to invest with clarity in what you are investing in and follow Patanjali’s lessons for good health and my interpreted lessons for wealth.

nk@outlookindia.com