Here I Go Again…6 cities, 5 weeks and a Whole Lot of Talking & Eating
Right now, I’m currently sitting in an
overcrowded Abu Dhabi airport feeling a bit uneasy after gorging on a Quarter
Pounder w/Cheese meal only minutes after proclaiming to myself that I would eat
“healthy” over the next few weeks. In a
little under an hour, I’ll be boarding a plane to New York City where I’ll have
the opportunity to spend the 4th of July with close friends in a
place which, even after five years, never ceases to feel like home.
Yes, it’s my annual trip to the west
again. A time when I get to squeeze in
as many meetings, social events, dinners, breakfasts, lunches, brunches, hugs,
kisses, hamburgers, hot dogs, enchiladas and tacos into a multi-week period.
It’s also the time when I end up sharing the “Indian football story” and “my
India observations” over and over and over again. Not that I really mind though
as I genuinely enjoy having the profound opportunity to connect India and the
US through my facts, figures, anecdotes and general optimism. Plus, I just love the attention and being
seen as someone who has “taken the road less travelled.”
Since moving to India in 2009, this will be
my fourth trip back to the US as a representative of the emerging Indian
football industry. For me it’s an honor and huge opportunity to play this
unique role of someone who has worked for years developing football in the west
and now doing the same in the East.
My five week journey includes the following
cities in the order I’ll be travelling to them: New York, Boston, Los Angeles,
Cabo San Lucas, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Portland for the MLS All-Star
game. During this time, I’ll be meeting with Major League Soccer, New York City
FC, Liverpool FC, LA Galaxy, Chivas USA and number of investment firms,
multi-national companies, sports marketing agencies and other friends in the
industry primarily to explore opportunities for these groups to establish
themselves within the Indian football industry.
Besides my maiden voyage back in 2010, this
is my most exciting trip back to the country that served as my home for 29
years. The main reason is that, for the
first time, I actually planed a holiday to Mexico with my family which means
five days of completely disconnecting from everything with the people I love
the most yet spend the least amount of time with. The second reason is that this past year
Indian football and Libero Sports both saw exponential growth which means there
is a much to discuss with those who I will be meeting, clear & tangible
opportunities for global organizations to leverage this emerging industry
through our company.
Boarding has just begun and thankfully my
stomach is starting to settle. Although
I had momentary lapses of memory over the past week of stressfully rushing to
prepare for this journey, these trips remind me of how lucky I am to be
involved in a profession which is directly aligned with my passion and to work
for an organization which clearly supports my personal and professional aspirations.
Comments
Post a Comment