Failure can be a powerful teacher. Two years ago, I looked at my failed JEE Mains attempt and wondered where I had gone wrong. Little did I know that this failure would lead me down a path I could never have imagined and eventually land me a job at a top company.

I scored a modest 78 per cent in JEE Mains on my first attempt. It was a disappointment. But instead of giving up, I decided to take a gap year. Fast forward to the next test and I scored an impressive 99.87 percent. Suddenly the doors began to open.

I joined VIT Bhopal University in Computer Engineering majoring in AI and ML. But here’s the twist: By the end of my sophomore year, I barely knew any programming languages. The theoretical knowledge was there, but the practical skills were lacking. Then I realized I had to up my game.

I turned to online resources and found Geeks for Geeks. This platform has become my virtual classroom. I started with Java, which is one of the basic engineering languages. After a few hours of coding and debugging, I started to feel more confident.

The turning point came at the beginning of the third year. With my new Java skills, I delved into mobile app development with Flutter. It was a steep learning curve, but I was determined. I created 4-5 apps from my heart and launched them in Play Store. Seeing my creation live was exhilarating.

But I didn’t stop there. I realized how important it is to give back to the community. I started participating in open-source projects. It was a humbling experience to work with developers from all over the world, learn from their expertise, and share my knowledge.

Finally, my efforts paid off. I got a job as a full-stack developer in a GEN-AI startup. The journey from JEE Mains failure to initial success was full of challenges, but every hurdle became a stepping stone to my goal.

In retrospect, I appreciate the first bounce. It pushed me out of my comfort zone and forced me to grow. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: failure is not the end; this is just the beginning of a new chapter. Accept it, learn from it and let it lead you to your dreams.