Whenever I reflect on what I value, I always come back to these three pillars. Listed from foundational to fundamental:

Money

This might seem like a cop-out, money itself isn't what matters. What's important is what you do with it. For most meaningful ambitions, I believe money is the biggest bottleneck, which is why it's so crucial to me and the legacy I want to leave behind. It's not about accumulation; it's about enablement.

Friends

I believe a huge factor in my success (or hopefully, my future success) is my friends. I don't know how much being an only child influenced my psychology, but it shaped me profoundly. In elementary school, I watched my friends gain younger siblings while I never did. As I matured and looked at myself more introspectively, I noticed a gap forming between how I acted compared to my peers. The level of maturity and awareness of the world around us diverged exponentially. For a while, I felt handicapped, no little sibling to care for, to love, to guide.

But as I grew older, I understood this was trivial. I recognized what I lacked and worked to climb out of the hole I'd dug myself into. When high school started, I began truly appreciating my friends and learning from them. Before meeting them, I had let myself drift aimlessly, no work ethic, no ambitions, no foresight. I was just a TV and comic book addict.

One friend in particular, Arjun Suresh, made me realize the importance of looking toward the future. Seeing his dedication and work ethic toward education, watching him pursue his ambitions with relentless focus. It opened my eyes. I wanted to emulate that passion and dedication. I truly believe Arjun was one of the biggest turning points in my journey from apathy to ambition. I knew I possessed talent in whatever field I chose, but talent doesn't win the race. The hare lost to the tortoise, and much of my work ethic today should be attributed to meeting Arjun.

I'm fortunate to be close friends with so many kind, successful, hardworking people. Much of my character comes from them, and I would give the world to them if I could.

Family

I cannot write enough about this. My fingerprints will wear out before I finish, but here's the abridged version.

No matter who you meet in this world, the only people who will be unequivocally on your side are your immediate family. For me, that's my mom and dad, I don't have siblings, so I can't speak to that bond, though I imagine it's strong.

My journey through childhood was marked by trying to emulate whatever TV show, comic book, or novel hero I idolized at the time. From KD Pathak (a lawyer from the show Adalaat) to Dr. Sam Abrams (a neurosurgeon from Chicago Med), my ideal career path shifted from law to medicine, and eventually to computer science in high school.

Through all these changes, my parents never once dissuaded me from one profession or another, a rarity among Indian parents. There was even a brief period when I wanted to be a firefighter, and they supported that decision wholeheartedly, even when others (extended family, friends) raised eyebrows.

The sacrifices my parents made to give me a better life form a debt I can never repay in my lifetime. Even the world feels too small a gift for them. The best I can do is give those around me a better life, the same way my parents did for me. That's the legacy I want to build—one of generosity, support, and unconditional love.