Finding My Place in a Family Business

After spending time in the US and working at Apple, I came back to India to join our family business. I was full of ideas and wanted to prove myself. Like many second-generation entrepreneurs, I thought fresh energy and questions would be enough to make a difference.

At Sheth Info, we provide refurbished IT hardware like laptops, servers, and even Apple products on sale as well as rent that help businesses cut costs while still getting reliable machines. Schools, hospitals, IT firms, and manufacturers all depend on us to keep their systems running. Many of our team members had been doing this work for more than a decade, and they knew details I had not even begun to learn.

I still remember one meeting where I pitched a bold idea to a client. I thought it was brilliant. The client listened, then turned to one of our senior team members and asked for his view. He explained, calmly, why it would not work in practice. The client agreed with him, not me. That was a humbling moment. It taught me that trust does not come from titles or big ideas. It comes from lived experience and consistency.

My last name gave me authority but not respect. That had to be earned. It meant listening more, working beside the team, and helping with the small but important problems they faced every day. Over time, I began to contribute in ways that mattered to them. Slowly, deal by deal, I started to feel less like an outsider and more like part of the team.

Even now, it feels like running a startup inside a family business. I am still unlearning, still experimenting, still earning trust. Maybe that is what finding your place really means. Not the position you inherit, but the one you are always learning to earn.