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"Where are you from in Marwar?" / "Marwar me kathe ra ho?" An elderly shopkeeper asked me this yesterday I paused for a second, then said Nagaur We're third generation in Chennai, so nobody asks this anymore. But it made me think about why the question exists at all Long before probably your village was your credential A young man would come to Sowcarpet from Rajasthan to start some business. If he showed up at it every day for a month or two, the big established financiers from the comm would notice, and extend a couple of lakhs to him without him even asking. Seed funding, in a way My Dada went to Calcutta for his first job. The salary was barely enough for rent and food, and money still had to go back home. So he carried a letter from a respected family in the village: this boy is the son of so-and-so, hardworking and worthy of support A large firm in Calcutta had a system - if you came from their village with that letter, you could sleep in their office. After hours the tables were pushed aside and the boys laid out their beds. Before the office opened, everything was packed and the desks were back in place The man giving the office knew exactly whom to hold accountable. The man writing the letter thought twice before vouching. Reputation was the collateral, and everyone strived to protect it Two generations later, we are still grateful to that family. That one act of shelter enabled my Dada to work, save and build a life He eventually settled in Chennai's steel market, worked hard and built a name. Then he pulled up a bunch of people. He first gave them brokerage work, and as they learnt the trade, backed them to start their own shops. He never worried they'd become competitors - abundance thinking Showing up every day, backing your people, paying it forward. It compounds.. – at Egmore Nungambakkam, India