Power of Zero
By: Harish Shetty
Tags: Team Collaboration, Inspiration, Mentoring

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

Someone gifted me a printed T-shirt recently, one of those with a funny quote. It had a big Zero printed on it enclosing the quote “India’s greatest contribution to the world of mathematics”. To make things a bit funny, the print further read “We always knew we were good for Nothing!”. I laughed at the humor when I first saw the T-shirt and thanked the person who gifted it to me. “This is bound to generate a few smiles, when I wear the tee”, I thought to myself. And it did, actually, when I wore it to work on one of the Fridays.

When I got home that day, I started thinking about why the number zero was associated with greatness. What makes it special when compared to any of the other numbers? As wisdom dawned upon me, I thought if we were to represent numbers in the Roman system I bet we would not have progressed this far scientifically or otherwise. Did you know that a number only as big as 8,888 is represented as MMMMMMMMDCCCLXXXVIII in the Roman system; you probably cannot imagine how one would represent the millions, billions and the gazillions? Don’t think we would have even thought about numbers that big, to be honest, much like the Romans of the medieval times. Thus, a number system that only used 10 digits (0–9) became popularly accepted since it could practically represent any finite number. Now, that was nothing short of a miracle, especially in a world that was accustomed to the Roman system or an equally inefficient way of counting!

Coming back to Zero, my first impression about this round little symbol is that it’s just another number. Zero actually represents “Nothing” or emptiness. I remember when we were young, we would feel so bad if someone called us a “zero” — it was like something that was opposite in meaning to “hero”. We used to feel sad when we got out for a zero in a cricket match, let alone the humiliation some of the boys had to face in the class when they scored a zero in a test. Zero was something that was seldom celebrated, not something that anyone ever chased or craved for, at least not in those days.

Cut to the early 21st century, I started working for an Indian software major. As a programmer, I was always reminded by my boss that we had to strive for a “zero-defect” project delivery. And there I was, chasing a “zero” perhaps for the first time in my life. And then we had our occasional tryst with the zero-calorie diet regimes that some of our young friends were trying out; the Size-Zero obsession that the youth were getting hooked on to, trying to emulate some of the Bollywood starlets; the zero down-payment motorbike that was on my wish-list, while waiting for my next pay-hike… Zero was not associated with depression any more; it was something we were now chasing, quite intently.

So what really changed? Was it just our perspective that had been transformed? And there we were, with our new-found love for Zero.

You will agree that, on its own, Zero equates to nothing. However, when a zero tags along with another small number, it boosts the value of the small number by ten times. For example, the number 1, on its own, is a pretty insignificant number too; only slightly larger than zero. To appreciate the power of zero, and the value that it brings forth, you need to put them together, thus creating 10. Wait a minute…what happens when two zeros combine and team up with a small number like “1”. You guessed it. The value of the little number jumps a hundred times. You can only imagine what wonders that a few more zeros, getting together, can do. Reminds me of the ‘Minions’.

Have you felt like a ‘Zero’, ever? If yes, you’re not alone. Don’t be disheartened. You are not worthless. All you need to do is to find your ‘1’. Go, find a partner, a co-founder, who complements your abilities, your skills and shares your passion. As a team, you can do wonders. If you look back at successful teams from the past, be it in the world of sports or entrepreneurship, you will find that it is filled with examples of individuals with a shared passion came together to form successful teams that achieved stellar success.

Hey Zero! Go, find the One.

NOTE: This article was previously published on the author’s blog.