“Take an informed decision about choosing your career path and stick to it despite all odds,” said Rahul Shinde, senior IAS officer and Belagavi Zilla Panchayat CEO, told students at The Hindu EducationPlus Career Counselling 2026, organised at Shaheen Parvaz Hall in Bidar on Saturday (May 9).

Mr. Shinde, who hails from Bidar, traced his journey from a small town to IIT Bombay and clearing the UPSC examination. He focused on the need for the youth to concentrate on a rewarding career along with developing a resilient personality.

“Developing a personality that can easily manage difficult challenges in life is a primary condition to achieve success. Your aim in life should be happiness and success, not just material success alone,’’ he advised.

“The main factors behind choosing a career are interest in the subject, the necessary aptitude to learn it, self-belief in one’s abilities and cultivated confidence. You should never choose courses based on what is fashionable to do so, current market trends, and job potential,’’ he said, adding that everyone should develop a philosophical attitude towards material success. “We are all here because of the opportunities we got in different phases of life. It is a race, and we are all on the same ground. Some are ahead and some may be behind us only because of some influencing factors. What we have chosen should not bother us as much as what we do with our chosen career,’’ he said.

He gave tips about his achieving academic success. “First of all, don’t be diffident. You need to work towards feeling confident about your abilities and skills and never shy away from displaying them at the right moment. We need both motivation and consistency. Success is a marathon and not a 100-m dash. You cannot feel motivated one day and feel withdrawn the next. You need to draw up a plan and implement it in stages. If you look at cricketer Virat Kohli play, you will notice that he breaks big targets into smaller targets and achieves big things with small steps. Success becomes as easy as the next step and not an unclear dream on the horizon,’’ he said.

Mr. Shinde recalled the inspiration he got from his teachers, and asked students to develop an interest in art, culture, and sports and regularly participate in extra-curricular activities. “Social media influence can be both good and bad as what we do with the information we receive is our choice,’’ he said.

The IAS officer, along with other guests, released the The Hindu EducationPlus Career Guidance Handbook.

Dayananda J., CET nodal officer, gave details about the KEA CET examination and counselling, and Sachin Gudge, associate professor, Bidar Institute of Medical Sciences, spoke about medicine as a career. Vinita Balbhim Patil, principal, Lingaraj Appa Engineering College, spoke about engineering, while Parvat Bijaspur, CA, spoke about careers in commerce. Abdul Nasir Mauzam, career counsellor from CIGMA, spoke about various career options available after PUC and degree. Guests of honour Ramesh Kulkarni and Basavaraj Molkeri spoke about the factors that need to be considered before choosing a career.