Our guest speaker was Dr Dragos Bratasanu, scientist, expeditionary, speaker presenter, author and published
Dragos spoke to us on the subject of the “Pursuit of Dreams”.
Dragos was born in Romania some 34 years ago, just at the end of the Communist regime in that country. Dragos commented that being a communist country there was a lot of poverty. While the country’s citizens had basic food, shelter and education Dragos suggested there was a poverty of freedom and thought for the reason that people stepping out of line were ostracised by the state and privileges were removed from them. Risk taking and critical thought were not accepted activities.
Dragos suggested that in the last days of the Communist regime in Roumania there had been, in effect, an intellectual purge.
The inevitable consequence of the intellectual purge and the poverty of freedom and bought was that people suppressed their emotions so as not to appear out of line.
Through hard work, the pursuit of the dream that underpinned his address, Dragos has managed to move from the communist and post communist world of Romania and that of Silicon Valley in the United States. Through hard work he became a NASA scientist and engineer. He holds a PhD on satellite-based intelligence and has received a number of international awards for his research. Amongst other things at NASA he was involved in the management of a the simulation of a Mars mission.
While at NASA Dragos was mentored by one of the engineers who built the Hubble telescope. He noted that the telescope when launched into space did not work. An expensive repair was required. One of the issues that Dragos discovered during this time was that the thought environment then prevailing at NASA at the time was similar to that of the Communist regime in Romania where challenges to orthodox thinking or critical thought were not accepted and it required a change in NASAs social environment to accept critical thought before the repair of the Hubble telescope could be achieved.The lesson Dragos took from matters that the social environment in the work place is the main driver to a companies success.
Dragos spoke to us on the theme Pursuit of Dreams noted that his background meant that he had to be unorthodox in gaining knowledge and pursuing his dreams. Because of his limited cash at University he would read books in bookstores rather than buy them. On the same theme Dragos told us of his dream of visiting both the North and South poles. He gave himself a year to do it and ultimately did. He wrote to companies offering his services as a photgapher. Many of his letters received no response, some responses were thank you but no and one said yes. Game on. That one response lead to his visit to the South Pole. that in turn created the foundation for the visit to the North Pole. Dragos pursued his dream and achieved what he set out to do. In his own words when your pocket is empty go where your heart is fulfilled.
Dragos gave us three takeways from his experience , first; follow your heart. It is the driver for what you want to do, second; use what you have in your hand. or in other words make the best of what you have got. what you don't have is irrelevant and thirdly how do you best serve with what you have. Dragos said that by employing those takeaways it is possible to succeed and achieve your dreams.
An interesting address from an individual who has known, unlike many of us, hardship and understands how best to achieve despite that hardship.
The Pursuit of Dreams - Dr Dragos Bratasanu