Meet man, an Indian, who faced 400 job rejections, began working as security guard, now earns more than Sundar Pichai, Mark Zuckerberg, he is...

Nikesh Arora, originally from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, has proven that honest effort, determination, and never giving up can truly change one’s life. Today, he stands among the highest-paid CEOs in America, earning more than even Google’s Sundar Pichai and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg. His journey hasn’t been easy. Born into a simple family, his father served in the Indian Air Force, which meant the family moved often. Nikesh studied at the Air Force School and later completed engineering from BHU (Banaras Hindu University). He dreamt of studying in the United States, but money was tight. Still, he managed to get a scholarship from Northeastern University in Boston. His father could only give him USD 100 for food and lodging when he left for America in 1990.

To survive in a foreign land, Nikesh worked various part-time jobs while studying, sometimes as a security guard, sometimes as a salesman. He completed his education with great difficulty. But even after finishing his studies, finding a job wasn’t easy. He faced 400 rejections, and he still keeps those rejection letters as a reminder of his journey.

Finally, in 1992, Nikesh got his first break at Fidelity Investments, where he started at an entry-level position and eventually became Vice President of Fidelity Technologies. He didn’t stop learning; he continued studying alongside his job, which helped him land a job at Google in 2004.

Nikesh worked at Google for 10 years, during which he helped grow the company’s revenue from USD 2 billion to USD 60 billion. In 2014, he moved to SoftBank and became one of the highest-paid employees in the world. In 2018, he joined Palo Alto Networks, a cybersecurity company. Under his leadership, the company’s value jumped from USD 18 billion to USD 130 billion.

In 2023, The Wall Street Journal ranked him second on the list of highest-paid CEOs in the US, with earnings of USD 151.43 million. His salary package included shares worth USD 125 million and a USD 1 million bonus.

Nikesh Arora’s story is a shining example of how a boy from Ghaziabad turned hardship into global success through hard work and resilience.