Success Story with Scott D. Clary
Published on Jan 15, 2026, 3:57:47 PM
Total time: 01:22:15
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Dr. Abraham M. George built a fortune on Wall Street, founding Multinational Computer Models and selling it to Fortune 500 company SunGard Data Systems in 1998. Then he walked away from it all. Armed with a PhD from NYU Stern and decades of finance experience, he returned to India in 1995 and founded Shanti Bhavan—a residential school that takes children from extreme poverty at age four and supports them through college. The model works: 98% graduate college, 97% land jobs at Amazon, Google, and Goldman Sachs, and every single graduate earns more in five years than their parents earn in a lifetime. His parallel work on lead poisoning exposed that 51% of Indian children had toxic blood levels, triggering India's 2000 ban on leaded petrol and protecting hundreds of millions. Featured in Netflix's "Daughters of Destiny," Shanti Bhavan has directly transformed over 15,000 lives—proof that one person's strategic commitment can dismantle generational poverty.
➡️ Show Links
https://www.amazon.com/Mountains-Cross-Finding-Purpose-Service/dp/B0F2GK4HW9
https://www.instagram.com/dr_abraham_george/
https://www.drabrahamgeorge.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/abraham-george-519315274
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➡️ Talking Points
00:00 – Intro
01:25 – Did He Get Rich Just to Give It All Away?
06:49 – The Near-Death Moment That Changed His Life
09:28 – When Money Became the Wrong Goal
11:33 – Walking Away From Success to Serve Others
13:22 – Finding Purpose When You Feel Lost
18:57 – Scaling Impact Without Quitting Business
24:25 – Sponsor Break
27:09 – Building a School With No Education Experience
33:24 – A 17-Year Promise to One Child
36:00 – India’s 1,500-Year-Old Caste Crisis
42:35 – How Giving Changed Him
44:58 – The Brutal Reality of Building Shanti Bhavan
48:53 – Can Poverty and the Caste System Be Broken?
51:34 – Sponsor Break
53:27 – Does Shanti Bhavan Actually Work?
56:25 – Why Compassion Isn’t Enough
58:18 – Why He Had to Write Mountains to Cross
1:01:57 – What Makes the Sacrifice Worth It
1:06:15 – The One Lesson He Wants His Kids to Remember
1:07:12 – What He’s Fighting for Now
Welcome to the Success Story Podcast, hosted by entrepreneur, business executive, author, educator & speaker, Scott D. Clary (@scottdclary). On this podcast, you'll find interviews, Q&A, keynote presentations & conversations on sales, marketing, business, startups and entrepreneurship. Scott will discuss some of the lessons he's learned over his own career, as well as have candid interviews with execs, celebrities, notable figures and politicians. All who have achieved success through both wins and losses, to learn more about their life, their ideas and insights. He sits down with leaders and mentors and unpacks their story to help pass those lessons onto others through both experiences and tactical strategy for business professionals, entrepreneurs and everyone in between. To get more of the Success Story podcast, go to www.successstorypodcast.com.