Maria Zakharova shares the secrets of a career in diplomacy with young professionals at the "Inventing the Future" Symposium

How do you keep going when circumstances are against you, and why is it worth taking on tasks that everyone around you finds daunting? Maria Zakharova, Director of the Information and Press Department and Spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, addressed these questions at a meeting held at the National Centre RUSSIA as part of the III International Symposium "Inventing the Future". School pupils, university students and young professionals learnt what knowledge and personal qualities help people cope with rapid change and received practical advice.

The conversation began with a reflection on why it is so important to believe in yourself, persevere and keep moving forward even when circumstances are against you. Maria Zakharova drew on her own experience, showing how chance events and decisive turns in her life ultimately formed a coherent whole. Her father's work took her family to Beijing when she was a child. People in the Soviet Union knew very little about China, and Maria Zakharova was keen to explore a culture that was new to her. She then decided to learn Chinese.

"Towards the end of school, I started steering myself in that direction. I thought I would go into Eastern studies and gradually focus on China. I got into university, where I studied Chinese at degree level. I went deeper into it and thought I had found my specialism," said Maria Zakharova.

But when she applied to the Foreign Ministry, there were no vacancies involving work on China, so she was assigned to the "Diplomatic Bulletin". She admitted that it felt as though five years of studying Chinese had been wiped out in an instant. She then decided to build on what she had already learnt, enrolled in a part-time postgraduate programme and continued her studies. That closed door opened up new opportunities: she learnt to work in communications and defended her thesis, and her Chinese did not go to waste either. Her interest in China grew into personal projects and expositions devoted to Chinese art.

"I could have been angry about my circumstances and thought how unfair life was. What I needed to do was show a little humility, focus and get my emotions under control. Then a completely new option opens up straight away, and your opportunities double," said Maria Zakharova.

Explaining to future professionals how to apply what they have learnt and become professionals in practice as well as on paper, she offered a metaphor. "If you want to win the lottery, there's one sure-fire way. Buy every ticket."

She said she knew the job and the field of communications in theory. She wanted to broaden her knowledge, become more effective and work in a team in a way that helped everyone get results. One question remained, though. What formula or 'template' could she use to tackle what was 'written in red'?

"I suddenly realised that I had to tackle every question, even those that might have no answers: that I had to face the most difficult situations head-on and work through them <...> I won't sidestep anything difficult or especially unpleasant by saying, 'That's someone else's problem. I can pass it on, ask someone else to deal with it or ask to be taken off it.' We'll face every challenge and work through it. Every call, every enquiry, every technology, every new idea or innovation we come across has to be handled, worked through and studied. Everything needs an answer. If there isn't one, you have to go and look for it. If you can't find it, you have to find the people who can help," stressed Maria Zakharova.

The Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson also offered advice to young people who are still deciding which path to take. "You have to believe in your dream, keep moving forward and develop the talents and abilities you have, while being ready for life's twists and turns and the challenges it brings. That's more or less how it was for me. If anyone at school or university had told me how things would turn out, I would never have believed them. But when you look back, you realise that each step, the decisions you made, the challenges and the obstacles all made perfect sense as part of the same journey."

Honest, open conversation on equal terms is an important part of the Symposium programme. Young participants help steer the conversation through the questions they ask, and their vision shapes what tomorrow will look like.

The III International Symposium "Inventing the Future" is being held on 12–13 November at the National Centre RUSSIA. The flagship event brings together statespeople, scientists and researchers, representatives of business, the creative industries and public organisations, and young professionals from different countries to develop positive scenarios for the future together.