Most parents tell their kids not to gain satisfaction by looking at those who are behind them in the race but look ahead and make the envy motivate them to run faster and leave even more behind. And so children start running as soon as their parents teach them this lesson and sadly, most keep running for the rest of their lives. There is nothing wrong with this lesson for it motivates individuals to excel and society to grow but is it worth it to keep running all our lives? Wouldn’t it be nice if at a point in life we could just stop running, look at those we have left behind and smile with relief at our good fortune? But instead, we wait for a while, look at those misers and for the fear of them catching up, start running again. It all would be fine but what happens on the run is we can only look at a few who are close behind and forget about those millions we have left so far that they can never catch up. These few we can see make what used to be the excitement of running, the stress of keeping ahead. And the few who are still running coz it gives them a kick forget that they cant outrun everyone and the run is taking a toll on their health, their family, their life.
I have been fortunate enough to experience one of the best institutes of education in India and be friends with the brightest minds. I have learned more from the non-curricular activities (not even extra-curricular) than what they teach there. I don’t boast that I have the intelligence nor do I externalize it to good fortune which most of my friends happen to firmly believe. Maybe it’s a mixture of both but the biggest reason I got through those entrance examinations was that I kept my head cool when others panicked at the thought of all their hard work going down the drain. They thought, they panicked and thanks to them, I got ahead. So, its not just me, its them to whom I should attribute my good fortune.
Graduation was an awesome time. Most weren’t competing with anyone. Some coz they thought they were the best, some coz they thought they were the worst but most coz they thought ‘Who Cares!’
PGDM (in a more understandable term, MBA) brought with it the first winds of continuous and stiff competition which I had escaped so surprisingly during those entrance exams. A close friend called me a psycho when I didn’t submit a project worth 20% marks in one of the 34 courses I would be doing during the 2 years. Even I had changed, from that permanent absentee at lectures to the permanent sleeper in lectures, from the guy who would take voluntary Fs just so that he can go party with friends to the guy who would free-ride on most of the projects but still do the individual ones. I had gotten sincere, I had gotten committed. But this was as far as I was willing to change. The relative grading system had hit most of the students real hard. Its funny to see people act like kids, crib, cheat, get depressed, even cry for grades which won’t even matter a few years down the line. Yes, they might (not definitely) land one with a good start of the career but is this GOOD start worth ruining the two years that can be enjoyed and their memories cherished for life especially when all of the firms that come for placements are good? But as I found out, you give someone the best and the next thing he wants is ‘better than the best’. No one seems to be satisfied with the fact that the minimum starting salary from campus placements is at least more if not double than a middle-class government servant with 30 years of experience (in most cases, their father). Even most fathers want their bright young kids to push even harder and bring home even more glory.
It was amusing to witness all this but it’s always sad to see friends depressed. No amount of persuasion would help and they would still see themselves near the bottom of the 300 students and not near the top of the whole bunch of their generation.
‘Failures teach more than success’ seems the only explanation behind the attitudes of these ‘successful’ youths and call me a sadist if you want but I do want them to taste a bit of failure and the sooner the better for I would love to see them appreciate what they have got rather than seeing them RUNNING at full speed.
2 comments:
:) something that i read today maybe smewhere says what u said -
"Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling five balls in the air. You name them — work, family, health, friends, and spirit — and you're keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls — family, health, friends, and spirit are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for balance in your life"
nandini
Interesting post. Its more about the 'daud' - seasons come and change but attitudes rarely change. May be i can relate to what is written in post directly as I have been at NIT where the culture is same. Its all for good grades, good jobs, good wife, good money and .....it never ends.We always want to optimize the benefits in life against the bad with self defined constraints such as family, friends, fun. There is always a trade off between study and fun, the race for better things in life and peace. There are people who crave for little things in life and ignore the fun part of it. It takes a lot to achieve the balance in life, between what you have and what you want. What you want is always more than what you have and hence the ratio is never 1.
Winning is never important but rather the cool composure and never-die attitude is what differentiates the people.No matter if its study or life, these things weight a lot than other factors.
very nice post!
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