The human mind dance to the tunes of our emotions. When we are optimistic, everything looks good. The future seems to be a perfect playground. We feel motivated. Similarly, when we are fearful and pessimism engulfs our thought, it feels as of nothing will go right. We tend to preserve what we got. We avoid risk taking. At some point of time most of us have experienced both these kind of emotions. There is nothing wrong with this. It actually keeps us in check. Emotions are a part of who we are. Let it remain like that.
I don’t allow you to question my loyalty and integrity. You think you are smart. You prepare your questions by filtering what suits you best and force me to apply a defensive stance. But your trick won’t work on me. I won’t answer you. I don’t need to. Not because I fear you or I have done anything wrong. It’s because I don’t consider you worthy of my response. I don’t like to converse with people who apply double standards and have a bad motive. I don’t need any benefit of doubt from you. All I expect is that you stop looking at the broken pieces and see me as a whole.
It’s an irony of life. We learn late. Even if we know, we don’t implement. Rather than taking things under control when we can, we hope that things fall in place when we can no longer control them. Initially, we ignore our health though we know it will show results after a few decades. Similarly, we tend to neglect family citing professional responsibilities and curse our stars when things fall apart. We need to do things when they are supposed to be done. Delaying is not the solution. Acting responsibly is.
I wish I had a magic wand. I wave it and all my problems are gone. I don’t have one. And so, I have to learn to handle my issues as and when they arrive. Everyday something new comes up. With much effort I overcome it. Next day is no different. And it has been going on like this as long as I can remember. And now, if anyone offers me a magic wand, I won’t take it. Life is better without it. It keeps me active. It keeps me engaged. It gives me something to look forward to. It makes me stronger. If it were easy, it wouldn’t be called life.
Some people get huge respect for what they do. They may not be the richest or well connected. People like them because they talk straight, are humble, give the right advice and avoid conflict of interest. It is so easy to do all this. Still, to grow faster and demand recognition, many of us try to take the short cut and compromise on quality. The eventually cost is high. They fear when people look into their eyes. Their inner confidence is low. They struggle to answer to their conscience. Why do all this? Better to take the long route which actually is the short cut.
It is quite amusing. I was never aware about it in my early days. Everything has a payoff. Some things take longer. May be years. May be decades. It could either be a reward or a penalty. Every action is taken into account. I thought the big wins of today are because of my recent effort. No, it was because of years of compounding of many small efforts. And the upsets work the same way too. If I knew it before, I would have done better. Anyways, I know it now. Maybe, years and decades later, I will have more rewards than penalty.
Keep your intent clean. Actions do matter and if you make a wrong judgement, you will have to pay for it. Still, if your conscience was clean and your thoughts were pure, you will be forgiven. At times, the world may doubt you but if your inner voice doesn’t hold you guilty, the world won’t matter. To think straight is not difficult if you don’t bother about the results. In the end, what will matter is; how clean were your intentions that preceded your actions.
The tendency to complain is so satisfying. It covers our own weakness and mistakes. Putting the onus on someone else is the easiest way to shed responsibility. Many of us use aggression as our defense. People doing this know their shortcomings and kill the discussion by an aggressive stance so that their shady activities are not revealed. This approach is nothing but a disease. It cannot be cured by others. Self acceptance and courage to change is the only medicine. Watch yourself. Do self assessment. Take corrective action.
Do a good job. Payment is a side benefit. Your work quality should not be conditional of what benefit you derive out of it. It should have only one aim. Daily improvement. It should give you self satisfaction. That’s the highest reward. Don’t rate yourself on the basis of what premium you command. The right judgement will come from your inner voice. Take your eyes off from everything else. Focus on your work. It is easier said than done. You will get distracted. The key is to stay on track.
