WHY SOME ENDURE... FOR SO LONG?
A week ago, we were travelling by the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. Our son was home for a long vacation, and now, my wife and I were with him in the car to reach him to his institute at Pune. The travel by this Expressway during monsoons is a real feast not only to our eyes but also to our hearts. It is really beautiful…
During this journey,
we discussed about several things… casual to serious things. One of these
things was: “Why some people endure in their fields for so long... and why some
don’t?”
My son is still doing
his college… whereas, I have spent close to thirty-five years doing what I am
doing now – teaching. This includes teaching my friends and neighbors while I
was studying in college. Along these years, I have been writing and training as
well… But, all these stem from my core of being a teacher. I don’t have any
other plans as far as my career is concerned. Yes, I shall be happy teaching
all my life.
So, when it came to
the question: “What helps us endure for so long?” – I did not have to think hard on
the subject. I had my experience behind, and, therefore, I had the authentic answer…
It was irrelevant whether or not I was some celebrity or a huge brand in my
field. I have endured joyfully, with dignity and respect … and, yes, with a
decent amount of success, if you wish to add that. So, I found sharing with my
son what, in my view, was the answer to the question in hand.
Talent, Discipline
and a harmonious personality – these three ingredients came up, straightaway.
Talent is the
substance… Definitely, that is the first factor that helps us make our mark…
Talent is essentially inborn, a gift or an endowment placed in us by our
Creator. Some of us are lucky enough to discover our talents early in life…
yes, often, doubly lucky to have some near and dear ones to help us discover our
talent…
Trusting in our own
talents and go about pursuing them is left to us.
In the process of
pursuing, we need a high degree of discipline: sense of commitment, integrity,
punctuality and regularity… There are work ethics.
Personally, I consider
discipline to be the deciding factor. One may be blessed with great talent, but,
if he is cursed with poor discipline, then, the ship-wreck will be a foregone
conclusion. True, if talent is not there, the ship would never move… But,
together with talent, one needs those qualities of heart and mind… Discipline.
That’s why we see around us so many talented people ruining their careers
just because, they fail in this department.
If, through our talents,
we have to reach out to more and more people… yes, if that is what Success is,
then, we also need to possess a very harmonious personality. Some call it a ‘pleasant
or selling personality’. Or, call it human-relation skills or people-skills.
Let me tell you, some very talented people suffer due their conflicting,
controversial – repulsive and negative – personality. On the other hand, some
people, with mediocre or even poor talents, make their way to the top, just by
being excellent in this department. Anyway, without the ‘substance’ to back,
their journey to the top is bound to be short-lived. To endure long in your
field, your talent and discipline have to be in place… No compromise on this.
What about Luck? The grace of
God?
Are there not people
around us blessed with fine talents, with high degree of self-discipline and an
amazing personality, and yet, going down under?
So, shall we assume
that Luck was not on their side? Or, a little bluntly: God had forsaken them?
That morning, I did
not want to talk to my son about Luck and God’s grace. For, that’s, in my view,
should not be over-rated. Yes, without God’s grace, probably, nothing will manifest
in life. But, I still wonder, why on earth, God would ‘forsake’ any of His
children?
If He has placed
talents in us, then, He has also placed in us the responsibility of cultivating
a fine discipline and personality. I have always believed that if we do our
part, God will not forsake us.
So, I told my son
about some classic cases of endurance around us.
M.F. Husain, who started off painting film hoardings on the streets of Mumbai and went on to paint till he died at the age of 95… This legend's one painting reportedly fetched two million pounds!
M.F. Husain, who started off painting film hoardings on the streets of Mumbai and went on to paint till he died at the age of 95… This legend's one painting reportedly fetched two million pounds!
Lata Mankeshkar is
83; she started singing since she was 13… She still sings like a little girl of 13!
Her sister, Asha Bosle,
is just four years younger. She too started singing at the tender age of 10.
And, as I write this Post, does she still sing?
Amitabh Bachchan will
be 70 this October. Does he still act? Does he still hold a billion TV-viewers glued? Does he still endorse products? Does he still walk on ramps/ promote
charity causes?
Sachin Tendulkar is
39. He made his debut at the age of 16. And, is he still there at the crease? Still endures?
Well, everyone cannot
be a Husain or Sachin. They need not…
But, I told my son
this:
if, in a world of man-eat-man competition,
Amitabh, Lata and Sachin still
endure…
then, there is a reason to hope…
Yes, anyone can endure…
It was really a beautiful journey… amazing visuals of
lush-green meadows, fog-hugged mountains… silent valleys and dark tunnels… the
breeze kept caressing the car-window as if it wanted to whisper into our ears the good-news:
“Hey, you have within
you what it takes to endure… for so long!”
GERALD D’CUNHA
Pics.: 1. Amit Bhoir
2. Roopa Sushil
2. Roopa Sushil
Comments
The Posts as well as the picture are mind blowing.
Kumar N