WHAT SUCCESS MEANS TO ME?
“Lord, we don’t need another mountain,
there
are mountains and hillsides enough to climb;
there
are oceans and rivers enough to cross,
enough to last till the end of time.”
(From
the song ‘What the World Needs now’ written by Hal David
and
composed by Bart Bacharach)
For several years, during our Public Speaking
sessions, I used to ask young kids to speak on the topic – ‘What Success Means
to Me?’. This was before the Google surfaced… and, the idea of AI was out of
anybody’s imagination. Well, I say this, because, our young kids had to rely upon
their own mind to tell what Success really meant to them… Means, what they
thought, not what Google or AI thought. Maybe, some of them sought help from
their parents or teachers… That’s about it. But, they all did speak on the
topic – ‘What Success Means to Me?’.
Now, after several years, these kids are grown-up to be ‘successful’
men and women… They are busy with their lives - family, business, profession or
job, here or abroad. I, often, wonder: what if I asked the same question to
these adults, now? Would Success mean different to them, now?
My own idea of success has undergone a sea-change over these
four decades. When I was younger, it was a lot aggressive and restless idea…
Now, it’s quieter and more serene. Now, the size doesn’t matter, at all… I mean,
the size of the topline (turnover), the bottom-line (profits), the number of branches
or franchises, the net worth, the number of followers on social-media platforms,
and so on… As with those young kids, I, too, was a lot driven by these external
yardsticks of success, when I was younger… But, not anymore.
But, then, before you misunderstand me, let me make it clear:
My meaning of Success need not be, and should not be, your meaning… Please
follow your heart… What is good for you, is good for you. And, what is good for
me, is good for me…
The question, however, will not change, despite our answers:
“What
Success Means to Me?”
Jesus was a simple village soul. All that He did, during His three years of teaching (till He died on the cross) was just teach some meaningful things to the villagers… He did it around the hillsides, lakesides or deserts. He managed with just twelve disciples. But, today, what He taught as a fakir, is being taught in gigantic stadiums or kingly Cathedrals… Ditto is about Shirdi Sai Baba, Guru Nanak or Gautham Buddha… They were all wanderers and fakirs… Not so anymore, anything that is done in their name. Today, the size does seem to matter …
“How many followers/subscribers/viewers do you have, Sir,” - if you are on a social-media platform…
“How many pairs of footwear lie outside your door, Sir?” - if you hold a small satsangh in someone’s house …
“How many students attend your offline or online classes,
Sir?” - if you are a tutor like me….
Maybe, such questions will continue
to be asked till one gets tired of answering them… Maybe, that’s the way to ‘salvation’
– the ‘moksha’!
Haven’t you heard the saying, “Life
is all about ‘coming home’”?
GERALD D’CUNHA
Pic’s: Pixabay
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