I am back again after a long self-imposed hiatus.... Well, frankly speaking I couldn't think much to write home about for the past few days.... But after biding my time for some thought-provoking topics, I could finally think of something.... Oh..yeah... I am here again to spread some "Gyan"... :-)
When I was in 4th standard, I remember my teacher saying something like this - "If you struggle hard and study now, your future will be very bright." Although I am not hardworking by any stretch of imagination, I always managed to top the school. You can call it as God's grace or may be sheer luck.... But I was always on top... But mind you, there was definitely a bit of smart effort, if not hard work... :-) I passed my 10th exams... came on top as usual... and was feeling like a PRINCE... But this was short-lived.
This is because it was now time to join college. I took up M.P.C. in my intermediate and again my lecturer said the following words: " If you struggle hard for 2 years, your future will be bright... ". Again, I took it upon myself to prove my worth and as always did exceptionally well in the Engineering entrance examination. Now, I felt like a KING.... But even this was short-lived...
Then started my engineering life... joined a decent-enough college..... Again the same old dialogue from lecturers - "If you struggle hard for 4 years, your future will be bright" . Again the same old struggle for 4 years landed me a plum job at Infosys, one of the best I.T. companies in the WORLD. This time round I felt like I was a MONARCH.... As always, this too was short-lived....
My innings as a Software Engineer started.... In the initial heydays, I was completely oblivious to the life ahead... I was feeling independent.... Like they say in Hindi movies - "Apne pairon par khada hogaya... "... (Like I was never standing on my feet before... ;-) ) .... There was the initial euphoria during my training period with 'all and sundry' asking me to work hard so that my future can be bright.... My patience started wearing out....
But I held on... joined my first project.... then came my first appraisal.... my manager was reasonably satisfied with my work and topped it off with something cliched.... Yes, you guessed it right... He too went ga ga over working hard so that my future can be bright..... I felt like screaming but then held on.... Years passed by.... After 3 and a half years of experience in the software industry, I got promoted as a Programmer Analyst..... Now I was feeling like a DICTATOR..... But as you might have guessed it, the killer blow was yet to come.... My first appraisal comments in the new role were the same as I heard in my Kindergarten.... "Work hard now so that your future can be bright... "
This time I snapped... What the hell !!!!.... I looked back at my life.... It's been 24 years of relentless struggle, hard work so that my FUTURE can be bright.... But where in the hell is my PRESENT.... Oh my God !!!... I was so entrenched in securing a bright future that I forgot to enjoy my Present.... :-( This made me delve my past.... "When was the last time that I enjoyed the first rain of the season?"... "When was the last time that I tried to hone my hobbies?"... "When was the last time I worked on something whole-heartedly?" ... "When was the last time I enjoyed the beauty of nature?"... Many more such pertinent questions came to my mind....
The entire string of events reminded me of a saying which I heard somewhere -
"Past is like an Out-dated cheque.... Future is like a Promissory Note..... Present is the Cash that you have.... Spend it wisely."
It seemed like a bolt from the blue.. But really, this saying was so simple yet so complicated to achieve... I decided to strive to change my mindset... Strive to enjoy my present more.... Do things Dil Se.... Ultimately, we need to "Work to live, not live to work". Period.
