Aspirations, Breakthroughs and Compromises

How many times can you try ?

10000 times Thomas Edison created failed prototypes of the electric bulb before succeeding, 5126 times James Dyson created failed prototypes of the vacuum cleaner before succeeding, 1500 times Sylvester Stallone was rejected when he tried selling his script and himself as the film “Rocky”, 1009 times Colonel Sanders, who just started KFC was turned down when he tried selling his fried chicken recipe and a million times did my mind reject the alluring thought of writing, before I succeeded ! If achieving things was a piece of cake , then there will not be anyone who can’t cut a mustard.

Number of attempts needed for you to succeed = Number of attempts you didn’t try hard enough + One attempt where you didn’t stop for anything but success

How Strong are you ?

Do you have 1510 Megapascals of Tensile strength like Tungsten has or are you content with something like 15 MegaPascals of Tensile strength, that Rubber has ? How far can you push yourself before you breakdown ? The human mind knows no limits. Your mind has everything it takes to make you star in a Thaumaturgy of a Cock and Bull story. Strength isn’t about the ability to lift weights in the gym , it’s about how much can you absorb and push the grit when you have a hard row to hoe. No one will ever take you under their wing and this world is nothing but an amphitheatre where you are a Roman Gladiator taking on rest of the world.

What do you aspire to be ?

The only difference between being a dead duck and being a head honcho is not being a worrywart because of what few armchair critics talk about you . Efforts put in without aspirations are not worth a damn. “I aspire to work for a good company and to be a good employee”, a group of students answered blatantly when asked about their aspirations. But, a majority of them had no answers for the question, “Which is a good company ?” or “Who is a good employee ?”. Aspirations can take you to places, you once thought you could never reach. Settle for nothing but the best, never be content with what you achieve and have the hunger to live to die another day. “Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky”, quoted Rabindranath Tagore in Stray Birds showcasing the importance of considering things the right way . If you always keep thinking about what you cannot be, you would always miss out on realising the potential you have. Decide ! Decide what is that you are going to be remembered for. What is that, you as a person, would want to be when death comes calling ? Hitching your wagon to a star is always an option! But wouldn’t it be breathtaking if you could be that star ?

When do you call it a breakthrough ?

Sometimes, it takes an overwhelming breakdown to have an undeniable breakthrough. At the very moment when people underestimate you is when you can make a breakthrough. The question is, how do we weather the storm? Who do we put our trust in, as we face difficult times? Do we turn to a friend or write to Dear Abby for help? Breaking down is the precursor to breaking through. In the wake of an upset, there is the opportunity to regroup, press the reset button, and start anew, only from a newly awakened perspective. The most fertile questions focus the mind on valuable overlooked corners of the universe of possible improvements. Don’t call it a breakthrough unless you have found an answer for “Why did I even think about doing this?”. A breakthrough can be of any size, magnitude and can belong to any stream. But don’t call it a day until you have extinguished that fire in your belly to get what you dreamt of !

Can you afford to compromise ?

“Human beings are born solitary, but everywhere they are in chains – daisy chains – of interactivity. Social actions are makeshift forms, often courageous, sometimes ridiculous, always strange. And in a way, every social action is a negotiation, a compromise between ‘his,’ ‘her’ or ‘their’ wish and yours.” explained Andy Warhol beautifully ! What matters the most ? Is being good, good enough ? Shouldn’t reaching the summit be the goal ? There are times when a decision has to be taken to choose the path that leads to glory.  Either you can take the easy looking path that has a lot of diversions and distractions, or you can take a path that requires you to have unconditional belief on your ability and requires you to ignore certain roads that takes you to square zero. “All compromise is based on give and take, but there can be no give and take on fundamentals. Any compromise on mere fundamentals is a surrender. For it is all give and no take“, Mahatma Gandhi’s take on when you should surrender and when you shouldn’t. Don’t nosedive into the world of compromises just because you have to compromise. Stay put with what is the least that you are going to settle for. Now, as for how to end with a bang? Well, that’s another blog post for another time. Till the next time , keep trying!